Gen Alpha school pupils inspired to log on for nature

The new school term for the Nature Discovery Map Scotland is being launched with a promotional film celebrating the experience of teachers and pupils at Braes High School in Falkirk, a set of easy and exciting free lesson plans, and a webinar programme for teachers, sharing ways to bring nature-based learning into everything from maths and literacy to emotional wellbeing and food.

The digital suite of map-based tools, developed by NatureScot on behalf of Scottish Government, supports the government’s Target 2030 vision to build an inspiring movement for change so every 3-18 place of education becomes a sustainable learning setting. The toolkit supports Scotland’s young learners in STEM, digital literacy, and cross-curricular learning while also promoting climate education, outdoor learning and nature-positive improvements to school grounds.

Young people can access fun and easy mobile apps to learn and record local information about all kinds of habitats and sustainability features, including hedgerows, trees, long grass, bird boxes, solar panels and compost bins. This information can then be displayed on interactive dashboards and compared to other schools, stimulating classroom conversations and planned activities locally and nationally.

Local authorities across Scotland already signed up to the toolkit and recording data about the habitats within their school grounds include:

• Argyll & Bute
• Dumfries & Galloway
• East Renfrewshire
• Falkirk
• Highland
• Inverclyde
• Moray
• North Ayrshire
• Orkney

Dr Wilson-McCaw, a teacher from Braes High said: “We were looking for a way of creating great experiences with nature, so we worked with Falkirk Council to get the Nature Discovery Map on our iPad. It didn’t take long to do, and once we had it set up, we got it running in a class after just 10-15 minutes.

“Our whole class was able to access the app, and the young people found it incredibly exciting to be able to take photos to show their space and their world. The app is a fantastic tool for teachers who may not be confident working in STEM and helps change how young people see the world around them.”

NatureScot’s Nature Engagement Manager, Sharon Cunningham said: “We are excited by the enthusiastic and imaginative response so far to the Nature Discovery Map Scotland. Its roll-out across the country will encourage outdoor learning, increase the benefits of being connected to the natural world and support skill development, helping our young people thrive and nature flourish.

“Alongside using their school grounds and local greenspaces more often and across more areas of the curriculum, we also want to see schools making improvements to these spaces for people and nature. Providing bird boxes and bughouses, planting trees and hedgerows, and creating mini meadows and new ponds all help to make the school estate a nature-friendly place. While individually small in scale, such changes can have a big impact on knowledge opportunities for our young people, create nature networks, and help nature recovery and climate resilience.”

Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic, Mairi McAllan said: “Children and young people are instinctively aware of the imperative of tackling climate change. Relating it to their daily experiences through technology and outdoor learning means this will form a real and meaningful part of their daily learning.

“Learning for sustainability, embedded in Scotland’s curriculum and supported by our “Target 2030” action plan, helps pupils to learn about real world issues such as climate change, social justice and rights. Kids and young people want to make a real difference in their school and in the wider community. This plan shows them how to do just that.

“Learning in the great outdoors is integral to this approach, where through education we can lay the groundwork for the next generation of Scots.”

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