Home
Blogs
Geography’s capacity to reconnect young people with nature: Part 2 of 2

Geography’s capacity to reconnect young people with nature: Part 2 of 2

27 June 2025

Read time: 7mins

‘There are simple, cost-effective ways to reintroduce students to the natural world – starting within the four walls of the classroom and perhaps adventuring to the wider school grounds.’

Daniella Marston

Part 2

The theory: A recap

In part 1, I reflected on the concept of ‘nature deficit disorder’ (Louv, 2005) – a term that encapsulates the growing disconnect between young people and the natural world.

As geography educators, we are uniquely positioned to address this issue, yet at the secondary level, many of the playful, exploratory activities that may have brought students closer to nature in primary school are often eclipsed by rigorous specifications, and increasingly time-pressured schedules.

As a result, students spend less time outdoors, and their engagement with the natural environment diminishes.

However, meaningful reconnection with nature doesn’t always require grand excursions or extensive planning. There are simple, cost-effective ways to reintroduce students to the natural world – starting within the four walls of the classroom and perhaps adventuring to the wider school grounds.

Sound: Forests

A peculiar example came unexpectedly during a visit to the supermarket, where I stumbled upon a bird-themed wall clock for £10. I placed it in my classroom without much thought, only to find it quickly becoming a focal point for curiosity and engagement – at each hour a different bird calls out.

Now students regularly hush each other just to hear the call of the blackbird at 9am or the cuckoo at 2pm or the great tit at 3pm. What’s more, several students have since reported hearing and identifying these birds in real life – an encouraging step toward ecological literacy sparked by a simple, everyday object.

Incorporating ambient sounds and natural imagery into lessons is therefore an easy but effective method. When studying ecosystems, for example, playing rainforest sounds on YouTube in the background of some (or all) of the lesson can help immerse students in the topic, creating a sensory-rich environment that fosters emotional and cognitive connections to what are usually very distant ecosystems.

This does, however, need to be balanced with a recognition of cognitive overload as well as sensory overload for some students.

Creativity: Rivers

Fieldwork remains a cornerstone of geography education – our department’s annual trip to Carding Mill Valley in Shropshire is a highlight of the GCSE curriculum. Yet key stage 3 students often miss out on such experiences. To bridge this gap, I’ve brought elements of fieldwork into the classroom, for example by simulating river valley environments. Activities such as creating contrasting valley models using…

tables pushed together
old blue bed sheets (this isn’t entirely necessary but helps to generate excitement and curiosity)
laminated pictures of invertebrates from the internet
sampling trays (either real or laminated) – you could borrow from your biology department perhaps!
biological ID cards – the invertebrate ID guide I printed and laminated for students to check their biological indicators against was produced by Imperial College London (OPAL, 2025)
rocks samples of decreasing angularity and long axis length (collected over time on various field trips and from my garden).

…have been a fun way to do this. I’ve created a River Itchen (a chalk stream with excellent water quality in Hampshire) and a River Rea (an urban river through the centre of Birmingham, local to school) in my classroom using tables.

Populating these ‘table rivers’ with printed and laminated stonefly larvae, dragonfly larvae, and rat-tailed maggots, as well as sediment load, may require some upfront effort, but the payoff in student engagement and understanding is well worth it, allowing them to build fieldwork skills such as using biological indicators to conclude river health and water quality.

Moreover, these activities open up discussions about careers in environmental science, conservation, and ecology—broadening students’ horizons beyond the stereotypical ‘geography teacher’ career path.

Images of a rat-tailed maggot and leech for poor water quality examples.
Images of mayfly and dragonfly larvae for good water quality examples.
(Imagery sourced from Canva)

Apps: Biodiversity

Taking students beyond the confines of the classroom to experience birdsong on the school site also offers an opportunity to foster direct engagement with the natural world. This can be an activity you conduct with your form / tutor groups instead of classes if you are under time pressures with the curriculum.

Digital tools such as the free Merlin Bird ID app provide an accessible means for students to identify local bird species, while platforms like ObsIdentify extend this capability to flora and other fauna. Encouraging students to annotate a map of the school grounds with their species observations not only cultivates ecological awareness but also promotes spatial thinking and meaningful interaction with the physical environment – all within a low-stakes, enjoyable activity.

After trialling this with both Y8 and Y13 students, I have seen increasing engagement and conversations regarding their natural surroundings – with students noticing the presence of chiffchaffs, bluebells and green woodpeckers around the school site.

This direct connection, as suggested by Jones and Greenway (2021), is likely to encourage students to be more likely to protect the natural world. It could also incorporate GIS, with students creating heatmaps of biodiversity hotspots on the school site using tools such as ArcGIS Online, which further has the capacity to ‘promote engagement and enjoyment’ (Lang, 2016).

Live webcams

A further way that technology can enhance experiences of the natural world, either in the geography classroom, or during form / tutor time, is the use of live nature webcams online. The RSPB, The Wildlife Trusts and National Trust all follow various species across the UK.

Following a bird’s nest from chicks to fledglings is a delightful and relaxing way to enhance empathy levels with our students – while writing this blog I have a swift nest webcam streaming in the background!

Concluding remarks

If/when we do decide to take students outdoors, it’s crucial to recognise that access to first-hand fieldwork opportunities is not equitable for all students.

For instance, pupils who menstruate, use wheelchairs, or experience anxiety due to neurodivergence, often face additional challenges in outdoor settings that are away from the school site.

As educators, we must strive to make fieldwork as inclusive and supportive as possible. That might mean a little extra time rethinking logistics, for example:

providing alternative formats of fieldwork
working on a one-to-one basis
providing clear breakdowns of timings, groupings and staffing
carrying a first aid kit, extra medications and sanitary products
highlighting when and where there will be access to toilet facilities and calm, quiet spaces
working collaboratively with parents, carers, TAs and support staff to ensure that no student is excluded from the enriching experiences that fieldwork can offer.

As geography teachers, we are not only teaching content—we are breaking down barriers and fostering connections between young people and the world around them. In doing so, we have the power to cultivate both knowledge and care for the natural environment, one small classroom moment at a time.