Are you looking for engaging nature books for KS2 that can inspire children to read, write, investigate plants and spend more time learning outside?
A strong class text can do more than support reading comprehension. It can create questions, build vocabulary, inspire imaginative writing and give children a reason to explore the natural world around them.
In this episode of The Muddy Puddle Teacher® Podcast, Sarah speaks with author Yarrow Townsend about her children’s novel The Map of Leaves.
The story follows twelve-year-old Orla, who can hear and communicate with plants. When a mysterious sickness reaches her village, Orla follows the warnings of the natural world and begins a dangerous journey to find a cure.
Published by Chicken House in May 2022, The Map of Leaves is recommended for readers aged nine and above. The publisher describes it as an adventure combining friendship, danger and fantasy, while the story’s central themes include plants, healing, environmental knowledge and humanity’s relationship with nature. Explore Yarrows Books
The book offers KS2 teachers a powerful opportunity to connect English, science, geography, outdoor learning and environmental education through one memorable story.
Listen : “Let’s Follow the Map of Leaves with Author Yarrow Townsend”
Explore our KS2 Outdoor Learning Resources
Meet the Guest
Who Is Yarrow Townsend?
Yarrow Townsend is an author and educator whose writing is strongly influenced by nature, waterways, plants and the landscapes of the New Forest.
She spent her childhood among the moss, oak and heather of the New Forest. After working as a teacher and stable hand, she completed an MA in Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University and later worked for the RSPB. She now lives on a narrowboat and travels the canals with a garden growing on the roof.
Yarrow’s first novel, The Map of Leaves, was inspired by her experiences of living close to woods and water and by the herb books owned by her parents. The story reflects her interest in traditional plant knowledge, landscape and the relationship between people and the natural world. (Browse Books)
Her second novel, A Ship in the Dark, is a nature-rich nautical adventure influenced by migratory birds and light pollution. In 2024, Yarrow became the inaugural Writer in Residence for the New Forest National Park, where she developed writing and creative work connected to ancient woodland. (Explore Books)
Yarrow describes herself as an author and educator writing primarily about nature and humanity’s place within it. (Learn more about Yarrow Townsend)
Visit Yarrow Townsend Online
Visit Yarrow Townsend’s writing and nature newsletter
Yarrow’s Substack includes writing about nature, creativity, neurodivergence and her experiences as the New Forest National Park’s first Writer in Residence. (Yarrow Townsend)
Follow Yarrow Townsend on Instagram
Yarrow shares her writing, illustrations, books and nature-based work through her Instagram account, @yarrowtownsend. (Instagram)
Explore Yarrow Townsend’s author page
Chicken House provides information about Yarrow and her published books, including The Map of Leaves. (Chicken House Books)
Books by Yarrow Townsend
The Map of Leaves
The Map of Leaves is a nature-based fantasy adventure for readers aged nine and over.
Orla lives close to plants and understands their voices. When illness threatens her village and nature is blamed, she must use her mother’s book of plants and remedies to search for the truth and find a cure.
The journey takes Orla onto the dangerous Inkwater with two other young travellers, Idris and Ariana. Together, they encounter threats, secrets and difficult choices as they follow the clues hidden within the natural world. (Postscript Books)
The novel was shortlisted for the 2023 Branford Boase Award and was selected as a Sunday Times children’s book of the week. (Hampshire Writers’ Society)
A Ship in the Dark
Yarrow’s second novel is another adventure shaped by the natural world. It draws inspiration from migratory birds, waterways and the effects of artificial light on nature.
Why Is The Map of Leaves a Strong KS2 Class Text?
A strong KS2 class text should offer more than an exciting plot.
It should give pupils rich vocabulary, complex characters, meaningful themes and questions that continue beyond the final chapter.
The Map of Leaves contains adventure, danger, friendship and mystery, but it also invites children to think about how knowledge is passed between generations, why people sometimes fear nature and what can happen when environmental understanding is lost.
Orla’s ability to hear plants adds a magical element, but the book is grounded in recognisable plant knowledge and the idea that leaves, roots and herbs can be useful, dangerous or healing.
This makes it particularly effective for Year 5 and Year 6 classes studying plants, habitats, rivers, environmental change or relationships between humans and nature.
The text can support English without becoming disconnected from the wider curriculum.
Children can examine character, setting, suspense and figurative language while also investigating real plants, creating maps, exploring waterways and discussing environmental responsibility.
Visit our KS2 Outdoor Learning Guide and Teaching English Outdoors Hub for further curriculum links.
How Can Nature Books Improve Reading Engagement?
Nature books can give children a reason to look more closely at the world beyond the classroom.
When pupils read about a character who understands plants, they may begin asking questions about the plants growing in their own playground, garden or local area.
A fictional plant may lead to research about a real species.
