Natural History's role in student wellbeing

As a child, growing up in North Yorkshire, I was surrounded by nature. We lived opposite a farm and near a river, where I would spend time with my dad and my grandad skimming stones and looking for minnows. We would go for walks in the woods where I would take my ‘spotter’ books to identify trees, flowers and butterflies. The picture here is one of my happiest childhood memories.

It’s me, my mum, my grandma and grandad, taking a family walk through the deer park at Fountains Abbey. I remember that day, wearing a T-shirt with flowers on and all day long butterflies settled on me as I walked. To a 5 year old girl, that felt like a magical experience. As I got older I started horse riding and playing various musical instruments. Music became my path of choice and consequently my days with nature, for a time, came to an end. Fast forward back to my first sentence. The idea of a Natural History GCSE is something that genuinely excites me, not only in terms of education, but, for our young people and their futures. We are in a time of global crisis regarding climate and biodiversity. Our young people are acutely aware of this and want to affect change. Consequently, I believe that we have a duty, as educators, to ensure that we protect our world for generations to come and the Natural History GCSE will play a vital part in this.

Alongside ‘education’, this GCSE will also expose another generation of young people to nature, in the way I was exposed to it as a child. And, in a world of mobile phones, social media and instant gratification we have a generation of young people today, who are potentially heading towards a mental health crisis. The benefits of nature and being outdoors are well documented, but, given the ‘backdrop’ in which today’s youth exist, being able to access nature is not always as easy as it perhaps should be. Many schools will have outdoor classrooms, offer the Duke of Edinburgh Award etc and therefore, not only does this mean that we potentially already have the ‘experts’ and ‘expertise’ in our buildings in terms of delivery, but, we also have the opportunity to make more meaningful curriculum links in terms of the Natural History GCSE.

This GCSE is an opportunity to give young people some ‘lost’ experiences, to support their wellbeing and to arm them with the skills needed to provide us all with a better tomorrow.

Emma Lambden, Headteacher, Thirsk School and Sixth Form College

Emma Lambden was appointed Headteacher at Thirsk School and Sixth Form College in 2018. Emma has previously worked in several schools in the North of England since 1996. In more recent years, prior to appointment at Thirsk, she has been involved in supporting behaviour and Pastoral Care in schools facing challenge. Consequently, she is passionate about supporting the wellbeing of young people and firmly believes that if young people are not happy and do not feel emotionally safe, then they will not thrive academically or realise that their potential has no limits.