How do new cars come halfway around the world from Asia, travel
up the Thames estuary and end
up in showrooms here in the UK?
A map of the world, some coloured pens and, most important, brain power holds the answer.

Bright-eyed pupils at Franciscan Primary School in Tooting, South London, need only a little help from teacher Kate Caseley to find out.
She works for Thames Explorer
Trust, an education charity, funded
by us to instruct kids across
London about our work in helping
to keep the Thames clean, safe
and navigable. It does this though
a series of workshops which
educate young Londoners about
the river’s history and what it
means in a scientific and
geographical context.

One girl in class 5B is certain how cars get from South Asia to the
Port of London via an artificial Egyptian waterway: “They come through the Sewers Canal!,” she tells her classmates, to muffled sniggers. But the workshops aren't just mere Q&A sessions, as Kate explains.

.

“We use an ‘active learning’ approach because it means
they listen more. There is roleplaying and games which spark their imagination.”

Kate says kids learn about
the importance of the Thames environment and how the waterway has evolved. The workshops include hands-on activities using the “Port of London floor game” – two
large floor maps of the world
and of the Thames Estuary. Pupils investigate world trade
and the Port of London to
gain an understanding of geography on a local and global scale. This is followed by
fun roleplaying activities
to discover the history of the
Port of London.

“It’s alarming sometimes,
how little many kids in
London know about the river.
We think these workshops
are great because it builds on what they’re already learning
and gives them a real sense of being part of the community.”