A journey through a dangerous landscape may encourage pupils to examine how writers use weather, sound, texture and movement to create tension.
The relationship between reading and outdoor learning can work in both directions.
The book encourages children to explore outdoors, while outdoor experiences give them a richer understanding of the setting and vocabulary within the book.
A child who has examined the veins of a leaf, heard reeds moving beside water or felt rough bark has real sensory knowledge to draw upon when reading and writing.
This is why outdoor literacy should not mean simply carrying a novel outside.
The environment should help pupils understand, imagine or respond to the text more deeply.
Teaching English Outdoors Through The Map of Leaves
The novel can inspire outdoor English activities linked to description, dialogue, mapping, poetry, instructions and persuasive writing.
Children might collect precise words to describe plants, water and weather before writing a setting inspired by Thorn Creek or the Inkwater.
They could rehearse dialogue while following a trail, create warnings from the plants to Orla or write a missing page from her mother’s book of remedies.
The outdoor environment gives children real material to observe.
Instead of asking pupils to imagine every sound, texture and movement from a classroom chair, teachers can allow them to experience some of those details first.
Children might notice leaves trembling, water dripping, branches scraping, roots twisting or shadows changing.
These observations can then be transformed into deliberate writing choices.
Explore our Outdoor English Activities for KS2
Two Outdoor Learning Activities Inspired by The Map of Leaves
Create a Map of Leaves
Ask pupils to examine the plants and trees growing within the school grounds.
Children can select several different leaves and make careful observational drawings without removing plants unnecessarily.
They might record shape, edge, size, texture, colour, vein pattern and where the plant was found.
Pupils can then create a map showing where each leaf belongs.
The map could become part of a fictional mystery. Children might add coded messages, warnings or clues inspired by Orla’s ability to understand plants.
Older pupils can research the species and consider why different plants grow in particular parts of the grounds.
This activity can connect English, science, geography, art and mapping.
Remind children never to taste unidentified plants and to follow the setting’s procedures for handling natural materials.
Write a Message from the Plants
Choose a familiar outdoor area and ask pupils to imagine that the plants can communicate.
What might they have noticed about the school?
What dangers might they warn children about?
What changes have they experienced through the seasons?
Children can listen, observe and collect vocabulary before writing a message from the perspective of a tree, weed, flower or patch of moss.
The writing might become a warning, poem, diary entry or letter.
Encourage pupils to combine accurate observation with imagination.
The plant’s voice should reflect its location and experience rather than becoming a generic description.
Find more ideas through our KS2 Outdoor English Resources and 60-Day Free Trial.
Linking The Map of Leaves to the KS2 Science Curriculum
The book creates clear connections with plant biology and environmental science.
Children can explore plant identification, reproduction, seed dispersal, habitats, seasonal change and the conditions plants need to survive.
The story also raises questions about the difference between scientific evidence, traditional knowledge, superstition and misinformation.
Orla inherits plant knowledge from her mother. This can prompt discussion about how knowledge is collected, recorded, tested and passed on.
Pupils could compare fictional remedies with genuine historical uses of plants, while recognising that natural does not automatically mean safe.
Some plants are edible, some are medicinal and others are toxic.
Teachers should make clear that children must never consume wild plants or use them as remedies without appropriate expert guidance.
Chicken House has produced chapter-by-chapter teaching notes for The Map of Leaves. These include comprehension questions and prompts linked to Orla’s knowledge, the illness, poisons and the meaning of the map of leaves.
Link to Teaching Primary Science Outdoors and KS2 Plant Activities.
Using the Book to Explore Rivers and Journeys
Water is central to the setting and atmosphere of The Map of Leaves.
Orla’s journey along the Inkwater allows teachers to connect the novel with geography topics involving rivers, settlements, maps and journeys.
Pupils can examine how rivers shape landscapes and influence where people live.
They might create a map of Orla’s route, add physical features or explain where danger could occur.
Children can compare the fictional river with a local river, stream, canal or drainage system.
Yarrow’s own life on a narrowboat adds another interesting connection between the author, waterways and the landscapes in her fiction.
Teachers might also explore how journeys change characters.
Orla begins the story isolated and closely connected to her garden. Her journey requires her to work with others, confront uncertainty and decide when to trust her knowledge.
This gives pupils opportunities to discuss friendship, independence, grief, courage and asking for help.
Environmental Themes in The Map of Leaves
The book presents nature as something more complex than a beautiful background.
Plants provide food, medicine, warning, friendship and danger.
The story asks what happens when people misunderstand or exploit the natural world.
It can support thoughtful discussion about environmental stewardship, responsibility and the value of knowledge.
Children can consider whether humans are presented as separate from nature or as part of it.
They might discuss why communities sometimes blame the environment for problems created by people.
