Bird, bumblebee or spider: exploring your grounds from a different perspective

Sofia Metcalf-Riener

boy holding activity card with clipboard

Climate change is one of the top worries for children and young people today. Improving wellbeing is one of the key goals of the National Education Nature Park - through both enhancing connection to nature, and empowering young people to be able to take action on climate change and biodiversity loss. This Children's Mental Health Week, why not take a moment with your learners to connect to nature in your school grounds with our Wellbeing resources?

Exploring your grounds from a different perspective

What would your space be like if you were a bee, and how would it look if you were a spider? In our Points of view activity, learners will discover more about the animals that you share your site with and develop compassion for the needs of nature and empathy for other living things. You will be able to identify the areas of your site that are best for different animals and start to consider what you could change to make your space even better for people and nature.

This activity also has a blank worksheet so you can adapt to your setting and choose a specific animal local to your region. Or you could even consider the perspective of school staff and pupils of different ages! For younger learners there is an adapted version of the activity which involves creative roleplay.

Points of view activity in schools

Year 3 pupils at Ellenbrook Community Primary School remarked how the birds in their grounds felt free and miniature. The teacher said that pupils were very engaged with the activity and enjoyed interacting with each other, being outside in nature and being creative.

A pupil observes some flowers and writes on a clipboard in a garden — A pupil tries out the Points of view activity during the pilot phase of the programme

When considering how a space could be made better for a bumblebee, one pupil said, 'more plants, kinder humans'.

Points of view activity sheet for a spider

'Young people enjoyed thinking about how an animal might feel and see the world and thinking about what an animal could eat. This activity links to Topic lessons such as rainforest, local area, animals and living things and to English with fact files and non-fiction writing'.
Y5 Teacher, All Saints CofE Primary School

Take part

We are proud to support Place2Be’s Children’s Mental Health Week. Find out more and get involved, and try out our Wellbeing resources.

The National Education Nature Park gives children and young people a voice and empowers them to make a positive difference to both their own and nature’s future. Having a detailed understanding of your site and how it is used by different animals and people will help you on your Nature Park journey as you start to plan to make changes to improve your space for people and wildlife.

Have you tried out the Points of view activity to mark Children’s Mental Health Week? We’d love for you to share with us by using #EducationNaturePark or emailing [email protected].