What made you choose air quality and energy loss as your investigation topics?
Teacher: I got involved in the project and I just expressed an interest in getting more involved with the climate side. The school had to start putting together a sustainability plan and everything, and I just it was something I was more interested in becoming involved with. So our business manager said all these projects come through, would you like to take part? Yeah, I was kind of just intrigued by it. We did two investigations actually. We were looking at air quality and we also looked at energy loss with the thermal cameras.
How did you structure the activities?
Teacher: We use the CO2 monitors to measure the air quality inside. Then the children, we also use the magnifying glasses and the sheets to look for evidence of lichen growing outside. We also borrowed the thermal cameras because we wanted to look where we were losing energy, which I think the children found interesting, but I feel like they focused probably more on the air quality side of it in the end. Before we started the project, the first session we did with the children, we gave them a bit of a background, like what air quality is. And the children selected the areas where we were going to measure the air quality. So they thought about the different parts inside school they wanted to measure and they were already coming up with ideas like, well, it might be worse there because there’s more people in that space or like the dining hall, they said all the doors opening and closing all the time, so actually it might be better there.
What surprised you most?
Teacher: I think I was probably only surprised really at how engaged the children were. Yeah, the core group were just so enthusiastic, and I think I didn’t know if I expect them to be quite as enthusiastic as that. And I think also just the awareness that some of the children already had about climate issues. I think it brings it home, like how actually in younger people, it is already something a lot of them are thinking about, which maybe as an adult, we don’t quite always see that as much.
What have you taken from this experience?
Teacher: We’ve got now a little sustainability team within schools, so I’ve been part of that team, which I’m really pleased about. The air quality stuff was really interesting and we still got a little bit more to do on it actually and the children I worked with were really passionate and they keep nagging me about, can we get this finished? Can we go on to the next part of it? It’s made me definitely more engaged, a lot more thinking about sustainability issues and definitely climate issues. Just some of the results we saw, I would say it’s definitely affected that approach to just making sure windows are open and that airflow is good.
What happens next?
Teacher: The children shared their results with the head teacher. So the plan is they are now going to be doing an assembly for the whole school. And they’ve also come up with ideas that they discussed with the head teacher about things they want to see. They want to make sure windows are open on a regular basis in every classroom. They want to do things like try and get every classroom to have an indoor plant, get more outdoor greenery. Yeah, things like that will be beneficial to the school in the long run. I am planning to apply for additional funding. It’s just in year six we have SATS and lots of other stuff, so I’m just waiting until that’s out of the way because I want some time to really look at all the projects that are already in place, see what other schools have done. I really like the idea of getting more greenery in school and the impact of that. Our researcher, who I worked with on the project, she did express an interest in taking part if we took it further. So hopefully if she was still willing to do that, then I’d have the partner there from the STEM side.
What made you choose solar panels as your investigation topic?
Researcher: It was mainly because it was pretty much related to what I’m doing right now. I am working in an energy field area and that’s the closest part of it. And the teacher as well agreed to do that. Because it was my very first time to meet students in primary schools, I decided to have year six students rather than the younger one, because I know it might face some difficulties in terms of explaining the science to them.
How did you structure the activities?
Researcher: They did have some basic understanding, I would say, about this solar panel kit. So it was very interesting. They had more questions and they were excited because it’s a hands-on project, right? You can see the change immediately if we change the angle, if we change the LED and if you change the electrical devices, will it work or not? I also put an example specifically in Sheffield to, because we talked about other possibilities in terms of renewable energy, not only solar panel, but we also talked about wind and also hydro, the dome and the reservoir. I put the example about the Ladybower, so that they know that now we share it, we do have that, and it’s also possible to expand more.
What surprised you most?
Researcher: I actually initially expected that I would have kind of partner or another person that belongs to the same group as me. So I think I would expect that I would have a friend to have a discussion, because I was quite nervous to go to the school and especially it wasn’t located in Sheffield. But I think I managed all of them very well because I did visit kind of three times. And they also helped, the school provided some help to bring the kit to the class as well.
What have you taken from this experience?
Researcher: I feel that I have some improvements because after that, I’m still in contact with the research team and have included me in several events after that. So it really developed my confidence actually and I have several experiences working with schools voluntarily after that. So now I have a wide experience, not only for year six, I have also had experience with year two and year four. I know what kind of language that I could deliver because this study is quite specific. In terms of communication, it has some changes because you know it has a different audience. So you need to make sure that at which part that they understand so far and then from that we can continue.
