Fungi to be With is pleased to offer courses and forays for the younger learner. Our children are the guardians of our woodlands and parks and we must, therefore, look to them to respect and protect them for the future generations.

In order to protect our woodlands, children need to understand the relationships between our plants, trees, insects, wildlife and fungi. For example, do they know that fungi can ultimately determine the type of wildlife found in our woodlands?

The Fungi to be With Workshop for primary schools provides practical activities and experiences for the students to learn about the magical world of fungi. Andy provides an easy and entertaining learning experience for these children. Read more about this program below.

Students will discover how fungi form a vital part of the natural environment and how they are often overlooked because of their small size. They will learn that without fungi, fallen tree trunks would take hundreds of years to decay and without fungi we would find ourselves waist high in leaf litter. Fungi are also a vital food source for insects and woodland animals.

The workshop lasts for two to three hours

Classroom Outline – 45 Minutes to One Hour

• Class asked with show of hands to share what they know about fungi. No wrong answers.
• Share video of fungi growing.
• Discussion using fungi examples for them to look at, touch, smell and ask questions.
• Sharing fungi facts including it has its own unique kingdom, the lifecycle, number of fungi in world, how they decompose leaf litter and old trees.
• Have students create a mycelium with six balls of wool (like an exaggerated cats’ cradle). This reinforces the lifecycle including how spores are shed to create a new mycelium.
• Quiz on what they remember and the game Odd One Out.

Foray – Two Hours

Following the classrooms session, students will be taken on a guided one to two hour walk in a local woodland or park.

This walk will help reinforce the role of fungi, where it can be found, and how to help conserve the natural environment. It will also show how every action we take in the outdoors can have an impact on the environment.

On completion of the event, the students will feel highly rewarded with their finds and their knowledge; they will also have a heightened respect for the UK’s parks and woodlands.

Fungi to be With will provide two leaders for this exercise and depending on the size of the group the school must supplement with teachers.

These events last between two and three hours and may be conducted Monday to Fridays at your local woods or one of the following locations:

Wimbledon Common

Epping Forest

Puttenham Common

Hampstead Health

Fungi To Be With Leader, Andy Overall is an experienced field mycologist and has been leading Fungi Workshops & Forays in and around Greater London for over 20 years. To learn more about these services please contact Andy by email at  mush.room@fungitobewith.org or telephone  07958 786374