Online Teacher Training

Teacher training sessions are delivered by members of the South Downs Learning Network.

Drawing inspiration from the South Downs, the sessions will be helpful to any teacher looking for ideas and inspiration to take their teaching and learning outside the classroom.

Sessions focus on: nature connection, delivering specific curriculum subjects and topics, school grounds development, using woodland effectively, fieldwork skills and health and wellbeing.

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Upcoming events

We See You Now – Writing and Walking new landscapes: a seminar for teachers with Alinah Azadeh on Thursday 10 November

Thursday 10 November 4.15-5.30pm
Suitable for KS3 and 4 teachers

Alinah Azadeh has been inaugural Writer-in-Residence at Seven Sisters Country Park and the Sussex Heritage Coast for South Downs National Park since 2020. She is also creative lead on We See You Now a landscape and literature programme dedicated to evoking trans-global perspectives and overlooked colonial heritage on this iconic coastal area, through new, speculative stories and poetry by writers of Black, Asian, Middle-Eastern, Latino and mixed heritage.

On this seminar Alinah will talk about the project, give a short reading of new work, and invite attendees to join in a short creative writing exercise, to explore the potential of bringing students into the landscape on their own creative walking & writing activities using the new body of work as a spark and a welcome.

Book your FREE place

More on Alinah’s work with SDNPA

Listen to Alinah’s podcast, The Colour of Chalk

Previous events

Plant Power
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers.
- Learning how to teach the plants programme of study through outdoor education.
- Practical lesson ideas for KS1 and KS2.
- Download the handout

Nature as teacher and inventor
Suitable for all Key Stages and SLT.
- Get inspired, a different future is possible.
- Many jobs of the future will be mimicking nature.
- Learn from nature not just about it.

Become a wilder school – improve school grounds
Suitable for ALL Key Stages, subject leaders and SLT.
- Map and identify the best areas to use for outdoor learning and wildlife habitats on your school grounds.
- Easy low-cost ideas that you could do with your class to improve your grounds for wildlife.
- Assess and minimise the impact of outdoor learning on the natural environment, as well as promote environmental awareness as part of outdoor learning.

What wildlife is living on your school grounds?
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers.
- Discover the different species which may be living on your school grounds.
- Build confidence in identifying them using identification keys.
- Get tips on how to work with your class to identify different species and how to integrate this into your curriculum teaching.

Exploring Air Pollution
Suitable for Key Stage 2 and 3 teachers, Geography, Science or Eco Leads
- Develop a basic understanding of air pollution
- Discover more about resources available
- Fun and engaging activities

Natures classroom – science in the school grounds
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 science coordinators and teachers.
- - Understanding the benefits of outdoor education to children and nature.
  - An overview of 7 examples of learning national curriculum Science in the school grounds from Reception class to Year 6 including examples of cross curricular learning too e.g. Art, English, Music, RE.
  - Support will be provided for risk assessments as well as good hygiene and social distancing.

Feel better to learn better
Suitable for EYFS practitioners, Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers and LSAs.
- - Using the outdoor environment to improve pupils wellbeing.
  - Using natural and creative elements to help to lower stress levels and reduce anxiety.
  - Giving pupils a chance to reflect, relax and reconnect with nature.
  - Download the handout

Farming in your school grounds – School Ground Development
Suitable for teachers across all Key Stages.
- - Teachers will be confident in their understanding of how food is produced and grown on the farm.
  - Teachers will have a good understanding of how farming is managed to care for the environment.
  - Teachers will be inspired to use farming and food production in their teaching, specifically using their outdoor spaces to enhance the core subjects.
  - Download the handout

Literacy and Expression in the Great Outdoors – creative literacy
Suitable for Key Stage 2 teachers (Year 4 to 6).
- Draw on the heritage of the South Downs National Park landscape to stimulate language development and writing
- Provide practical routes into cross-curricular and whole-class exploration that focuses on wellbeing and creative expression
- Download the handout

Clothes, plants, art and sustainability – a cross-curricular topic
Suitable for Key Stage 1, 2, and 3 teachers, governors and SLT.
- Discover how to use natural dyes on your doorstep, e.g. blackberries.
- Understand which plants are used in clothing material, e.g. nettles.
- Understand why current fast fashion is unsustainable.

How to put sustainability at the heart of the curriculum
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers, eco-leads and SLT.
- Explore ways to embed sustainability into every lesson
- An introduction to the Ministry of Eco Education curriculum and resources
Starting Life Well: Forest Kindergarten and Local Nature Play
Suitable for EYFS and Key Stage 1 teachers.
- Discover the evidence for well-being & educational value of nature play for the early years.
- Understand whether you need a qualification,
- and how to make this accessible for all early years practitioners.
- Watch the video
Trees and other natural materials
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers, science, history and DT subject specialists.
- Know how we might engage children in exploring the properties/characteristics and uses of natural, everyday materials such as wood to solve real world problems (science and DT focus).
- Enhance subject knowledge in relation to older buildings and their use of natural materials, in particular finding out about some of the tools and processes involved in using wood as a building material (historical background).
- Consider how to support children in appreciating the sourcing and sustainability of natural materials.

A nature-connected curriculum
Suitable for Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers.
- Discover the 5 Pathways to Nature Connectedness: Beauty, Meaning, Compassion, Emotion, Senses – and their role in rewilding our children
- Gain simple practical tips for building the 5 pathways into the school curriculum
- Learn to #BeMoreGilbert! The naturalist Gilbert White, ‘Father of Ecology’, is an inspiring model for nature connectedness.

Myth-busting outdoor learning
Suitable for All Key Stages and SLT.
- Busting the commons myths of outdoor learning.
- Do you need a qualification? What helps to take those next steps?
- Why take your curriculum into nature?
- Watch the video

Wilder Wellbeing for Schools
Suitable for Key Stages 1 to 4 teachers and SLT.
- What is a connection to nature and why is it important?
- How does a connection to nature benefit children (and adults)- including physical and mental wellbeing, confidence, and resilience?
- Discover simple ways to integrate wellbeing through nature in to your school day.

Mythology: Living and Non-Living things
Suitable for Key Stage 1 teachers.
- Understand the benefits of outdoor education to children and nature.
- Follow an outdoor model session linking mythology and science for Key Stage 1, linked to the national curriculum, including examples of cross curricular opportunities in art, music and English, creative writing.
- Support will be provided for developing risk assessments.

Teaching Life Cycles Outdoors
Suitable for Key Stage 2 teachers.
- Understanding the benefits of outdoor education to children and nature.
- An outdoor model session of learning Key Stage 2 science curriculum (Life Cycles) using the school grounds.
- Support will be provided for developing risk assessments.