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Inside Nature: A Teacher's Toolkit

Use Inside Nature from ZSL (Zoological Society of London) to bring real-world biology and pathology into your teaching.

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Inside Nature: A Teacher's Toolkit

  • 2 weeks

  • 2 hours per week

  • Accreditation available

  • Digital certificate when eligible

  • Introductory level

Find out more about how to join this course

Bring authentic science into your classroom with Inside Nature

Help students see where biology can lead by connecting curriculum learning with the work of scientists, veterinarians, and conservation professionals.

On this two-week course from ZSL (the Zoological Society of London), you’ll use the Inside Nature educator resource to turn authentic case studies into engaging lessons, while developing practical strategies for enquiry, differentiation, and dissection.

Discover how ZSL investigates animal health

Explore how veterinary pathologists use post-mortem investigations to understand animal health, support welfare, and contribute to wider conservation science.

You’ll also consider how to introduce these topics sensitively and appropriately with learners.

Turn case studies into classroom learning

Learn how to use ZSL’s Inside Nature resource to connect professional scientific practice with curriculum content.

You’ll look at ways to adapt case studies for different ages and abilities, while supporting enquiry-based learning, differentiation, and inclusive teaching.

Develop confidence with practical teaching

Along the way, you’ll strengthen your approach to planning and delivering practical biology activities, including classroom dissection.

You’ll consider safety, assessment, and effective implementation, as well as how to introduce pathology as a potential career pathway.

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Skip to 0 minutes and 0 seconds What can an animal’s life and death teach us about biology? As a Wildlife Pathologist, I carry out post-mortem examinations on animals from ZSL’s two Zoos. This work helps us understand animal health, improve welfare and contribute to wider conservation and veterinary knowledge. And now, through Inside Nature, we’re bringing this real-world wildlife science into the classroom. Inside Nature is a set of teaching resources built around real post-mortem investigations from ZSL and aimed at secondary, aged or level two learners. This course is your toolkit for integrating Inside Nature into your classroom. Across the course, we’ll explore how ZSL science can support teaching, and how to adapt the material for different ages, abilities and learning contexts.

Skip to 0 minutes and 45 seconds With strategies for adapting the resources, planning lessons, assessing understanding, and building confidence around practical science. We’ve lined up discussion prompts, quizzes, learning checks, downloadable resources, and planning tasks so you can connect the content to your own teaching setting from the start. We hope that this course helps you see how veterinary pathology and conservation science can support rich, evidence-based learning about animals, health and the natural world. Here’s to inspiring the next generation of curious biologists.

Syllabus

  • Week 1

    Introducing Inside Nature and real-world science

    • Welcome to the course

      We'll welcome you to this teacher toolkit and cover the course's learning outcomes, activity plan and ways in which Inside Nature can enhance your biology lesson plans and delivery.

    • ZSL and real-world science

      We'll explore how post-mortem examinations support science and animal welfare, why authentic biology benefits students, and how to discuss specimens, ethics and welfare sensitively and appropriately with learners.

    • Introducing Inside Nature

      We'll showcase the Inside Nature videos and accompanying resources and start to ask questions about how you could scaffold learning experiences based on age, prior knowledge and curriculum requirements.

    • Wrap-up and reflections

      We'll finish the week with a short quiz and look forward to week 2: using Inside Nature in your teaching practice.

  • Week 2

    Using Inside Nature in the classroom

    • Welcome to the week

      We'll establish the plans for your second week: integrating Inside Nature into teaching practice.

    • Using Inside Nature in lessons

      We'll explore a cardiovascular case study, adapt Inside Nature for different ages and curricula, then plan an enquiry-based lesson with suitable scaffolding and assessment before sharing it for peer feedback.

    • Adaptation and implementation

      We'll explore how to make teaching Inside Nature inclusive, adapt resources for different learners, teach through enquiry, assess understanding and apply these approaches to another video.

    • Exploring the topic further

      We'll give you the tools to plan your own dissections confidently and safely, as well as inspire your students interested in a career in pathology.

    • Wrap-up and reflections

      We'll conclude the week with a series of evaluation polls, a short quiz and some words of congratulations and encouragement from your course hosts.

Who is this accredited by?

The CPD Certification Service
The CPD Certification Service:

The CPD Certification Service was established in 1996 and is the leading independent CPD accreditation institution operating across industry sectors to complement the CPD policies of professional and academic bodies.

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

  • Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Describe the role of conservation science, veterinary pathology and post-mortem investigations in supporting animal welfare and conservation.
  • Explain how real-world scientific practice can be translated into engaging and meaningful learning experiences for students.
  • Identify opportunities to use ZSL’s Inside Nature resource to support curriculum delivery in biological science and animal care.
  • Develop Inside Nature activities and teaching approaches to meet the needs of diverse learners and learning contexts.
  • Apply practical guidance and best practices when planning and delivering classroom dissections safely and confidently.

Who is the course for?

This course is for teachers and educators working with secondary-aged or Level 2 learners in biology, biological science, or animal care who want fresh ways to connect curriculum content with professional scientific practice.

Who will you learn with?

Charlie works in ZSL’s Conservation Education team, as the Learning Content Producer. He holds a Zoology degree and has over five years experience creating multimedia learning experiences.

Katriona works in ZSL’s Conservation Education team, leading the development of online learning. She holds a Zoology degree and Masters, and has over a decade of experience in zoos and conservation.

Who developed the course?

Zoological Society of London (ZSL)

We’re ZSL, a science-driven conservation charity working to restore wildlife in the UK and around the world. We protect critical species, collaborate with communities to restore healthy habitats, train the next generation of conservationists, and find ways for everyone, from pre-schoolers to politicians, to create change for nature.

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Choose the best way to learn for you!

Upgrade and unlock this entire course now

Buy this course

$54/one-off payment

Fulfill your current learning need

  • Access to this course
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible

Subscribe & save

$349.99 for one year

Automatically renews

Develop skills to further your career

  • Access to this course
  • Access to 1,000+ courses
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Digital certificate when you're eligible

Cancel for free anytime

Start learning today

Free

Try this course - with limits

  • Limited to 2 weeks

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

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