What happens next?
Researcher: I would love to help with additional funding, I am happy to help and I’ve already said this to the research team. So I’m open to any opportunities. I think the programme, I think it’s because we are trying to put science closer to the students and in a very simple way. I think it’s important to give them the fun part of the science so that they want to know more later, or at least they are happy to learn about science and engineering.
What made you choose wind and renewable energy as your investigation topic?
Researcher: Well, for the second part of the year, autumn, the topics that the teacher from the Primary School were related to energy forces. And we opted to go for activities that already existed and a colleague recommend activities like the land yachts that was one. The teacher had an activity using a piece of cloth, like a sock, attached to a plastic bottle so the students could make bubbles and measure their displacement over a football field to give them an idea of wind.
How did you structure the activities?
Researcher: Eventually, the students conducted a third activity, and they built their own windmill, but at a small scale, following the reading of The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, which is a very popular reading among primary school students. And finally, the students, led by the teacher, designed a small model of a sustainable city, including some renewable energy sources like wind, solar, and they had the most amazing ideas creating paths for cyclists, they reflected on water supply, parking for disabled people. Brilliant work, honestly.
What surprised you most?
Researcher: Well, the weather. The weather at that time we were expecting wind and there was no wind. So that changed things a bit. We went to the windiest part of the school, the open field. For the next session, for the yacht session, the teacher thought of a piece of paper or cardboard, so the students would produce some wind. And that in retrospective, I think that was a great idea. When the students build their own windmill, the windmill was a bit flimsy, but at some point the students were a bit like, is it really going to work?
What have you taken from this experience?
Researcher: My approach was enriched because it is a different country, different culture, it was a primary level, and you have to get familiar with the language used to engage with these primary school students. The way you have to explain things was an amazing challenge. It was brilliant and they are amazing. I used to teach these things to high school and university students, but it was amazing to me how a ten-year-old was actually conceiving that in his own words. I find that very, very motivating and I needed that. Honestly, this programme was a great opportunity to reconnect with this activity.
What happens next?
Researcher: I haven’t applied for additional funding yet, but I have already met my line manager and has been great. I have discussed this already with him that I would like to continue doing these activities. I would like to be part of this in a longer run. People like me would love to keep collaborating with these schools, and if there were more options about it, I would love to hear about it.
What made you choose water and flooding as your investigation topic?
Researcher: Over the last few years, and I mean, sort of like an average of probably one every five years, there were flooding issues. And so there was this real concern that came up. So we looked at whether the school already collected some really basic data on climate and weather. And so we headed down that route of climate data and climate generally and weather generally. The Academy kindly funded the installation of a weather centre that’s now on the roof and giving constant data onto the internet.
How did you structure the activities?
Researcher: In class, what we did was a very basic overview of water management and flood risk management from their point of view. We started at a level and then we kept coming down until they understand. When we were doing that, the students started to realise that really horrible things like trigonometry, for example, working out the area of things, is like, why are we doing this? And then here we are looking at three-dimensional calculations and surface calculations and all of these other things. Some of them were just like, now I get it.
What surprised you most?
Researcher: One of the funniest things I did was I showed a picture – if you take a picture of the Earth, but over Hawaii, looking over the Pacific, you can’t see any landmasses. All you can see is the odd island if you squint, but it just looks like water. And I showed a number of planets and said, what planet is this? And they all went, a lot of them went, oh, that’s Mars. And then I showed that Earth picture and they all went, oh, is it Neptune? No, it’s not Neptune, is it? And it was just so wonderful, you know, them realising different points of view, different perceptions that we are in a water world and that water is so important. The realisation on them that, wow, I never looked at the world like that. And that was all wonderful.
What have you taken from this experience?
Researcher: It was incredibly positive in terms of experiencing the general engagement with science. Whereas all the students were just so engaged at that age, it’s just such a wonderful experience to feel that. I would have probably volunteered at the Energy Hub in the city centre anyway, but it did mean that I could bring in a lot more material and ideas about what I taught with the students. Experiencing that was really useful when talking to people about this.
What happens next?
Researcher: There’s a discussion about whether I will follow those students up a year and we’ll change the topic. We’ll upgrade the topic to something else that’s water-based maybe. For next year I’m hoping to show them my research in hydroponics and aquaponics, which is what I do. That’s my PhD research. So we could expand into that. It’s water again, but it’s about what we’re doing.
