cision-making, problem-solving and creativity. Unstructured outdoor activity promotes executive functioning and may even lead to improved academic performance. Those sweet moments when a toddler squats down to observe a wriggling worm in his yard or a 5th grader invents a game with her friends at recess play a significant role in kids’ future success.
More Confidence and Risk-taking Access to the outdoors and green space is an important factor in childhood health. According to the American Public Health Association, childhood obesity, diabetes, hypertension and depression are becoming increasingly prevalent, in part due to more sedentary indoor lifestyles. Where kids used to spend hours after school playing outdoors until dinnertime, today’s youth are more likely to participate in structured extracurricular activities. But being intentional to schedule outside time for unstructured activities like a game of after-dinner family kickball, walking the dog together in a nearby park or exploring a backyard creek with a friend, can have invaluable benefits. Pediatrician and medical editor Dr. Claire McCarthy notes that time in nature builds a child’s confidence and encourages them to take risks. Th is can be particularly important as children tend to spend more and more time online. McCarthy stresses that a child willing to fail, and fail publicly, is far more likely to discover unknown talents and interests, stick with things when the going gets tough, and try again when things don’t go according to plan.
IDEAS FOR OUTDOOR PLAY Don’t lament the fact that your children aren’t playing as much outside as you did at their age. Instead, use the summer months as an opportunity to incorporate more outdoor time into your family’s lifestyle. Keep it fun and lead by example. Try these ideas this summer and rest assured that St. Martin’s will continue to find ways to make the outdoors an integral part of your child’s education. • Tap into their interests. If your daughter loves art, encourage her to take a sketch pad outside. Just because you love to hike doesn’t mean she will. • Try something new. Maybe this is the summer you’ll (finally!) go camping. Or maybe after-dinner tennis on a local court will become your new routine. • Schedule outdoor playdates. Make sure the friend comes prepared for outdoor play with sunscreen, bug spray and old shoes for mud play. • Build an outdoor playspace together then turn it over to the kids. This could be as simple as a teepee made of fallen branches, or an old-school treehouse. • Make sure bikes, scooters, etc. are in good working order and accessible. Broken equipment stuffed into a corner of the garage won’t get much use. • Take indoor activities outside, like meals, reading and writing thank you notes. • Learn more at childrenandnature.org and check out Richard Louv’s books “Last Child in the Woods” and “Vitamin N.”
PATTERNS | SUMMER 2021
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