KNOWLEDGE, EXPERIENCE, AND SKILLS TO GET BACK THE CHILDREN IN TO THE NATURE

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All children need to smile at the sun and feel its warmth. All children deserve to squish mud and splash in puddles. Every child should be able to roll down hills and hide in tall grass. All children deserve to have their sense of wonder sparked by the possibilities of the planet. What do your children experience when they step outside? Are they able to touch dirt? Smell flowers? Find worms? Flowers and seeds? Climb trees? Hug cats and dog?Today’s children are much less connected to the natural world than at another time in history. This natural connection has been replaced in various ways –greater interaction with the digital world, less unstructured outdoor play, and via growing urbanization. This decreased exposure to nature has consequences that we are just beginning to understand. The negative outcomes for children of this nature deficit include sky-rocketing rates of childhood obesity and type-two diabetes, increased psychological stress, all due to diminishing opportunities for children to engage in unstructured, creative play in the out of doors.But doesn’t it take an extensive nature or park for children to make friends with the planet? No! All it takes is someone like you to decide to bring nature into your back yard and allow children to explore. The flowers that pop into the spring. Bring dirt, sand, and water into your yard. Plant shade trees and fruit trees and trees that burst into fragrant bloom. Allow corners of your yard to grow wild. Hang birdhouses for birds. Allow children to take naps outside in the grass.