Children in nature and nature in the classroom

On top of Cathedral Rock.

I had the most fantastic outing with my family yesterday ... we climbed to the top of Cathedral Rock in Cathedral Rock National Park (New South Wales, Australia). 

What was so amazing about it was that, as teenagers, my kids still enjoyed getting outside! Their sense of wonder and awe about the natural world is still there! 

Climbing up through a crevice on the way to the top.

While walking we chatted about how the granite rocks got there, noticed that many of the plants had flower buds ready to pop open in spring and supported each other emotionally as the kids (and I) were pushed beyond our comfort zones as we scrambling to the top.

And the only time a device came out was on the way home to run a geocaching app to log a find!

Down we go holding onto the heavy chain.

This morning, I heard snippets from the interview between Sir David Attenborough and President Obama as they discussed the future of the planet and my ears pricked up when the conversation began discussing a kids sense of awe about the natural world.

This is how the conversation went ...

“Well, I've never met a child who’s not interested in natural history,” Attenborough said.

“Just the simplest thing – a five year-old turning over a stone and seeing a slug and saying ‘what a treasure’!

“Kids love it. Kids understand the natural world and they’re fascinated by it.

“So, the question is: how did anyone lose the interest in nature?

Not sure, but many have!

So how do we immerse kids in nature?

How do we keep them in awe of the outdoors? 

I don't have the answers, particularly considering, as Sir David said in his chat with President Obama that "over 50 per cent of the human population on the planet are urbanised which means that, to some degree, they are cut off from the natural world".

But I do think that classroom educators can keep nature in the minds of children by carefully selecting resources that include nature content in all curriculum areas, not just science or social study subjects.