What made you choose biodiversity as your investigation topic?
Teacher: The easiest way for me to undertake the project was to do it from my own classroom because I’m a full-time teacher. So we chose biodiversity and we used the night vision cameras. That was where it began. I picked that because it was more suited to the age of the children. It had to be something I could run in school time alongside everything else that we were doing.
How did you structure the activities?
Teacher: We got the children to understand what animals might visit the grounds at night. We made fact files about the animals. We predicted what we might see. The night vision cameras were set up in a specific area of the grounds. At the end we had an opening event where all the children came to that, and actually one of the nights when I was setting up the camera, a little girl came down with her mum to show her the area and tell her what we’d been doing.
What surprised you most?
Teacher: What surprised me was just the fact that the community, the parents are involved as well. Even when they hadn’t been directly involved, they start seeing the social media stuff. And there was one morning I was going out to go and put the camera down and this dad was like, oh, he’s told me all about this. Like, there was a fox, are you going to put it out again?
What have you taken from this experience?
Teacher: It’s given me a bit more confidence to sort of just get out and like use our school grounds. Realising how easy it was, I suppose, like it felt like a big project to undertake, but actually to get the kids out there, to get them involved, it took a little bit of planning, but it was actually not that difficult to sort of make it happen.
What happens next?
Teacher: We’re having an outdoor day in a couple of weeks actually with the idea that all the children on the same day from reception right up to year six are going to get outside and they’re going to be doing things like each year group can choose their own things. There’s scavenger hunts and bug hotels, but some of it just observing the nature. I’m also going to be rolling out some lessons for reception children around climate change next year because there isn’t really planning out there. I’m going to be doing something either half termly or termly that will roll out throughout the whole year.
What made you choose invertebrate diversity as your investigation topic?
Researcher: So for the project with school, we decided to look at insect, well, invertebrate diversity in different habitat types. And so we chose different areas within the school grounds. They conveniently had a wooded area, a big grass and a big grass field. So that kind of made two very different habitats.
How did you structure the activities?
Researcher: We had some classroom sessions where the students came up with some predictions about what they thought might happen. And so we did that before we set out the pitfall traps. Then we left the pitfall traps for about a week and then the kids all went out and we went and had a look to see what we could find. I also went in for an extra session towards the end where I just happened to have some moth traps. So we set up some moth traps again in different places in the school grounds.
What surprised you most?
Researcher: I think it’s a year four class and I’d never taught them (that age) before. So that was quite different. The way that the knowledge the children had and also kind of the biases the children already had, like against the natural world – that already seemed to be embedded in them. They didn’t care. But equally, when prodded and given the encouragement, they’re very quickly engaged with that kind of thing.
What have you taken from this experience?
Researcher: For me, it made me think a bit more about how we teach it and how we as a university engage with primary level education. For me, that was quite useful because I am a teacher full time basically at university. So seeing it at primary school end is quite interesting.
What happens next?
Researcher: I’m looking at applying for a partnership grant. We’re going to look at invertebrate diversity in different patches of the playground in the school. And then we’re going to dig up what is grass or just bare earth and lay some wildflower turf onto those areas. And then the children will then come back the following year. Then when they’re in year two, they’ll go back again and then quantify the insects they see in those patches and see if there’s a measured increase in diversity or abundance of these insects. If schools can do that, and if we can show that we can even just like cutting up a 20 metres squared of playing grass and replacing it with wildflower turf, and it looks nice too.
What made you choose air quality as your investigation topic?
Teacher: I became involved through our school’s science quality mark process. The research team sent out information, and air quality stood out to me because it felt relevant and achievable. Our STEM partner was brilliant – she works in public health at the council, so she brought this whole other dimension. She helped us realise the connection between planetary health and public health and air quality.
Researcher: I work across several roles-council, university lecturer in materials engineering, evaluation lead-so I was looking for something that bridged those worlds. Indoor air quality monitoring fit perfectly. I wanted to co-design everything with the teacher and children rather than arriving with a predetermined agenda.
How did you structure the activities?
Teacher: We did it in a couple of stages, so we kind of broadened it each time. They started by looking just in their classroom. We were able to compare different areas of the classroom-by the window, by the door, next to the desk. Then we eventually got to a point where the children were taking the air quality monitors to different places around the school to compare the air quality around the school with the classroom. We looked at lichens as well as natural air quality monitors because we’re a concrete jungle. We don’t have a field, there’s no grass, there’s not very many trees. So the children also don’t have very much access to that.
