20 School Nature Projects For Students
Nature is the cornerstone of a thriving planet. Teaching students about Nature is not just an opportunity to cultivate future stewards of the environment who understand the importance of preserving and protecting it.
Here we’ve put together 20 nature project ideas to engage students in hands-on learning and foster curiosity about the natural world.
Hands-On and Outdoor Activities
1. Composting and Soil Biodiversity
How-To: Set up a compost bin with food scraps and garden waste. Students can observe worms, fungi, and microorganisms that break down organic matter. Discuss how compost improves soil health.
Benefit: Highlights the importance of decomposers and nutrient recycling in nature.
2. Nature Scavenger Hunt
How-To: Create a checklist of items to find, such as types of leaves, insects, birds, or animal tracks. Visit a local park or use the school grounds. Have students discuss their findings.
Benefit: Encourages exploration of local biodiversity and develops observation skills.
3. Plant a Pollinator Garden
How-To: Choose native plants that attract bees and butterflies. Involve students in planting, watering, and monitoring pollinator activity. Check out some of our top tips for Gardening to Support Nature for further support.
Benefit: Helps students understand the role of pollinators in ecosystems and supports declining pollinator populations.
4. Adopt-a-Tree Project
How-To: Assign each student or group a tree. Have them measure its trunk, observe its leaves, track wildlife interactions, and document seasonal changes through sketches and photos.
Benefit: Teaches the importance of trees in ecosystems and fosters long-term observation skills.
5. Create a Mini-Habitat
How-To: Provide materials such as jars for terrariums or shallow containers for ponds. Include soil, small plants, and water. Add insects or small animals (if appropriate) and observe their behaviour over time.
Benefit: Creating a mini-habitat helps students learn how ecosystems function by observing relationships between plants, animals, and their environment.
Research-Based Nature Projects
6. Biodiversity Hotspot Reports
How-To: Assign students a hotspot (e.g., the Amazon, the African Savannah, or a local Nature Reserve). Have them research the unique species, threats to the area, and potential solutions. Present findings in posters or presentations.
Benefit: Help to raise your student’s awareness of global biodiversity and conservation challenges.
7. Endangered Species Study
How-To: Each student researches an endangered species, its habitat, threats, and actions to protect it. They can create fact sheets or persuasive letters advocating for its protection.
Benefit: Supports students developing empathy and critical thinking about conservation.
8. Invasive Species Research
How-To: Identify an invasive species in your area (a quick check on google will normally find examples in most regions, most commonly insects and plants). Research its effects on local biodiversity and present ideas to mitigate the problem.
Benefit: Teaches your students about a key impact of human activities on ecosystems.
9. Biodiversity Timeline
How-To: Research how the local environment has changed over decades due to urbanisation, agriculture, or climate change. Use historical photos and interviews with community members for context.
Benefit: Encourages students to think about environmental change over time.
Art and Creative Expression
10. Biodiversity Mural
How-To: Plan a large mural featuring local plants and animals. Divide the work among students, with each contributing a species or element.
Benefit: The project will celebrate biodiversity, whilst fostering student teamwork and creativity.
11. Nature Journals
How-To: Provide journals for sketching and writing about plants, animals, and ecosystems students encounter. Encourage weekly entries and discussions.
Benefit: Encourages improving of your student’s reflection and observation skills.
12. Build a Bug Hotel
How-To: Use recycled materials like wood, bamboo, and bricks to create habitats for insects. Place them in the school grounds and monitor what species move in.
Benefit: Promotes awareness of insect biodiversity and provides shelter for beneficial insects.
13. Biodiversity Storybook
How-To: Have students research a species or ecosystem and write an imaginative story about its life and challenges. Share the story with younger students.
Benefit: Combines science with creative writing to engage younger audiences.
Technology-Based School Projects
14. Citizen Science Project
How-To: Use platforms like iNaturalist to upload observations of local species. Teach students how their data contributes to global biodiversity studies.
Benefit: This will help involve students in real-world scientific research and deepen there understanding of wider action taking place.
15. Digital Field Guides
How-To: Have students photograph local plants and animals, research their names and roles in ecosystems, and compile them into a digital guide using apps or software.
Benefit: Develops valuable digital skills for the future, whilst exploring local biodiversity.
16. Wildlife Documentary
How-To: Guide students in filming and narrating wildlife behaviour in their area. Edit the footage into a short documentary to share.
Benefit: Encourages students to develop storytelling and technical skills while raising awareness of local biodiversity.
Experiments and Data Collection
17. Pollinator Observations
How-To: Observe a flower bed over time, recording pollinator visits. Compare data across different flowers, weather conditions, or times of day.
Benefit: Teaches your students the importance of pollinators and develops data collection skills.
18. Water Quality and Aquatic Life
How-To: Test water from a local stream or pond for pH, temperature, and pollutants. Observe aquatic plants and animals to assess ecosystem health. You can get hold of simple testing kits on sites like Amazon.
Benefit: Links thought and understanding of water health to biodiversity and ecosystem services.
19. Biodiversity Quadrat Sampling
How-To: Use a square frame to mark a specific area in the grass or forest floor. Count and identify all the plants and animals within it. Compare different habitats.
Benefit: Introduces students to scientific sampling methods.
Community & Advocacy Nature Projects
20. Biodiversity Awareness Campaign
How-To: Develop posters, videos, or social media posts about biodiversity. Focus on local issues like reducing pesticides or planting native species. Share them with the school or community.
Benefit: Teaches communication and leadership, whilst encouraging students to consider the value of community action.
Helping The Next Generation Support Nature
By engaging students in nature based projects, we help them build a stronger connection to the natural world. In doing so, we also fostering critical thinking, collaboration, and problem-solving skills.
Through their hands-on experiences and research, students will see how their efforts, no matter how small, contribute to the health of ecosystems locally and globally. Whether planting a pollinator garden, tracking wildlife, or advocating for conservation, they’ll learn that protecting nature starts with understanding and appreciating its value.
To support you further with teaching Nature, Climate & Sustainability, we also recommend you check out the following resources:
20 School Project Ideas to Teach About Climate Change
Teaching Sustainability in School: Guide & Activities
20 School Sustainability Projects to Engage Students
20 Practical Sustainability Ideas For Schools
We’d love to hear how you get on! Let us know in the comments section below, or through our social media channels linked at the bottom of this page.
