The beauty of nature
Nature means everything that is not made by people: mountains, rivers, forests, sea, sky, plants and animals.
Many people feel calm and happy in a green place. Walking in a park, listening to birds or watching the sunset can lower stress. Poets, painters and singers in every country have made art about nature.
To love nature first means to notice it. Look at a leaf, a cloud or an ant for one full minute.
The power of nature
Nature is also strong. A storm, a flood, an earthquake or a huge wave can break houses and roads. People cannot stop these events, but we can get ready: build strong homes, listen to weather warnings and keep away from danger.
Feeling small and amazed in front of a big mountain or the stars is called awe. Awe helps us be humble. We are a part of nature, not its boss.
How nature helps us
Nature gives us things we need to live:
- Air to breathe. Trees and plants make oxygen.
- Water from rain, rivers and wells.
- Food from soil, plants and animals.
- Shade, wood, medicine and a cooler place to live.
Scientists call these free gifts ecosystem services. If nature is hurt, these gifts become less.
What harms nature
The environment is all the things around us: air, water, soil, plants, animals and people. We harm it when we:
- throw litter and plastic on land and in water (this is pollution),
- burn too much fuel, which makes smoke and warms the Earth,
- cut too many trees,
- waste water, electricity and food.
When trees go and the river gets dirty, animals lose their homes and people lose clean water.
How to protect the environment
Use the 3 R rule: Reduce (use less), Reuse (use again), Recycle (turn old things into new ones).
- Carry a cloth bag and a water bottle.
- Put litter in the dustbin, wet and dry waste separately.
- Switch off lights and fans, and close taps.
- Plant a tree and look after it.
- Walk, cycle or take a bus for short trips.
- Join a clean-up with neighbours or school.
One person's small step looks tiny. Many people doing it every day makes a big change.
Try it
- In the 3D free play, guess first: at care 5, how many trees will there be? Then move the slider and check.
- Sit outside for two minutes without your phone. Write down three things you saw, heard or smelled.
- At home, find three things in your dustbin that could be reused. Write what you would use them for.
- Choose one habit from the N-A-T-U-R-E hook and do it for a week.
Key formulas and definitions
- Nature = everything not made by people (land, water, air, plants, animals)
- Environment = all that surrounds us, living and non-living
- Pollution = harmful things added to air, water or soil
- 3 R rule = Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
- Awe = feeling small and amazed in front of something very big or powerful
Worked examples
1. A school garden has 10 healthy plants. Litter and a water shortage kill 6. Children then plant 8 new ones. How many healthy plants are there now?
10 - 6 = 4 plants left. 4 + 8 = 12 healthy plants. Caring actions can do more than undo harm.
2. A family uses 2 plastic bags every day for shopping. If they switch to one cloth bag, how many plastic bags do they avoid in a year (365 days)?
2 x 365 = 730 plastic bags. One small habit saves hundreds of bags.
3. Name two things you can do for nature at home, and say which of the 3 Rs each one is.
Using a steel bottle instead of buying plastic ones is Reduce. Using an old jar to store things is Reuse. Giving old newspapers to be made into new paper is Recycle.
Common mistakes
- Thinking nature is only forests and animals far away. Your street tree, pond and the air at home are nature too.
- Thinking one person cannot make a difference. Small actions repeated by many people are what changed the pond in the story.
- Thinking protecting nature is only the government's job. Everyone can act, at home and in school.
- Believing that nature is weak and we can control it. Storms and floods show that we must respect nature's power.