Researcher: I produced slide decks and sorting activities for the children and alongside the teacher, the teacher then turned these into laminated resource kits that they could spread amongst the school. The scientific process-designing a hypothesis, collecting data properly, analysing it, thinking about conclusions. But also-and this matters-considering your audience. How do you present this so it actually changes something? How does it affect human health and climate health around you?
What surprised you most?
Teacher: We had this moment where there was a fire at a nearby building and the air quality monitors were alarming. The children wrote down: there is a fire over the road. So we plotted the results and saw the anomalies-and they connected that to outdoor pollutants affecting indoor air quality. It wasn’t a lesson. It was real discovery happening in front of them.
Researcher: It felt collaborative. It felt natural. It felt like a learning environment. It felt like it was reflective. It was everything and more I hoped it to be. I recognised that she was an absolute specialist in terms of teaching and understanding the audience that is year 4 and she recognised that I was an expert in the room around research design methodology and climate science.
What have you taken from this experience?
Teacher: I’d probably run it again, but I’d want more time to deepen it even further. The momentum was there. Children would come in with questions; parents would ask about air quality at home. That tells you something is working.
Researcher: The co-design methodology, it brought a lot to my learning. I have my preconceived ideas of what I gave to them, but they certainly gave that opportunity to co-design and following that type of methodology, it brought a lot to my learning. This approach showcasing a journey through video rather than a report, I’ve now taken into other projects and other areas of my work entirely.
What happens next?
Teacher: It built my confidence a lot in the knowledge of the topic and being able to deliver that to children. On the strength of this project, I went to a climate conference at Sheffield Hallam, and I’ve unofficially taken on the role of eco ambassador at school. I’m planning climate literacy lessons for reception children next year-there’s literally nothing out there for that age group, so I’m creating it myself. The confidence this gave me… I wouldn’t have done that before.
Researcher: I’ve also offered out the lichen air quality monitoring to schools, so there’s regional reach for you. I delivered this in Rotherham and now I’ve proposed to move it to schools and handed them my pack of things to do at a Doncaster school.
A Royal Society Partnership Grant Seed Award project connecting South Yorkshire primary schools with university STEM professionals for authentic climate education.
The Project
Funded by the Royal Society through a Partnership Grant Seed Award, the project connected 25 South Yorkshire primary schools with university-based STEM professionals to deliver authentic climate and sustainability investigations rooted in local contexts. The project ran across two cohorts between September 2024 and March 2026.
CPD delivery for teachers and STEM researchers
Why this mattered
South Yorkshire ranks in the top ten nationally for STEM research funding, yet the region scores significantly lower on cultural engagement with science. The expertise existed but wasn’t reaching children and communities in schools. We deliberately focused on schools with high proportions of children on free school meals, high SEND, or pupils from minority ethnic backgrounds. The expertise was there. It just needed connecting.
The project had four core aims:
To engage children in authentic scientific enquiry linked to their local environment
To build teachers’ confidence and subject knowledge in climate science
To support STEM professionals in developing their science communication and public engagement skills
To create lasting connections between schools and universities that could be sustained through future funding
Wildlife Camera capturing ‘who came to tea’ in an infant school in the project
What we did
Investigations were drawn from a menu of themes including air quality, biodiversity, renewable energy generation, sustainable drainage systems, and energy efficiency in school buildings. Each school and STEM professional pair was encouraged to tailor their chosen topic to their community, so the science children were investigating was rooted in their own place.
The project included:
A full-day training event at the start, covering climate science policy, investigation equipment, and partnership building
Ongoing mentoring and support from Sheffield Hallam University’s research team
Access to investigation kits and specialist resources from partners including Solar for Schools and the National Education Nature Park
Celebration events at Sheffield Hallam University where schools came together to share their findings
What we found
The evidence from our research shows significant impact across all participants. We gathered data through interviews and surveys with teachers and STEM professionals, with ethics approval from Sheffield Hallam University (ER78155981).
For children
“You don’t see them, right? And then you see them in a pitfall trap and it’s like, oh my god, llok, it’s loaded. I think it’s really useful for them to actually see there is a huge diversity of life, even if you can’t immediately see it.”Researcher, invertebrate diversity project
Across every interview and most survey responses, children’s enthusiasm and curiosity stood out as one of the project’s most powerful outcomes. This engagement rarely stayed inside the classroom. Children took their learning home, told their parents, and in several cases sparked interest from siblings and other year groups.
