Nature Class
Opening Nature Class.Look closely at minibeasts and discover that all creatures have special roles to help our planet stay alive.
Hunt for minibeasts in soil, under logs and in bushes. Look closely, ask questions, and put every creature back.
Read for Canonbury, a sample patch. Not your own grounds.
Bring the bug pots or viewers and magnifying glasses. If you can, check your patch the day before: lift a log, see who is home.
“Come into a circle, and stand still. Both feet on the ground.”
“Voices down. Listen for the furthest sound you can hear, and keep hold of it.”
Give this longer than feels comfortable. A class goes quiet on its own once it is hunting for a sound, and the quiet you wait for lasts longer than the quiet you ask for.
“Let that sound go. Eyes back to the circle.”
Say this one clearly. It is the line that ends the quiet, and a settling with no ending just trails off into the lesson.
“What was the furthest sound you heard?”
Hands up, or say it to the person next to you. A car, a bird, someone's dog: every answer is a real one.
“What is the highest thing you can see from here?”
Look at the sky together before you set off. Whatever it's doing, name it out loud.
Allow children to raise their hands to give feedback.
“If you were the size of a woodlouse, where would you hide?”
“What minibeasts do you know? Can you name them?”
“What is your favourite minibeast and why?”
Give children 10 minutes to explore their outdoor space, using only their senses.
“Take 10 minutes to explore. Look under logs, on leaves, in trees, and up in the sky.”
Bring the class back to the circle. Let them discuss in partners or raise their hands.
“What minibeasts did you find in our grounds?”
“How did you identify them?”
“How many legs did they have?”
“Did they have wings to fly?”
“Where did they live?”
Allow your class to go back to a spot in your grounds to thank the minibeasts.
“Go back to a quiet spot and thank a minibeast. They play an important part in keeping our planet alive.”
“Carry your minibeast back to where you found it and say a quiet goodbye.”
We borrow, we look, we give back. The whole lesson in one move.
“What job was your minibeast doing for our planet?”
Any guess counts as thinking like a scientist.
“Which minibeast would you like to be for a day, and why?”
looking and touching
Read for Canonbury, a sample patch. Not your own grounds.
Cut across the middle of each sheet. Punch the circles and clip the set together in order.
Skill: looking and touching
1/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
Bug pots or viewers
Magnifying glasses
Bring the bug pots or viewers and magnifying glasses. If you can, check your patch the day before: lift a log, see who is home.
2/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“Come into a circle, and stand still. Both feet on the ground.”
“Voices down. Listen for the furthest sound you can hear, and keep hold of it.”
This minibeast was met by
Look closely. Draw the minibeast you met, including the legs and wings you can see.
Draw the minibeast you met. Give it every leg it had, and every wing.
Where your minibeast was living, and where you put it back:
The job your minibeast was doing for our planet:
“Let that sound go. Eyes back to the circle.”
“What was the furthest sound you heard?”
“What is the highest thing you can see from here?”
3/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“If you were the size of a woodlouse, where would you hide?”
“What minibeasts do you know? Can you name them?”
“What is your favourite minibeast and why?”
4/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“Take 10 minutes to explore. Look under logs, on leaves, in trees, and up in the sky.”
5/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“What minibeasts did you find in our grounds?”
“How did you identify them?”
“How many legs did they have?”
“Did they have wings to fly?”
“Where did they live?”
6/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“Go back to a quiet spot and thank a minibeast. They play an important part in keeping our planet alive.”
7/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
“Carry your minibeast back to where you found it and say a quiet goodbye.”
“What job was your minibeast doing for our planet?”
“Which minibeast would you like to be for a day, and why?”
8/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
Where your minibeast was living, and where you put it back:
The job your minibeast was doing for our planet:
9/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class
Read for Canonbury, a sample patch. Not your own grounds.
10/10 · Minibeast huntingNature Class