Plants and play − promoting universal skills

The University of Gloucestershire is lead partner in the Pappus project (Plants and Play Promoting Universal Skills), an Erasmus+ funded programme offering playful springboards into learning, using commonly found plants as a context, resource and inspiration.

The project brings together educators from six European countries to collaborate, share knowledge and expertise, and create a unique resource for schools, play settings and families.

Immersion in the natural world is essential for children’s emotional and mental wellbeing, and active learning is also great for their physical health. Pappus provides teachers, play workers and families with springboards to inspire high-quality learning and play using easily-sourced plants.

The project team is developing three resources: the Pappus Toolkit, CPD Programme and Resource Library.

The Pappus Toolkit guides the user through the process of working with plants to create playful encounters that build on and stretch young people’s understanding of the world around them.

The CPD training programme is aimed at teachers, teaching assistants and play workers.

The Resource Library is under development and will include links to organisations, websites, blogs, books and videos.

Leonie Burton, Client Development Manager and Pappus Project Leader, University of Gloucestershire said:
“Together, the Pappus resources will help enrich learning and play through reconnecting children and young people with the natural world. And because taking learning beyond the classroom is not always easy, we’ve included strategies to help identify and overcome such barriers.

“As Europe strives to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic, we feel that Pappus will be even more relevant than when it was first scoped out.”

Find out more about Pappus here.