Kids in Nature
(Written by Emily Thomas)
According to The Nature Conservancy nature provides many lifelong benefits across physical health, mental health and academic competency. Even playing with dirt has shown to reduce anxiety and stress levels in children! Introducing different natural environments to children can help them think beyond their immediate surroundings and build well-rounded perspectives.
Child Mind Institute, reports that recent studies have shown the benefit - even necessity - of spending time outdoors, both for kids and adults. All nuances and particulars aside, most of the studies agree that kids who play outside are smarter, happier, more attentive, and less anxious than kids who spend more time indoors. Here are a few things we do know about why nature is good for kids’ minds.
It builds confidence. The way that kids play in nature has a lot less structure than most types of indoor play. There are infinite ways to interact with outdoor environments, from the backyard to the park to the local hiking trail or stream. Letting your child choose how they treat nature means they have the power to control their own actions while experiencing it.
It promotes creativity and imagination. Unstructured play also allows kids to interact more meaningfully with their surroundings. They can think more deeply, freely, creatively and approach the world in inventive ways. It also teaches responsibility. Living things die if mistreated or not taken care of properly, and entrusting a child to take care of the living parts of their environment such as gardens, wildlife and ecosystems, means they’ll learn what happens when their actions have consequences - good or bad.
It gets kids moving. Most ways of interacting with nature involve more exercise and movement than indoor activity. Whether it be joining the local soccer team, riding a bike through the park, a hike through the woods or weeding, planting and harvesting the garden - engaging kids in movement outdoors helps them physically and mentally.
It makes them think. Nature creates a unique sense of wonder for kids that no other environment can provide. The phenomena that occurs naturally in backyards and parks everyday make kids ask questions about the earth, the life around it and their place in it.
It reduces stress and fatigue. According to the Attention Restoration Theory, urban environments require what’s called directed attention, which forces us to ignore distractions and exhausts our brains. In natural environments, we practice an effortless type of attention known as soft fascination that creates feelings of pleasure, not fatigue.
Introducing children to the diversity of nature - from animals to landscapes and climates - can encourage them to build an appreciation for the world around them and help them understand their place within it. Being outside gives children the ultimate freedom - they don’t have to necessarily follow the rules and tasks set out for them when they’re indoors. Kids become more confident by learning new skills in nature and it gives them something to be proud of.
Here are some additional resources for creating your own nature spaces, encouraging a love of nature in yourself and your child and learning more about the importance of being in nature:
The Power of Nature in Your Own Backyard: A Weekly Series
Inspiring Picture Books About Nature
30+ Inspirational Parenting Books for Raising Outdoor Kids
The Best Books That Explore How Nature Benefits Our Mental Health