Autumn Sherrington-Boyd

I am grateful to hold the position of EYFS and Y1 Ecoliteracy teacher at The Arbor School Dubai. The Arbor School is a unique setting which aims to reconnect our community to the natural world and inspire action to conserve it. Through my role, I inspire child-initiated, place-based, inquiry-led learning opportunities in nature. My ultimate aim is for children to be curious. To stop and smell every flower, listen to every bird and overturn every rock, because when there is curiosity, there is care. My deep rooted connection with nature began in the rockpools of Cornwall and forests in Surrey, England. After moving to Dubai, I noticed a disconnect between childhood and nature. I chose to utilise my passion for the outdoors in my teaching and become a forest school practitioner. I have volunteered in various forest schools in Denmark and hope to visit desert schools in Egypt and forest schools in the US in attempt to continue deliver the gifts of forest school here in the UAE. There is nature all around us, we just need to open our eyes (and hearts) to see it.