All parents wants what is best for their kids, and with the ever growing demand of kids learning technology in the classrooms and recess being cut from many schools across the United States, it’s important to maintain a level of outdoor play that matters. Obesity is at an all-time high here in the United States and we know screen time is partially to blame. Today I want to share a few ways you can encourage kids to play outdoors so that you can raise well-rounded kids that have a love for their environment.
It may seem easier to let the computer or television screen babysit your kids because you work from home or just arrived back from work and the last thing you want to do is be a parent. This is a bad habit to get into because your kids
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• Teach kids the fun of raking up a pile of leaves and jumping in them.
• Take a daily walk downtown, if you live close enough, and experience your town together.
• Create a backyard that tempts the kids to get out and be active.
• Make bird feeders and have your kids partake in a daily bird watch to see which species arrive.
• Create an outdoor scavenger hunt day where you all take turns creating a treasure map.
• Use the deck or porch area to play board games or have a weekly family meeting.
• Create your own unique versions of childhood games like tag and hide-n-seek.
• Purchase outdoor sports equipment such as volleyball, basketball or soccer gear.
• Start a family garden and enlist the kids as the main gardeners who are in charge of it.
• Let them play with water on a regular basis.
• Have outdoor chores as part of the kid’s daily responsibilities.
• Start a dirt mound for an outdoor sandbox for kids who love to make dirt castles.
• Purchase outdoor trucks for kids who love digging around the yard.
• Consider a bicycle and other outdoor riding gear that will entice the kids to play more.
• Make it a point to take an evening walk around the neighborhood as a
Promoting fun, learning and the wonder of childhood by showcasing the natural connection of playing and learning in programs, events and environments and influencing community development, business practices and educational systems
Equal Playing Time A high school student athlete; she gives up her social life and after school time for playing, practicing, and perfecting the sport she loves in hopes of making it to college, or an even higher level of competition. She has chased this dream for all of her life, going to camps, spending her free time sharpening her craft, becoming the athlete she visions; only to get put on the bench and replaced with someone who barely made the team and shows up to practice 2 times a week because the coach is required to give students the same amount of playing time. A player not working as hard as another does not deserve playing time benefits because the coach is required to give it to them.
Children could be assigned chores to help out around the house while their mom is at work still. So when she comes home she can come home to a clean house.
I later understood that gardening is generally associated with a life of leisure, with relaxation. For me, it was a competition. I'd ask my seedlings, 'Who's growing the fastest?' 'Who's the tallest?' Fearing bad karma, I tried to stay impartial, lest a subconscious preference for green beans would cause me to water them more often, while dumping bleach on the onions. Every night I'd give my parents an update on rates of growth, any signs of produce, and my never-realized irrigation plans.
To begin, children do not play outside in today’s generation as a few years back which is an argument that could be pulled out of Walter Dean Myers’ “Summer,” because technology is a huge distraction. As this world progresses in immense technology, the kids grow up with that background and are used to a high tech life. Their lives revolve around computers, cellular devices, and television. Lines 7-8 in “Summer” read, “Birds peeping, old men sleeping.” Even though this might not relate that much to the topic, on the other hand it does as well. People should ...
Thinking back on my childhood, I first remember all the times I played outside in my backyard. I would pretend to dig up dinosaur bones or create imaginary realms of ancient lands; there I would perform diplomatic services for the people in need. I was usually alone, and those are some of my fondest memories. When I first decided to become a teacher and thought about what is important to my philosophy on how children learn, I immediately knew I was a strong believer in play. Although, many decision makers such as legislators and school district leaders believe in more academic types of learning styles, my paper will discuss why play is so powerful and important to children.
Organize and lead activities designed to promote physical, mental, and social development, such as games, arts and crafts, music, storytelling, and field trips.
... create their own wish list to Santa Claus. They begin to see the value of how what I set up for them to learn will be beneficial for them.
Host Family Fun Nights throughout the year to highlight the healthy progress going on in the school. Use these occasions to inform and educate parents on current wellness and nutrition issues.
In my opinion the outdoor area in any setting is often the childrens’ favourite place to be, as all the natural features engage children’s senses and provide opportunities for hands on learning. By letting children play with sticks, climb trees and roll around on the ground children develop physically and mentally. This is an area where there is often greater freedom and scope to investigate their surroundings and whilst there is exploration there is also very good opportunity to develop gross motor skills through physical activity. Such activities also spark their imaginations (Cooper, a
Skip your favorite breakfast spot and try a new cafe, catch up with an old friend
it provides different play and children can face new skills and challenges. outdoor play does not just mean the garden, it progresses further for example, the park, walks, shopping malls, day trips out and much more. it gives children the opportunity for healthy exercise and the opportunity to learn more about the world and nature. To begin with, children will have less restrictions than being indoors, they have more space as large scale play can be provided. It also allows children to be able to use all of their senses, sight, hearing, smells, and they can enjoy the sense of being free and not restricted indoors. Being outdoors means the play is often open ended and furthermore children can play in different types of weather. The outdoor play encourages children to use their imagination and be creative with the resources at hand. Outdoor play often goes well with indoor play as it provides different experiences, however it is also important to remember that after outdoor play there also needs to be quiet play/areas for
Furthermore, by introducing shared open spaces with other classes, we can bring out the full potential of the children physically, mentally and emotionally. They will have more sensory play when exposed to a wider range of materials outdoors more often. The importance of sensory play is supported by Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development in the sensorimotor stage which states child’s intelligence is developed by the basic motor and sensory explorations of the world around them.
learning. For example, in secondary school, students are required to finish the “Other Learning Experiences” programs. It aims to expand students’ learning contexts instead of simply learning in the classroom. While some school hold more outdoor activities as they agree that outdoor activities is beneficial for students, others reject it and continue to use the traditional classroom teaching. This essay examines both sides of for and against arguments of having more outdoor learning activities.
play games, both inside the house and out in the streets. I think that was a