The story also supports conversations about protecting plant knowledge and recognising the importance of biodiversity.
Environmental learning should not leave children feeling powerless.
A class can move from discussion into practical action by studying the plants in their grounds, improving a habitat or creating information that helps others notice and care for local nature.
Explore our Sustainability in Primary Schools, Biodiversity Outdoors and Outdoor Geography resources.
Books Can Take Children Outside
A book inspired by nature should not remain confined to the reading corner.
Teachers can use the text as a reason to walk, notice, listen, map, investigate and create.
Pupils might read a short extract beneath a tree, follow a fictional journey around the grounds or collect sensory details before responding to a chapter.
They could create a class herbarium using drawings and photographs rather than removing rare or protected plants.
Children might also design an outdoor reading trail containing extracts, questions and plant clues.
The aim is not to turn every chapter into an activity.
The novel should still be enjoyed as a complete story.
Select outdoor experiences where the environment genuinely deepens the children’s understanding.
A few thoughtful activities will usually have more impact than a large collection of unrelated worksheets.
Supporting Vocabulary and Descriptive Writing
Nature writing gives children opportunities to move beyond overused adjectives such as nice, green, big and beautiful.
Pupils can collect precise vocabulary connected to form, texture, movement and sound.
Leaves might be serrated, waxy, brittle, speckled or translucent.
Branches might twist, arch, scrape or interlock.
Water might trickle, surge, ripple or stagnate.
Teachers can ask children to choose language deliberately rather than collecting long lists of words without purpose.
Which word creates danger?
Which suggests calm?
Which detail would Orla notice because of her plant knowledge?
Children can then use their observations within a setting description, poem or narrative scene inspired by the novel.
Read our Outdoor Descriptive Writing Activities for KS2.
What Can Teachers Learn from Yarrow Townsend?
Yarrow’s writing shows how a story can be rooted in genuine knowledge and experience without becoming an information book.
Her childhood in the New Forest, experience working with the RSPB, life on a narrowboat and interest in herb books all influenced the world of The Map of Leaves. (Buzzsprout)
This is a valuable lesson for young writers.
Ideas do not need to arrive fully formed.
They can grow from places, memories, objects, questions and subjects the writer cares about.
Teachers can invite children to identify the landscapes and natural details that matter to them.
A playground weed, local stream, allotment, tree or canal can become the beginning of a story.
Yarrow’s work also demonstrates that environmental fiction does not need to feel like a lesson.
Nature, mystery, danger and character can work together to create an exciting adventure.
Listen to Yarrow Townsend
In this episode, Sarah and Yarrow discuss The Map of Leaves, Yarrow’s connection with nature and the experiences that influenced the novel.
The episode was released on 14 July 2022 and lasts approximately 27 minutes. The show notes describe Yarrow’s childhood in the New Forest, previous work as a teacher and for the RSPB, and her life travelling the canals on a narrowboat. (Buzzsprout)
It is especially useful for KS2 teachers, English leads, librarians, outdoor-learning leads and anyone searching for a nature-rich class novel.
Listen to “Let’s Follow the Map of Leaves with Author Yarrow Townsend”
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Nature Books for KS2 FAQs
What is The Map of Leaves about?
The novel follows twelve-year-old Orla, who can communicate with plants. When a mysterious sickness threatens her village, she follows the warnings of nature and begins a dangerous journey to search for a cure. (Postscript Books)
What age is The Map of Leaves suitable for?
Chicken House and ReadingZone recommend the book for readers aged nine and above, making it particularly relevant to upper KS2. Teachers should still consider the reading maturity and needs of their individual class. (Chicken House Books)
Can The Map of Leaves be used as a Year 5 or Year 6 class text?
Yes. Its themes, vocabulary, adventure structure and environmental content can support upper-KS2 English, science, geography and outdoor learning.
How can teachers take the book outdoors?
Teachers can use leaf mapping, plant observation, nature writing, river studies, outdoor reading trails and fictional messages from plants. The outdoor activity should deepen understanding of the text rather than simply move ordinary work outside.
Are teaching resources available for The Map of Leaves?
Chicken House provides chapter-by-chapter teaching notes containing comprehension questions and discussion prompts linked to the book. (Chicken House Books)
Does the book teach children about real plants?
The novel draws heavily on plants, remedies and traditional environmental knowledge, but it remains fiction. Teachers can use it to inspire safe scientific research and observation while making clear that children must not taste or use unidentified plants.
Can the book support environmental education?
Yes. It can prompt discussion about biodiversity, plant knowledge, environmental responsibility, stewardship and the relationship between people and nature.
Author
Written by Sarah Seaman BSc, PGCE, MA
Founder of The Muddy Puddle Teacher®, qualified teacher, Bloomsbury author and educational consultant supporting schools to connect literacy, nature and practical outdoor learning.
