Children are the decision-makers of the future, and understanding of and knowledge about nature is a necessary starting point for preserving nature. However, fewer children play freely outdoors as a part of daily life. We will use narrative popular science about peatland ecosystems (storification), with the main objective to increase children's knowledge and understanding of how important nature is for human wellbeing. We want children to gain a relationship with peatlands, and learn about how they are important, not the least as a means to mitigate climate change.
To this end, we use a fictional character, Myrtassen, inviting children to explore different aspects of peatlands. Myrtassen is a magical creature with the ability to change in size and bring the audience down to the scale of cloudberries, mosses and even bacteria. In the story, Myrtassen takes a visitor to meet the organisms that constitute the unique biodiversity of a peatland, and they travel to the bottom of the peat to see how it all began – in the time just after the latest Ice Age.
We will use a mix of watercolour paintings and digital art to build a collage-like world that wraps the scientific context in an interesting learning environment. This story driven adventure will be the basis of an educational package, constituting i) the story, set on a digital platform including interactive elements, ii) fact sheets, that can be printed in large format and, iii) an activity bundle, which can be printed as work sheets.
Through collaborations with schools and visitors’ centres we will ensure pedagogical qualities of the material. We will reach the target group, school children 6-12 years old with three different approaches. First, through exhibitions in our collaborating visitors’ centres. Second, through the collaborating schools, as they will use the products. Third, all material will be freely available in its digital form, and free for all museums and schools, and their likes, to print and use.