As spring approaches, get the kids outside! I was amazed that few children got out in the snow to sled and make snowmen after the few snows we had this year in the northeast. As parents it is our responsibility to direct our children to healthy environments and healthy activities. Get them away from the digital screens for some time each day outside.
To learn more about the real importance of the outdoors, listen in to the Family First program on avoiding the “nature deficit disorder.” My guest Ellen Haas has been teaching kids about enjoying nature responsibly and deeply for decades and is author of several books on the subject.
Just click on this link and listen in, or download the show to your mobile dievice. http://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/54356/do-our-children-have-nature-deficit-disorder.
Our indoor air is far more polluted than outdoor air in most neighborhoods. So just for the sake of breathing, it’s good to get outdoors! Also there is space to move, to run, skip, roll around on the ground. Encourage free-wheeling play. And go outside yourself to set the tone. Kids are programmed to want to do what adults do, so show them how to enjoy the outdoors. Make it a family time and they will go for it and look forward to it. Take time to watch the birds and planes, to study the cloud formations, to notice the trees starting to bud with leaves. Pick up sticks around the yard, kick a ball around. Let your child make up games and play along. Laugh out loud. And they love hellping in the garden.
The rebalancing of mental moods and the physical play which happens outside helps everyone, but especially kids who seem to have attention problems. Listen in to my interview about the benefits of nature at
http://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/54356/do-our-children-have-nature-deficit-disorder.
Randy Rolfe Take Home Tips: We are all meant to connect with nature. As sophisticated as our civilization is, we are still born of this earth and require the vital energies of good air, pure water, restful energizing sleep, safe environment, quality nutrition, sunlight, and the blues and greens of the outdoors. If you want your kids to appreciate nature, you must do it with them. Kids are programmed to do what the adults around them do. So set an example by getting outside yourself and inviting them to be with you.