Children’s engagement was deepest when the science felt relevant to their own lives. The air quality projects found powerful local hooks: the road outside school, the traffic at drop-off time, a nearby fire showing up on the monitor.
“We were amazed to see the badgers, foxes, squirrels and other animals. The children told their classes about the rhythms and routines they observed – the badger, fox and squirrels all had very set night-time routines and patterns.”Teacher, biodiversity and wildlife camera project
Several participants noted that investigative learning creates space for children who struggle in other contexts to find their footing and be heard.
Children became innovators through unique research in their local area
For teachers
“It built my confidence a lot in the knowledge of the topic and being able to deliver that to children. On the strength of this project, I went to a climate conference at Sheffield Hallam, and I’ve unofficially taken on the role of eco ambassador at school.”Teacher, air quality project
All three teachers interviewed described significant growth in their own confidence and motivation as a result of the project. For some this was primarily about subject knowledge; for others it was about finding new ways to structure learning and involve children in genuine enquiry.
The confidence gain was also about recognising that the project could be sustained independently. Several teachers described feeling equipped to run investigations again without the STEM professional, representing a shift in capacity rather than dependency.
“We are able to do it now without our partner, much as we’d love to have her in again. My colleague and I think, actually, we could do that again. We’ve got it all recorded, so we can replicate it quite well.”Teacher, air quality project
Professor Kaisu Koski, visiting her partner school
For STEM professionals
“If I ask a question to 80 undergrads, not one person answers. If you ask a Year 4 class, the whole room puts their hand up. The kids are just interested. I find that, honestly, wonderful.” Researcher, water and flooding project
For STEM professionals, the project offered something different from their usual working environment: an audience that was unreservedly curious, and a challenge requiring them to think carefully about how they explain what they know.
For those earlier in their careers, including PhD students and postdoctoral researchers, the project built confidence in public engagement and science communication. More established researchers reflected on how the experience had challenged their assumptions about what primary-age children already know.
“I hadn’t appreciated how broad the knowledge base of children of that age is. Some of them I could have taken into my undergraduate classes and they’d have been fine. Others were all keen, but no. I have nothing but admiration for teachers who do that every day.” Researcher, water and flooding project
University students and school pupils undertaking data collection into wildlife in their local area
The quality of partnerships
The partnerships between teachers and STEM professionals were at the heart of the project. The best partnerships were characterised by mutual respect, flexibility, and a sense that both people brought something distinct and valuable.
“She recognised that I was an expert in research design and climate science. I recognised that she was a specialist in understanding Year 4. Both of us drew out what that could look like together.”Researcher, air quality project
What we learned for next time
Not every partnership worked as smoothly from the start. One recurring issue was uncertainty about roles in the classroom. Setting clearer expectations upfront about what STEM professionals can offer would help. Beyond partnerships, we found that:
School capacity is genuinely tight. Every school that joined the project completed something. No school disengaged entirely, which in a sector under these pressures is a real achievement.
University and school calendars don’t align, creating practical difficulties particularly during exam seasons and term-end periods.
Fixed-term contracts in higher education create barriers to continuity for researchers who want to take next steps.
DBS checks need early planning. The time taken to process checks caused delays for some STEM professionals.
Parent communications from one school
What came next (as of June 2026)
One of the most positive things about the evidence is how much has already happened beyond the formal boundaries of the project:
The Ripple Effect
Three schools have already applied for full Royal Society Partnership Grants
One researcher has had a Partnership Grant approved and is planning a longitudinal invertebrate diversity study with wildflower turf installation
Teachers have embedded new approaches across the curriculum and plan to scale to other year groups
One researcher shared the lichen air quality monitoring approach with another school in Doncaster
Children have taken scientific vocabulary and methods back to parents in ways that were often unprompted and surprising
One school has repeated the project with another year group and will be applying for funding to further develop their activities.
“We started small and then it was like, oh, but we could do this, and this, and this. It felt like a taster of what we could do. I’d love to give that opportunity to more children, not just two classes.” Teacher, air quality project
One school produced a film documenting all their project activity. This was showcased at Sheffield Hallam University to parents and carers.
Partners: Royal Society (funders), Sheffield Hallam University, University of Sheffield, Solar for Schools, National Education Nature Park, Energy Heroes and Climate Ambassadors.
Resources and further information
All resources and materials from the project are available on our blog pages, including investigation guidance, equipment specifications, and reflective materials.
