IN WEEK two of this spring term Year 3 at Cogan Primary School were given a task – “Who are the WWF and what do they do?”

There followed a project that grew daily due to the children’s mounting enthusiasm.

First they used iPads to research the company and once they had discovered that the WWF had special programmes to help protect endangered wildlife the children choose to research all the animals and present what they knew to the class.

This sparked the children into wanting to adopt an animal – they were particularly concerned about the Amur Leopards as there are only estimated to be 35 left in the wild. But the next question their teacher, Mrs Mayor, asked was – “How can we afford the £36 that we need in order to adopt one?”

The children came up with fundraising ideas and planned a Big Sale Day which involved selling cakes, lemonade, word-searches (that they had made) and pictures of endangered animals. The sale was so successful it was run over two days and when the children added up the sum raised (and took out their costs) they found they had raised enough for three and a half animals.

But not content with this they put their hands in their pockets and gave the extra £13 from their class reward scheme to top up the amount to a whopping £144. This meant they could adopt not one but four animals.

After a series of votes they adopted an Amur leopard in Russia, a mountain gorilla in Rwanda, a Hawksbill turtle in Lamu (East Africa) and a jaguar in Brazil.

Mrs Mayor said: “The children have really enjoyed this project and worked tremendously hard. I am so proud of them and the fact that they are doing something to care for their planet by helping to look after these beautiful creatures.”