• View ecochildsplay’s profile on Facebook
  • View ecochildsplay’s profile on Twitter
  • View ecochildsplay’s profile on Instagram
  • View ecochildsplay’s profile on Pinterest
  • View Jennifer Lance’s profile on LinkedIn
  • View ecochildsplay’s profile on YouTube
  • View ecochildsplay’s profile on Google+

Eco Child's Play

Live a greener, healthier life!

  • Environment
  • Pregnancy
  • Food & Recipes
  • Health News
  • Parenting
  • Green Toys
  • Beauty & Beauty Products
  • Green Home & Cleaning
  • Contact

Play Outside! Free Range Kids are Happier and Healthier

I recently received Community Playthings‘ booklet entitled The Wisdom of Nature: Out My Back Door. This beautiful resource is filled with article after article supporting the importance of outdoor play for children.  Not the sort of contrived outdoor play a playground offers, but true exploration of nature in our own backyards.  Furthermore, Community Playthings is offering this booklet free!  Order one for your child’s teacher or your own homeschool program.

Here are some excerpts I adore from The Wisdom of Nature.

Nancy Rosenow and Susan Wirth write on “Outdoor Spaces”:

A few generations ago, it wasn’t necessary to design those kind of spaces.  Most children lived close to fields or forests they could explore at their leisure….

The bells and whistles of of technology keep children indoors staring at screens.  Even when they do go outdoors in centers or schools, children play on sterile “safety” surfacing and plastic structures.  In our well-meaning attempts to keep children from harm, we have removed much of what could bring them joy…

It’s time for our children to grow up a little dirtier but a lot happier.

Rusty Keeler writes on “Creating Planet Earth:

As adults we may think of lofty places of great natural importance, and yet the most important place on the planet for young children is…your back yard.

John Rosenow writes on “Growing Tree Planters” (This is my favorite article in the booklet):

Today’s conservation professionals, and the many citizens who support environmental causes through their personal actions, contributions, and votes, tend to have one thing in common:  as children we led “free-range” childhoods.  We spent hours and hours of unstructured time outdoors, connected with nature…

As a result we developed an emotional connection with the natural world which led us to care about the environment as adults…

Today, outdoor experiencs for countless children are confiend to asphalt playgrounds suurrounded by chain-link fences…

In response to this disconnection, many organizations have developed educational programs which teach children about environmental issues such as deforestation or global warming.  However, these efforts are often ineffective or even counter-productive if they do not foster an early emotional attachment with nature in children.

In short, we need to help children lean to love the earth before we ask them to save it…

We need to help teachers and young parents, who are themselves part of the video generation, learn to support those nature connections, for their own benefit as well.

This is just a small sampling of the wonderful wisdom contained in The Wisdom of Nature.  Thankfully, this booklet is printed on FSC paper.  There’s nothing worse than advocating for the outdoors without considering it in publication.

  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Pinterest
  • Print
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • WhatsApp
  • Tumblr
  • Reddit
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Subscribe!

« Guest Post: Teaching Children the Meaning of Conservation
Will San Francisco Ban Circumcision via the Male Genital Mutilation (MGM) Bill? »

Trackbacks

  1. Tweets that mention Play Outside! Free Range Kids are Happier and Healthier -- Topsy.com says:
    January 25, 2011 at 9:49 pm

    […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by ecochildsplay, Summer M. Summer M said: Read this: Play Outside! Free Range Kids are Happier and Healthier: I recently received Community Playthings‘ … http://bit.ly/heWD0Y […]

    Reply
  2. Hank D and the Bee: SNOW! | Joe Mohr's Cartoon Archive says:
    February 9, 2011 at 10:50 am

    […] time outside. Did you hear me? Hey everyone, GO OUTSIDE!!! From Jennifer Lance and EcoChildsPlay: Play Outside! Free Range Kids are Happier and Healthier From Heroin and Cornflakes: New Pediatrics Study Identifies the Risks, Consequences of Video Game […]

    Reply
  3. Hank D and the Bee: SNOW! says:
    February 10, 2011 at 6:16 am

    […] time outside. Did you hear me? Hey everyone, GO OUTSIDE!!! From Jennifer Lance and EcoChildsPlay: Play Outside! Free Range Kids are Happier and Healthier From Heroin and Cornflakes: New Pediatrics Study Identifies the Risks, Consequences of Video Game […]

    Reply
  4. Experience Nature: It's the Greenest Act of All | Sustainablog says:
    September 8, 2011 at 11:29 am

    […] create emotional attachments and connections which leads to altruism for our environment.  As John Rosenow writes on “Growing Tree Planters”: Today’s conservation professionals, and the many citizens who support environmental causes […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search Content

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter


About Eco Child’s Play

Our ethos is to provide news, information, and opinions on natural, green parenting to help your family live a greener, healthier life! Additionally, we offer personal consulting services to help you achieve your green living goals.

Jennifer is a vegetarian, yoga teacher, gardener, hiker, teacher, and mother that has been living off-the-grid for over 20 years.

Contact Eco Child’s Play

It’s Time to Quit Plastics and How to do It

Reduce Plastic Waste with re-brush Eco-Friendly Toothbrush

More from the archives!

From Pro-Life Feminist to Pro-Choice Mama: My Change in Beliefs

Is soy safe to eat? What are the benefits? What are the risks?

And the Winner is….Carrie of Rhubarb Sky

Green Paws: A Guide to Safer Flea and Tick Treatments

Kids Behaving Brilliantly

COVID Back to School: Helping children cope with uncertainty

covid19 pregnancy

Does the Coronavirus Attack the Placenta and cause 2nd Trimester Miscarriages?

Information

  • About & Contact
  • Archive
  • Blog
  • Consulting Services
  • Disclaimer, Disclosure, & Sponsored Posts
  • Privacy Policy
logo
Food Advertising by

5 Eco-friendly Theme Parties

Dr. Nadine Burke: Diabetes Directly a Result of Eating Too Much Sugar for Too Long a Period of Time [video]

Lila Mae is an online shopping destination that offers a wonderful collection of sustainable, stylish gifts and essentials that are all made in the USA. We are thrilled to introduce you to some of our favorite American innovators whose vision and passion for what they do is reflected in their original approach to cutting edge style. From jewelry and organic clothing to toys and vintage home décor, we are dedicated to bringing you American-made products of beauty and quality that are also safe, natural and non-toxic. Happily, we don’t have to sacrifice the environment or our health to create a thriving economy, and we don’t have to sacrifice our sense of style to fill our lives with safe and sustainable treasures being created right here at home.

Lila Mae Sustainable and Stylish Gifts Responsibly Made in the USA

Congress Bans Phthalates from Toys & Child Care Products – It's About Freaking Time

Powerful Message

Popular Categories

  • Breastfeeding
  • Health News
  • Natural Childbirth
  • Parenting
  • Education
  • Product Review
  • Green Toys

Get our posts via email

Please stay in touch!

You might also like to read…

Lead in Lunchboxes-Part 2

You are what your mother ate

5 Green Parent Posts: Heroin and Cornflakes, Natural Parents, Mother Jones Network, Enlightened Motherhood, and Inhabitots

Study Finds Cheeseburgers More Nutritious Than Baby Food

Breastfeeding Mom Gets Asked to Leave Restaurant. Again.

GlaxoSmithKline Used Babies From “Economically Disadvantaged Families” for Vaccine Trials

Copyright © 2021 · Divine theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2021 · Divine Theme On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkNoPrivacy policy