Can children really walk away from the national curriculum?

Yes, not all children educated at home follow a set curriculum and currently the UK government guidelines acknowledge this.

A fascination for the natural world enables children to acquire informally what children in school are expected to learn. In addition, they become mindful of their world and gain a vast amount of knowledge and maturity along the way, which could also be considered relevant in these challenging times. There is growing evidence that a bond with nature can benefit us in many ways and this can appear obvious to parents/role models who recognise that children are part of the natural world and they thrive by figuring this out, often through play.

‘The children constantly ask questions which not only increase their knowledge but also lead to acquiring research know-how.'

- Dr Alan Thomas

As a family we simply established a healthy balance of nature and technology, with one interest fuelling the other. Prioritising their interest in the natural world came first and our children’s curiosity led us outdoors (even back in time) and it changed our lives. Natural history is fascinating to learn about and our children developed an understanding of how their species and the natural world they love, evolved. All role models can nurture natural curiosity and encourage children to respect and not exploit their natural world.

Are you a teacher?

No, I’m a parent. Brace yourselves as I endeavour to remind parents how valuable they are to their children and to society.

A young child does not know school exists; they instinctively look to their parents to be nurtured and introduced to the world, ensuring a strong family bond. They are natural observers and develop research skills that become apparent early on as they learn to seek out information for themselves, always curious enough to chat (a lot) and deliberate their thoughts along the way. Subtle supervision and guidance from parents is required in their early years to ensure ‘wisdom’ is passed on at any appropriate moment, elephants are particularly good at this. Our offspring are also born with that wonderful expectation and enthusiasm for gaining knowledge naturally and we shouldn’t disappoint them by leading them to believe that a parent can’t teach them to thrive and that school is the only environment where they can gain valuable knowledge. The natural world offers us all an education, school can be part of it or not, and every moment of parenting whether we work or not, whether a child goes to school or not, really does count. A parent is the person a child trusts will support them with all aspects of their well-being and learning.

We live in a society where parents are encouraged to focus their attention on ensuring they find a suitable school for their child, where education/development can be assessed and managed by others. They place trust in a learning environment where schoolwork and homework are prioritised, ensuring and perhaps assuming that their children will gain all the knowledge they need in order to thrive. Parents may feel they have little choice and for some children, particularly those who are keen to perform well and who find their set curriculum interesting, this can be a successful path and we expect all children in a school environment to follow it.

Not all children are interested in following this path. There are many (often creative) children who thrive under their own steam and knuckle down to work where it suits, indoors or out; many of us (parents) may have been taught indoors and there may be an expectation for every generation to do the same but it’s important to note that ‘the classroom’ is not a natural environment for anyone and could be seen as detrimental to a child’s development. With this in mind, parents will continue to search for inspiration and find alternative paths for their children and evidence shows that home education continues to grow in popularity year after year.

Over the years I have observed and listened to the frustrations of parents. Many are questioning the mainstream education system and persistently highlighting concerns over the pressure it currently places on children and teaching professionals, so much so that the well-being of many has become a significant cause for concern. Children and teaching professionals are choosing to leave the school environment. You could argue that by prioritising academic achievement we fail children by default, by not nurturing them effectively.

Anecdotal note - whilst doing market research online I came across a conversation on a thread where a number of parents were considering home-education. One parent commented that she had read the work of John Holt but felt reluctant to act on it as it was written such a long time ago; another parent quickly jumped to his defence, pointing out that the school system hadn’t changed since the industrial era, so the general consensus was not to worry, all confidence in the work of John Holt was restored and the group continued their conversation.

There are books on the market that assist in re-connecting children with nature. I have to admit that I still struggle with the term ‘re-connection’ it’s a tiny niggle that remains with me. We remain part of nature even if we turn a blind eye to it and so it’s impossible to disconnect from who we are, our actions will still have an impact on our environment whether we feel part of the natural world or not. I do however reinforce the importance of being more mindful of nature and developing a bond which may in time lead us all to understand our environments and respect/protect them in the process. This led me to looking more closely at biophilia and during this time I came across the work: ‘Children and Nature’ - Psychological, Sociocultural and Evolutionary Investigations - P H Kahn., Jr and S R Kellert. (2002) An academic approach, so it’s pretty informative:

‘For much of human evolution, the natural world constituted one of the most important contexts children encountered during their critical years of maturation.’

