Primary school pupils in the north of the island have been learning about farming and food production ahead of studying the subject at secondary school.
Ramsey Grammar School staged livestock roadshows for five schools – Bunscoill Rhumsaa, Sulby, Jurby, Laxey and Andreas.
Ramsey Grammar breeds pigs, sheep and poultry at its rural sciences unit, which is unique to the island.
Students run the facility in the way they would a farm, caring for and feeding the animals, mucking out and carrying out maintenance.
Rural science is a compulsory subject for 11 to 14-year-olds and around a third of them go on to sit a GCSE in environment and land-based science. Post-16, the school offers a BTec in agriculture.
The school has a Rural Science Animal Club, which recently witnessed a live birth when a ewe delivered lambs. It ran a ‘virtual lambing live’ activity this spring, with students watching from classrooms by computer.
Meat is sold by Ramsey butcher WE Teare while farm produce is taken home by students and eggs used in cookery classes.
Marion Cottier, who heads the rural sciences unit, said: ‘It is important for a rural school such as ours to offer students the chance to learn about an industry that’s traditional but one that is important to the economy today.
‘Although the north is heavily farmed, and many families’ livelihoods will be linked to farming, for some children it will be the first time they have come so close to such animals.
‘With the government placing great emphasis on the development of the food and drink industry, the roadshows introduce more children to the ongoing importance of farming to us as an island.
‘The roadshows form a fun part of the transition work our school does preparing primary pupils to start at secondary school.’