Spring is in the air and we’re all looking forward to spending more time outdoors. For parents of young children, this time of year can be very exciting as we start to take our little ones outdoors more often and for longer periods of time. I thought this might be an ideal time to review the benefits of outdoor play. We know that research shows that children who are connected to nature experience positive benefits to their social, emotional, academic, and physical well-being. These are all wonderful outcomes from playing outdoors, exploring the environment, or just enjoying the outdoors.
Getting young children to go outdoors used to be a no-brainer. These days, especially after a long winter, parents can experience pushbacks from their kids if they are used to the comfort of being indoors. I’m also hearing from parents that the kids would prefer to play video games or watch TV instead of playing outdoors. If this is what you are experiencing, try encouraging your little one to play outdoors by telling them stories about what they can do and what fun they can have. Remember, play is how young children learn, and childhood is all about learning.
Here are some ideas of simple things you can do with your child to encourage outdoor play:
- Make supplies readily available – Place a basket by the door with bubbles, a kite, chalk, a bucket for collecting outdoor treasures, rubber bands and string in a Ziploc bag, craft materials such as watercolors to paint the sidewalk, road, rocks, or leaves. You can even include binoculars for bird watching and a child’s bird- watching book if you think that will interest them. Just make these play materials visible and easy to grab to get your child excited about going outside.
- Start or join a garden – Borrow or buy some gardening tools. Even if you don’t have a garden, you can put together a window box outside or find a community garden to join. There are so many benefits of gardening with kids and getting outside is just one of them! Children also get to practice responsibility while learning healthy eating habits.
- Plan an adventure – Try hiking, skiing, rock climbing, kayaking, cave exploring…they will all likely be a hit! Children (and adults!) crave adventure.
- Turn to books – Hit the library or bookshop and grab some books that focus on outdoor wonders. These can entice your child’s nature-based imagination and sense of adventure. Check out Run Wild, Caterpillar and Bean, and Worm Weather, fun spring books for toddler and preschool aged children.
- Take a trip down memory lane – look through old photos and videos of previous outdoor fun to remind your children how much they loved getting outside and playing in past years past. Sometimes the cold and dreary winter months make them forget, so this is a great way to get them excited about going outside again!
All Blogs are written by Professionals in the fields of Nutrition, Human Development and Diabetes.