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A Better Life

Test yourself—

• What percentage of preschoolers go outside daily with a parent?
• About how many hours do children spend outside on a weekday?
• Do children spend more or less time outdoors today than children did twenty years ago?

See answers below.*

Yes, the “Caution: Children at Play” signs are still on the streets, but the real caution today is that children are not playing outside. In fact, they are losing touch with nature and are losing out on better lives.

The statistics may be surprising. But digging deeper into the research, I ran into some “Oh, I see” moments. Maybe you will, too.

The dirtier you are, the more fun you had
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What Disconnected Kids and Nature?

According to a survey done by JCB Kids, kids would rather watch TV, play computer games, go on the Internet, listen to music, do homework, or do chores than go outside.

Do chores? Wow.

From the parents’ viewpoint, frightening reports of child abductions as well as living in crime-ridden or high-traffic neighborhoods have made them cautious about encouraging their children to go outside.

Why Does It Matter?

Author Richard Louv states in an article he wrote for The New York Times,

“A growing body of scientific evidence suggests that human health and our ability to learn and create are enhanced when we spend time in more natural environments.”

For children—

• Going outside increases exercise and activity that keeps them from being overweight. Active children tend to grow up to be active adults. And active adults encounter fewer health issues. This is the future Michelle Obama hopes to encourage with her Let’s Move! program.
• According to Louv, children in nature-based play areas and schools show fewer symptoms of attention deficit than students in indoor-focused classrooms.
• In research cited by the National Wildlife Federation, outdoor activities improve children’s imaginations and attention spans; outdoor activities increase critical thinking skills and decrease aggression.

Building bonds, being outside
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For the community—

• Children who play outside together develop a sense of community. They learn how to get along—to negotiate the boundaries and rules of games, to share equipment, to contribute equally to building a fort, for example.
• When children play outside, they learn more about their communities, meet neighbors, and make friendships. This gives them skills they’ll use as adults to strengthen their neighborhoods.

For the environment—

• How can you care about something that you know nothing about? Being outside helps children see, touch, hear, and smell the natural world. By learning and interacting with it, they recognize how precious it is.

Losing themselves in the wild
© Janine Boylan

The Incredibly Simple Solution

We just need to get kids outside. Get them to a patch of grass, a rooftop garden, a bike trail, an empty sidewalk, even an asphalt court. Walk, skip, run, jump, ride, play, and explore with them.

• Plant a garden—even having a small garden on a balcony will get kids outside, interacting with nature.
• Find a nearby trail. It may require a car, bus, or subway to get there, but chances are that the ride will be worth it for everyone.
• Invite the neighbors to a favorite park. Both families will benefit from the outdoor time, and the children will develop stronger friendships.
• Plan a family outdoor adventure, such as a Saturday at a local pond or a weekend camping.
• Don’t let the weather keep the kids indoors! Some of the best outdoor memories can be made stomping in rain puddles or tromping through the snow.

Make it a priority to take kids outside, and we will be improving their health, our planet, and our community. We will be helping children to a better life.

Perhaps Richard Louv said it best in his book The Nature Principle:

Imagine a world in which all children grow up with a deep understanding of the life around them. Where obesity is reduced through nature play. … Where children experience the joy of being in nature before they learn of its loss, where they can lie in the grass on a hillside for hours and watch clouds become the faces of the future. Where every child and every adult has a human right to a connection to the natural world, and shares the responsibility for caring for it.

* Answers to the questions above:

• 51% of preschoolers go outside every day with their parents, according to a study led by Pooja S. Tandon.
• Children spend about an hour a day outside on weekdays, according to a survey by JCB Kids.
• Children in this generation are spending only half as much time outdoors as children did 20 years ago, according to research led by F. Thomas Juster.