Virtual Nature School promotes the flourishing of children's learning in, about, with and for nature.
We provide both practitioners and families with the learning resources they need to confidently explore nature with children.
Dr Claire Warden shares her thoughts on the speech and language crisis in early years as well as plans for cohort 4 of the Virtual Nature School.
Listen to our podcast on your choice of player by clicking one of the buttons below.
Virtual Nature School has run 3 cohorts to date and we have extracted some images, texts and videos from a selection of settings across Scotland to demonstrate the impact that VNS has had on the confidence of educators to take children outside and learn from nature in their everyday practice.
"Through my eyes" is a virtual exhibition sharing children's voices about the natural world via art.
The Children's Committee of Virtual Nature School invited children from around Scotland to share their connection to nature through their creativity this summer.
Every Thursday evening, a small group of early years practitioners who are passionate about nature pedagogy gather online for an invigorating discussion with Dr Claire Warden.
The conversations are recorded and made into a podcast that is freely available to anyone on the major podcast platforms. Just search for "Conversations with Dr. Claire Warden".
All early years practitioners are welcome to join us LIVE on the night, or just listen to the recordings via the podcast. Please click the button below for details.
The newsletter is designed for 2 audiences: to support families and practitioners to engage children in conversations about nature-based inquiries.
Each newsletter answers a question that has been posed by a parent/carer and provides beautiful imagery and simple text to encourage dialogue.
The newsletter content links to the parent podcast series which you can find here.
If you would like a more structured approach, then you will enjoy our video series with open-ended ideas for exploring with children around a specific theme.
The video series was created during the summer of 2020.
Virtual Nature School is a service offered by the non-profit Living Classrooms. It came about as a direct response to the needs of families when schools and nurseries were closed in the UK in March 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and continues as a valuable resource to early years practitioners throughout Scotland as they make outdoor learning a natural part of their practice.
Living Classrooms is a registered Community Interest Company founded by Dr Claire Warden in 2010 and has the following aims:
To promote excellence in play and learning, through innovative, nature-based experiences.
Dr Claire Warden is an educational consultant who has developed her approach to Nature Pedagogy in her doctoral research and experiential learning through a variety of experiences including working in a variety of settings including her own multi-award-winning nature kindergarten Auchlone, advisory work, and lecturing in further education. Claire is currently based in Scotland but frequently travels to Australia, the United States and elsewhere.
Claire is closely involved with her own nature kindergarten, Auchlone Nature Kindergarten, in Scotland. This outdoor nursery works with children from 2-6 year olds, who spend up to 90% of their time outside. The three spaces of ‘inside’, ‘outside’ and ‘beyond’ are mindfully linked to developing skills and confidence in a predominantly natural environment.