After loading up the van, we decided to take a walk down to The Crag, Foxburrow Farm. We went in look for coprolite and maybe even some shark teeth.

Coprolite is a fossilised animal poo; different types can be identified by their shape and this can even define the animal it came from. This can aid researchers in discovering eating habits of animals. Both coprolite and shark teeth can be found in various parts of Suffolk. 

After a couple minutes of digging around, we came across our first piece of coprolite and only seconds after, stumbled across two shark teeth. An amazing find and my first shark tooth! A couple of minutes later and much more scrabbling around, we came across two fossils that we couldn’t identify at first but after some research and asking around we found out that they were ray teeth; something we had never expected to find!

The Crag was dug by hand many years ago, unlike our modern machinery, so the fossils were kept intact and can be found fairly easily. We were truly in awe. 

Lucy Shepherd took me with her to The Bridge School where we were going to give a Forest School lesson. 

We started out by unloading everything we would need for the hour and a half session (a lot more than you’d think). As some of the students we were working with may struggle with fine motor skills, we started off the robin boxes to make it a little easier for them to get involved. We then signed in and set up. We had three students with us and they certainly enjoyed finishing off making the robin boxes and then decorating them. When finished, we packed up and signed out; off to Chantry Park to practise and learn some knots ready to put up some tarps for the Friday toddler group.

Day 3 started off with a muddy walk with the wheelbarrow down to the Orchard in Holywells Park, Ipswich. We then set up for our first group by lighting up the fire using kindling from oak twigs and mixed up the pancake batter. (The groups had missed shrove Tuesday because of the weather.) We then had our first group arrive, consisting of only one person but he was really cool to work with. It was also, apparently, the most interactive and positive he’s been, which felt amazing to be a part of.

After much devouring of pancakes it was time to eat lunch and set up for the next group, 16-24 year olds with additional needs, although as we were also making pancakes with a few other smaller activities there wasn’t too much for us to do, which gave me and Lucy time to catch up and talk about the week so far. Soon enough we heard the arrival of the next group. With this group we also had some breakthroughs with some of the students being the most comfortable they have ever been in these groups which made me feel honoured to experience. I truly enjoyed this group and loved the characters that came through in them as each one of them went through the activities and made their pancakes. 

Soon enough, it was the end of the session and time to learn about the website and social media channels. Me and Lucy found a comfortable cafe to sit in, that had free wifi, and got to work. First, Lucy went through step by step with me on how to put an event up on their website; then it was my turn. A couple of brain buffers later and a couple of problems on the website, we had success! We then gave up on our muddy shoes and sat in the cafe in our socks while I worked on my Ipswich Wildlife Trust Instagram takeover. Truly an amazing day.

Another busy day awakened as me and Lucy met at Holywells Park to unpack the van and prepare for the thunder of little feet to come.

We were lucky enough to have an Intern, Faye, join the chaos of toddlers in our wild tots group. We started with a walk down to the Orchard with the wheelbarrow and equipment. Then a quick set up for the tots, which even gave me and Faye time to practise our knots as well. We had everything from a fire, to make pancakes, to a wildlife trail and hammocks. Soon enough it was time for the tots. The session ran really smoothly, with plenty of new faces happy to join us as well as some who have come before. Everyone enjoyed all the activities and especially enjoyed the pancakes. We even got to see some pancake flipping skills from Lucy.

Later in the day, I joined Charlie at Arligtons to do an eco exhibition. It was really interesting to learn about how people use natural resources and “rubbish”. After talking to a few people I came across a person who had found a Megladon tooth bigger than his hand; he was incredibly passionate about it and we shared our own stories. I also gave weaving a go and I’d like to say I got quite good at it, after a long day it was time to pack up and finish an amazing day.

My final day started off without Lucy but with Bev and Kirsty, who were covering Lucy's sessions. We started, as ever, with the monstrous task of unloading and deciding what we did and didn’t need, and a little bit of planning and chatting to get to know each other.

(The sessions that were being run were a Wilder Group, aged 6-11, and, my group, Young Wardens, aged 11-16.) 

We began with setting everything up, which I had learnt to get used to, and trudged the wheelbarrow and endless boxes through the mud to the Orchard. We set up lots of bird themed activities as we were making bird boxes, which everyone did incredibly well at. I got to teach some of the children about all the different birds we had out in the park, as a very birdy person I found this incredibly exciting. They then planted lots of Blue Bell Crocuses and made nesting hoops to give the wild birds extra materials for their nest. Before I knew it, it was the end of the session and time for a well earnt lunch.

A few munches later, it was time for Young Wardens, marking the end of my work experience. I was lucky enough to get the opportunity to plan the group's activities so of course I had to choose litter picking as an activity but first we had the muddy path that needed tackling. We did our best but because of the mud our wood chipping path looked a little like “brownie mix”. We had a short break and then flew back up to the stable blocks to arm ourselves with our litter picker equipment. Off we went. We often find some wacky stuff, previously we have found items like two hoovers, found by me and some friends, and a fan, which we think might have been in working condition. In this session we managed to find a couple of bike parts, an old chair and part of a table. Definitely not a dull session to be had!

I really want to give a massive thank you to everyone from Suffolk Wildlife Trust for giving me such an incredible opportunity and experience over the last week. And a special thanks to Lucy who has been with me the whole time and made it even more enjoyable and interesting. It has been a once in a lifetime experience for me and I could not have asked for more; I’ve loved every minute of it.

Thank you so much and I hope to work with you all again in the future.

Applications for work experience open in October 2022