We need to take kids out into nature! Far too many children are growing up not seeing the beauty of nature and not learning to respect the danger. We are going to inherit the future where the only thing valued by this generation is made of concrete, rebar, and steel. The lone wildflower that springs up in the sidewalk will just be seen as a weed. We need our kids fording streams, climbing mountains, and getting down on all fours to look at an insect they’ve never seen before. Listen to the show.
According to a 2015 Outdoor Recreation report (linked in resources), outdoor recreation is at its lowest levels since the report began in 2006. Only 60% of kids aged 13-17 report ONE outdoor activity in 2014. (Adults aged 18-24 have only 56% reporting one outdoor activity!)
Today’s show is about a school that takes kids outside into nature. Many schools are canceling these nature field-trip events for safety or financial reasons. Never taking school children outside is a grave disservice to this generation who needs to get outdoors more than ever before. Let’s talk about nature, learning, and one thing we should be teaching in school.
Essential Questions: Reconnecting Your Students to the Lessons of Nature
- How is an extended overnight nature experience be run by a school district?
- How do you educate children on outdoor safety?
- How can you raise money and secure parent support for nature learning experiences?
- How does a successful 45-year outdoor nature program keep going in a budget-crunch situation?
- What are the benefits from an overnight nature experience?
- What technology can you use to help kids learn more about nature?
Educator Resources from this Episode
- Justin Ward @ward337
- 2015 Education Recreation Participation Report found that outdoor recreation is at the lowest levels since the report began in 2006.
- Psychology Today article by Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, describing Nature Deficit Disorder and the Oxford Junior Dictionary (they took out words like beaver and dandelion and replaced them with blog and mp3 player)
- Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost
- More People Have Died from Selfies than Shark Attacks by Mashable
- Colorado Park Closes Because too Many People are Taking Selfies with Bears
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2 comments
I absolutely love the idea of getting our students back to nature. We may not all be able to implement a camping program like the one mentioned in the podcast, but we can all plan activities that get our students outside. I especially love the idea of connecting them to real world experts in outdoor activities. By allowing the students to connect in meaningful ways to the outdoors, they learn so much more about nature than if they were sitting at their desks. When my niece was young, we would go outside and explore often. We would look for bugs and worms, and she loved it. I remember taking my Science textbook outdoors with us, and we would talk about the bugs and flowers we encountered. It was such a rich learning experience for the both of us. Our students should get to experience learning in this way.
Awesome Megan! All of us can do something!!!