- Kahn and Kellert

My research and interest led me to looking closely at the childhoods of many authors/artists/scientists revered in society today. A few are mentioned (for inspiration) in my book, selected specifically for their love of nature and/or their love of learning and the enjoyment gained from a secure home environment, family-life, friends, animals, travels and nature filled learning environments.

Perhaps now, more than ever, young people need to feel secure in the knowledge that their society will respect the natural world and the vital role of parenting. I couldn’t find a book written by a parent that covered ‘nurture through nature’ and so I approached the wonderfully kind and informative Dr Alan Thomas, Visiting Fellow at the University of London Institute of Education, Fellow of the British Psychological Society and co-author of ‘How Children Learn at Home’ to ask if he had come across this style of learning in his research; he kindly read an early draft and commented that ‘nurture through nature’ was indeed fascinating and of interest. Naturally, after many years of observation and research I was over the moon with his response and felt encouraged by his advice, support and of course his kind words in the foreword of Natural Curiosity.

Parents and teachers appear enthusiastic about incorporating nature into children’s lives but prioritising the natural world as a key learning tool has yet to be recognised in mainstream UK schools or even in the homes of many children. Learning from the natural world/natural history is not currently being prioritised in the everyday lives of children and so it will be down to the individuals who care for them to nurture this important need and common interest.

How will they socialize?

We can all visualize a scene of young mammals in their natural environment, they play, socialize with family members and push boundaries; children learn this way too, whether they’re with their elders, siblings, pets, new friends or old friends - they naturally learn to socialize and communicate tactfully with humans and other species of all ages.

Children tend to want to socialize but we need to recognise as a society that school has limitations. To help explain a little further - here are a number of extracts from Natural Curiosity -

‘There appears to be an assumption in modern society that children need to develop coping strategies at an early age and build friendships within a large population of children. But school is not a natural environment for any young child, and so recognising that it could have limitations when it comes to developing a mature understanding of how to socialize in the world our children live in meant this wasn’t a major worry or consideration for us.’

‘Most parents embarking on the journey of home education will have already taken into account the value of friendships and naturally considered how their children will socialize.’

‘I would say that although children need to socialize they also need considerable time by themselves, to be themselves, in order to observe the world around them. I think this is another balance that needs consideration.’

‘After they leave the school environment, never again will they have to spend so much of their time confined in the company of so many peers with so few role models to listen to them.’

‘Communication with peers came in all-too-brief bursts as they hurried between lessons or chatted on the bus journey to and from school. There just wasn’t enough time for them to do what children want to do: simply talk and play together.’

‘What made school disappointing for individualised attention is that they were being left in an environment where the children greatly outnumbered the adults around them, effectively rendering the possibility of being nurtured individually zero. There really is no hope of all children feeling naturally nurtured in a school environment.’

'The joy that comes from having the time to imagine can be clearly observed when children are allowed to explore and play uninhibited. Nature, siblings, friends, books and now technology can all help to fuel their imaginations.'

- Natural Curiosity

Children remember their play and their interests remain apparent along the way and throughout their development.

Many species in the natural world are facing extinction, demanding environments and/or habitat loss; many of our children are also facing playground and playtime loss and this is referenced in Natural Curiosity. Each chapter in the book ends with an inspirational quote aimed at awakening our long hidden instincts. I hope this can draw us all back to being mindful of our natural world and recognise that children are part of it and they need to play.

Is the book just for those who are educated at home?

No. It is also for those considering home-education and useful for other role models too. I hope parents become aware of it, those expecting their first child and any potential guardian/role model. An early bond with nature is beneficial for the whole family, their community, environment and future generations.

My work could also be useful to schools. If a child observes a teacher being mindful of nature daily, such as acknowledging the (friendly) spider in the corner of the classroom, then that’s a giant step in the right direction, how a role model acknowledges and responds to nature in their daily environment is significant, all nature distractions should have our full attention. These distractions can spark a common interest and discussion, if a child is enthusiastic enough to suggest a pet name for the spider then rest assured, observation and mindfulness are being encouraged.

It was also interesting to discover that observations made by parents can be highly regarded when it comes to academic research. Many home educating parents believe that when their child is educated informally they have very little input into their education themselves. Dr Alan Thomas whose research focuses on home educating families, asked the question “How much input does a parent have” - It’s therefore wonderful to know that parent observation can be sought by academics.

I hope that anyone who has the potential to be a role model and who feels that children (and the planet they love) need a little more nurture and respect will read Natural Curiosity.