A Passport to Nature

This book includes a Nature Passport, a tool for children to explore and enjoy the natural world. Based on occupational therapist Jean Ayres’ model of sensory processing, it has been designed for children to develop their whole brains through activities that engage all the senses. The Passport sits within a larger ‘green prescribing’ movement, inspired in part by the forest bathing movement in Japan. This chapter also explores forest schools and green prescribing and is illustrated with stories of children's and adults’ relationship with nature. It considers biophobia and what happens when people fear nature; and biophilia and the benefits of enjoying an attraction to the living world. It argues for the need to rewild society, rewild schools and rewild children, one step at a time. Finally, this chapter sets the scene for the Nature Connection Pyramid which forms the rest of this book.