The Wild Lens™ Natural History Companion and Teaching Bundle

250 pages across five connected resources for secondary learners aged 13–16.

Help young people get to know the natural world through careful observation, meaningful questions and practical fieldwork.

Created by Where The Wild Ones Learn, this bundle brings together teaching guidance, learner recording pages, knowledge organisers and practice activities to support natural history learning throughout the year.

Learners explore real organisms and habitats, build identification skills, investigate patterns and learn how to explain what their evidence shows. Returning to familiar places helps them notice seasonal change and develop a deeper understanding of the relationships between wildlife, habitats and human activity.

Use the resources in school grounds, woodland, local parks, community gardens or other accessible outdoor spaces.

The approach follows our Wild Lens™ cycle:

Notice • Identify • Wonder • Investigate • Connect • Return

Included in your bundle

• Natural History Fieldwork & Nature Study Companion — 132 pagesThe main resource, supporting observation, identification, recording, habitat study, sampling, seasonal investigations and interpretation. Practical explanations and prompts help learners develop worthwhile questions and gather evidence from the places around them.

• Learner Fieldwork Journal — 32 pagesPrintable recording pages for site maps, field visits, detailed observations, species evidence, seasonal tracking, sampling and individual enquiries. Learners build a record they can return to, compare and reflect upon over time.

• Teacher Delivery Pack — 24 pagesTwelve adaptable session outlines, a suggested year sequence, preparation and equipment guidance, inclusive delivery approaches, assessment prompts, and planning and review sheets. References connect teaching sessions to the companion and learner journal, making preparation easier.

• Knowledge Organisers & Glossary — 30 pagesFourteen topic organisers and 120 glossary terms support understanding of organisms, habitats, fieldwork methods, conservation and evidence. Fieldwork examples, recall questions and explanations of commonly confused terms help learners use their knowledge before, during and after outdoor study.

• Worked Examples & Practice Pack — 32 pagesSix worked examples and seven practice activities help learners move from collecting observations to interpreting results. Sample records, datasets, graphs, model answers and teacher feedback guidance make the thinking behind effective fieldwork clearer.

Flexible participation is built into the resources.

Learners can record through writing, sketches, photographs, audio, dictation or a combination. Guidance supports adjustments to pace, routes, roles and observation points while keeping meaningful enquiry and intellectual challenge at the centre.

This makes the bundle adaptable for learners with SEND and neurodivergent learners, alongside their peers.

Suitable for secondary schools, SEND settings, alternative provision, home educators and outdoor educators working with young people aged 13–16.

Use the five resources together to develop a sustained programme, or select the pages that support your learners, site and current enquiry. Print and repeat recording sheets as learners return to their study places.

All five resources are included together in one digital bundle.

Designed to support natural history learning and preparation for the emerging Natural History GCSE. These are independent supplementary resources; formal GCSE teaching should follow the approved qualification specification and assessment requirements.