Schools across Birmingham paid tribute to Sir David Attenborough on his 100th birthday, with one teacher calling for an annual event in his name. The national treasure and conservationist reached an incredible milestone on May 8, with tributes shared around the city.
Teacher Proposes David Attenborough Day
Zafroon Bibi, a Year 6 teacher at Thornton Primary School in Ward End, suggested that David Attenborough Day should be 'one day a year in the curriculum where no one spends time indoors, but goes outdoors, looks after nature and switches all the power off'. Ms Bibi added: 'It would be an opportunity to celebrate, plant, look around, write poems, do a bit of art, enjoy the nature.'
Eco-Friendly Initiatives at Thornton Primary
Following in Attenborough's footsteps, Thornton Primary School has 114 rooftop solar panels, an Eco Council, vegetable patch, and weekly gardening club. School Business Manager Hameeda Ahmed said she was inspired by Sir David to create the school's bee garden. 'Because he said what would happen to food production with the lack of bees, we've had bee-loving plants put in our garden and you should have seen last year, how many bees, hovering wasps and flies are there now that we never had before', she said.
Student and Teacher Tributes at University of Birmingham School
At University of Birmingham School in Selly Oak, Year 9 student and climate ambassador Titus said: 'I think Attenborough is the embodiment of nature. He saw it from when he was young and he travelled the world. So he can really show the differences because he saw them. He knows how things have changed, how species have been killed off by humans. He can really put emotion into it because it was his childhood.' Tara, in the same year, said one of her favourite things about Attenborough documentaries is 'just how vibrant he makes it, and he captures some small things that I don't even notice when I'm out in nature, which is just really, really cool'.
Emily Pyper, a Biology teacher at the school, said Attenborough was a 'huge hero' for her. 'I was lucky enough to hear him speak at Glastonbury, it must have been 2019, and he was fantastic, he speaks with such passion about the planet in general and the importance of sustainability,' she said. She picked out the iconic sequence in Planet Earth II of racer snakes hunting a baby iguana as a memory that hadn't left her – 'To see this group of snakes all hunting one animal at the same time, it was beyond anything I'd ever seen, especially at that age.'
Impact at Ark Victoria Academy
Fatima, a student at Ark Victoria Academy in Small Heath, said Attenborough films make an impact on her as they are 'very visual, the resolution is really high, so you can see really close up, and it gives you a brief imagination of how it actually is. And his narration helps you be really interested and intrigued and to continue watching more'. Science teacher at Ark Victoria Abdul Aziz said that as a boy in East London, he always looked forward to watching Attenborough documentaries with his dad. 'I grew up at a time when there were very few TV channels and you'd have to wait til a Sunday evening to watch a wildlife programme. I had fights with my sister because she wanted to watch a movie, and I wanted to watch Life on Earth.'
Principal Ela McSorley says the Academy has used an Attenborough quote about the future of life on earth to help students think about the nature of community service. 'He's somebody who reminds us to be mindful of our actions, to think about the planet, to think about the animals and to really care about the way we act and behave,' she said. 'That's why he's such an important role model for all of us.'
