Architects of Change Phase 4

Architects of Change Phase 4’s three-week programme is designed for Key Stage 2 (P6 and P7) students, targeting primary schools in Belfast. Rathlin Island will also take part in two of the programme’s workshops. This programme employs art and poetry to provide children with a hands-on, enjoyable, and educational experience concerning environmental and global issues.

Building on the foundation of Phase 3, Phase 4 introduces environmental poetry alongside artistic methods as an educational tool to educate children about climate change, sustainability, and environmental issues. Children’s interests differ widely; some enjoy arts and crafts, while others don’t, and this also applies to literacy and writing. Phase 4’s poetry component fosters children’s linguistic and artistic growth, boosting empathy, critical thinking, and creative writing skills. For the first time, Architects of Change offers something for every learner by combining art and poetry.

The three-week programme comprises an introduction to climate change and the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals, as well as significant environmental challenges such as deforestation, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. Students engage in a variety of hands-on activities, such as designing and illustrating eco-friendly superheroes, creatively repurposing and reusing discarded materials to produce collages, composing poetry that celebrates local natural areas, and writing poems to raise awareness of the environmental challenges faced by urban wildlife.