The Natural Science Day with the new stewards – Gimnazija Franceta Prešeren Kranj, Slovenia

In the middle of September we participated in the Natural Science Day at  Gymnasium France Prešeren. Besides physics and chemistry, the students also learned about the basics of ecology. We presented these through the eyes of the wolf and the lynx, so the concepts gained meaning through examples that were a little more lifelike than mere definitions.

Franceta Prešeren Gymnasium is the first Steward participating in the project LIFE WOLFALPS EU in cooperation with the Biotechnical Faculty. Stewards are those who identify with at least part of the project’s goals – in this case, education.

The Gymnasium plays an important role in educating young people, for whom it is crucial to form their own opinions about what is happening around them. Given the presence of wolf packs in Gorenjska, knowledge about wolf ecology is one of the most important issues, and the Natural Science Days are an opportunity to form their own opinion.

We discussed with the students some basic ecological terms such as environment, ecosystem, habitat, biodiversity, etc. These are terms that we often think we know the meaning of, although it is not always that simple. Some students had many questions, which we answered. We believe that questions are the most important part of teaching because they show interest and independent thinking about the subject.