DURING LAST month’s excellent spell of warm weather pupils at Kirn Primary School, (KPS), swapped out stuffy classroom lessons, for fresh air yoga sessions by a woodland river, as they spent the day in the wilderness.
Pupils at KPS have been getting to know the great outdoors on their doorstep as part of the newly relaunched John Muir Award.
The John Muir Award – named after the famed Scottish-American conservationist – was redesigned and relaunched in March 2025, with the aim of deepening young people’s understanding and appreciation of the wild spaces around them.
The P6/5 class has been working hard towards achieving the Wild Places Guardian level of the award – a programme that encourages people of all backgrounds to connect with, enjoy, and care for wild places.
The class chose their ‘wild place’ based on the view from their classroom window, setting off to explore the area between Heronlea and Stories Yard, including the forest trails that lead to the Bishop’s Glen.
Over the term, the children have completed five expeditions to the site, learning about local nature, heritage and conservation through hands-on activities.
As part of the project, the class received a guest lecture from Mr Derek Darkins, principal teacher of social subjects at Dunoon Grammar School, who shared insights into the rich historical heritage of the area.
The pupils were fascinated to learn that during the Viking era, the Camel’s Hump (Dunan) acted as a defensive fort protecting ancient round houses situated above the Holy Loch.
Inspired by this history, the class even gathered natural materials cleared from the woodland paths to construct their own miniature round houses during one of their visits.
A spokesperson for KPS explained: “The Wild Places Guardian award has provided an opportunity for the class to learn about the local environment and wildlife. We have observed the tadpoles grow into frogs, watched the herons, ducks and cormorants on the reservoir and learnt how to work alongside the dreaded midge.”
During their time in the Glen the children tried forest bathing, sketched, using natural resources to enhance their artwork and practised yoga. KPS pupil Lucas explained that the Glen ‘has given us a safe space to relax and be peaceful in’.
Prior to one of their expeditions, P6/5 pupil Austen and his family painted small stones with inspirational messages and pictures. They hid them along the trail and the class had great fun discovering them along the path.
As part of the conserve element of the award, the children have spent time clearing smaller trunks and debris from the main paths around the reservoir. Most importantly they ensured they left no litter of their own and collected any litter they came across which was disposed of once back in town.
Aileen Wilson, P6/5 class teacher, is very proud of the progress her class has made over the last eight weeks. She said: “We are physically fitter – our five expeditions covered 36.22 km of walking and hiking, took seven and a half hours and we ascended 702 metres. We have developed a variety of skills including teamwork, problem-solving, resilience and perseverance. We have learnt about our local community and spent time caring for our wild place. Best of all we have had fun and there has been plenty of laughter alongside our learning.”
Primary 6/5 would like to say a big thank you to Miss Headrick, Mr Hinds and Miss Bennett for joining us on our walks and as pupil Sophie put it: “The Glen was there before us and will be there for many more generations to come – as long as we look after it.”
