Connecting children with nature

When I see birches bend left to right…
I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.
- Robert Frost

Robert Frost’s sentimental hope for seeing children swinging on tree branches is a hope that many of us here at Fenner Nature Center share. As a naturalist and program educator, nothing makes me happier than seeing children delight in being outdoors. Many of our visitors come from urban areas where green spaces are hard to find. Unlike many people from an older generation, they aren’t growing up exploring the woods behind their house or rescuing baby birds from their backyard. Instead, they are attending schools that have been forced to cut recess time, and living in neighborhoods where outdoor play is too hard to access.

While this saddens many nature-lovers, it could in fact be a bigger problem than we thought. “Nature deficit disorder,” a term coined by author and nature advocate Richard Louv, is a trend across the country. In his ground-breaking book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder, Louv outlines a number of studies linking reduced time in nature to all sorts of issues: obesity, attention disorders, depression. Louv’s book describes these studies in detail, and is well worth the read. But the long and short of it is this: being in nature encourages people to be active, which helps fight obesity. Being in nature helps children process information and become curious about the world around them, which combats attention disorders. And exposure to nature helps children resist negative stresses and depression. Plus, free play and exploration is a vital part of healthy child development.

While many societal factors have caused nature deficit disorder to be an all too common problem among children, there are some easy solutions we can implement. Communities need nature centers, parks, and green spaces. Schools need time and funding for field trips to these places. Teachers need training on how to use nature as a teaching tool. And, above all, families need the ability and desire to spend time in nature with their children.

Fenner Nature Center offers many free and low-cost ways for your family to get outside. Our free hiking trails are open every day, dawn to dusk. Elementary-age children can sign up for our spring break and summer camps, where they will spend their days exploring outdoors and learning about nature. Teachers can bring their classes for educational tours. Preschoolers and toddlers can participate in our Knee High Naturalist programs on Wednesdays and Thursdays. In March we are also offering a winter night hike, a worm composting class, a nature story hour, and a maple syrup festival. For more information on these programs and many more, visit our website or call us at 517-483-4224.