Peatlands

Peatlands are amongst Wales’ rarest and most important habitats.  On this page, you will find activity plans covering everything from ‘Why are bogs important?’ to instructions on how to calculate how much carbon is locked up in a square metre of peat.

All the activities and games will help you deliver against current curriculum and will enable learners to progress in the way described in the four purposes of the Curriculum for Wales.

A guide to peatlands 

Want to learn about peatlands? How they form and why they are important? Check out our information note.

Information note - Peatlands
Resource cards - Photos of peatlands

Why are bogs important?

This activity explains the many benefits that peatlands provide for both people and the environment.

Why are bogs important? (activity plan)
Why are bogs important? (resource cards)

To bog or not to bog? That is the question

Think you know bogs?  Put your knowledge to the test by playing this interactive game.

To bog or not to bog? (activity plan)
To bog or not to bog? (resource cards)
To bog or not to bog? (statements and answers)

How does peat form?

Our ‘On your marks, get set, accumulate!’ game is run in the form of ‘tag’ and explains to learners what peat needs to initiate and begin to accumulate. It also encourages discussion about the factors that can affect peat accumulation rates.

Activity plan – On your marks, get set, accumulate!
Resource cards – On your marks, get set, accumulate

How does a raised bog develop?

Raised bogs are one of Wales’ rarest and most important habitats. This video from the LIFE Welsh Raised Bogs Project explains how they began to develop up to 10,000 years ago.

Video - How raised bogs develop

Peat is neat – water filtering challenge

This activity focuses on the important role that peat soils in the uplands and wetland bogs play in helping to retain and naturally filter water.

Peat is neat (activity plan)
Peat is neat (worksheet)

Peatland food chains

Peatlands are teeming with wildlife.

Can your learners order themselves into a peatland food chain?

Activity plan – Make a food chain, #15 in our Animals and Habitats, Activities & Games pack.
Resource cards – Peatland food chains

On our Science and Technology webpage, we’ve got animal and habitat activities for you to try with your learners. Use our ‘Web of Life’ activity to create a peatland food web and explore interdependence and energy exchange.

Shrinking peatlands – assessing the impacts of human actions on peatlands

This activity explores what human actions are having an impact on fragile peatland habitats, what their consequences are, and investigates what can be done to restore peatlands.

Activity plan - Shrinking peatlands

Peatlands, carbon and climate change

Peatlands store vast amounts of carbon and act as a natural carbon sink, making them ideal for helping to tackle climate change. What are your learners’ individual carbon footprints? How much peat would be required to offset them? Our Peatland Carbon Calculator Worksheet will help your learners visualise how many metres cubed of carbon stored in peat would be required to offset it.

Activity plan – How much peat is required to offset your carbon footprint? ...Coming soon
Worksheet - How much peat is required to offset your carbon footprint? ...Coming soon
Resource cards – Carbon footprint ...Coming soon

Peatlands – from carbon sinks to carbon emitters

Any disturbances to a peatland can mean it changes from an ecosystem that absorbs carbon to an ecosystem that emits not only recent carbon, but
carbon absorbed over the last 12,000 years. Learn more about how peatlands can change from being carbon sinks to carbon emitters using our information note.

Information note - Peatlands: How carbon sinks can turn into carbon emitters

Planning a visit to a peatland with your group?

Peatlands are often protected habitats and are potentially hazardous environments. To ensure you and your learners have a safe and enjoyable visit, get in touch with us before your visit to get permission for your planned activities. We’ve got a short and simple form for you to complete and in our reply, we’ll tell you about any restrictions currently in place, help with maps and offer guidance.

Assessing peatland condition, depth, age and carbon content

Ask your learners to carry out a hands-on simple investigation to assess the condition, depth, age and carbon content of an area of peatland.

Activity plan - Assessing peatland condition, depth, age and carbon content
Worksheet - Assessing peatland condition, depth, age and carbon content
Task 7, Resource cards - Assessing peatland condition, depth, age and carbon content

New LIFE for Welsh Raised bogs

Learn more about the national restoration programme for raised bogs and peatland habitat in Wales.  Visit the LIFE Welsh Raised Bogs project webpage.

The project team have been asking visitors to become citizen scientists, ‘shutter up’ and take part in real scientific research that has been used to create a time-lapse film of two important raised bogs in Ceredigion - Cors Caron National Nature Reserve (NNR) and Cors Fochno..  You can see these two fascinating landscapes change through the seasons on the below video.

Video - Cors Caron and Cors Fochno time lapse video (LIFE WRB)

Outdoor learning research

Want to learn about the health and well-being benefits of outdoor learning? Need to justify taking your learners outdoors? Check out our information posters.