The Nature and Child Connection

By Jenny Lawler Ammon, Naturalist, Dubuque County Conservation Board and Swiss Valley Nature Center

Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods, states today's kids are increasingly disconnected from the natural world. This has dramatically affected children’s health, creativity and attention spans. We are lucky in Dubuque County to still have wild areas to explore. There are solutions to the “nature deficit disorder” faced by our future generation. I want to share the importance of the nature and child connection and to inspire you to “unplug” your children and get them outdoors!

When I was young, outdoor play wasn’t something scheduled. It was something we just did. After school, on weekends, and all summer, my brothers and I explored nature. We hiked into neighboring woods, visited ponds, and made up silly games to last all afternoon. During the winter, we spent hours building forts and sledding. When the summer heat was unbearable, we jumped into the farmer’s creek and didn’t think twice about microorganisms… the water just felt cold.

Things have changed. Instead of passing summer months hiking, swimming, and telling stories around the campfire, children are more likely to attend computer or weight-loss camps. As a result, Louv says, “They've come to think of nature as more of an abstraction than a reality.” Indeed, a 2002 British study reported that eight-year-olds could identify Pokémon characters more easily than "otter, beetle, and oak tree."

As a parent, it isn’t your job to know the scientific name for oak or beetle. (Ask your local naturalist!) However, you can encourage your children to have unstructured outdoor play. This will increase their social, psychological, and spiritual well being. Louv states, “Anecdotal evidence strongly suggests that childhood experiences in nature stimulate creativity.”

Playing indoors has its place, but the addiction to computer screens, video games, and other technology takes the kid out of being a kid. Outdoor play creates memories that are a foundation for the future. But it’s not just technology that keeps kids inside… it is parents. You can pass on fears of strangers, Lyme disease, snakes, and injuries to your offspring. But parents have a bigger fear to face if we do not instill in our children an appreciation for the natural world.

Research shows nature can offer powerful therapy for depression, obesity, and attention deficit disorder. Environmental psychologists reported in 2003 that nature in or around the home helped to protect the psychological well-being of children. Witnessing children responding to nature is indescribable. I have seen students labeled “troublemaker” or “ADHD” excel in environmental education programs. Nature provides a learning environment that isn’t intimidating or stressful.

Some simple things you can do to help your family explore the natural world:

• Take a hike, it’s free and an adventure.
• Look for mussels (clams) on the river banks.
• After a rain, look for animal tracks in the mud in your neighborhood.
• Let your children have unstructured time in the yard or nearby park.
• Take the family fishing.
• Find a pair of binoculars and a bird guide, and look at your backyard birds. Feed birds!
• Find a stream to net bugs and examine them. Put them back… gently.
• Plant a garden or a tree.
• Look under the grass in your yard for cool insects.
• Jump in a pile of fall leaves.
• Sign up your child for a nature program… then attend with them!

The nature and child connection is something that I witness and cannot completely give justice to here, but I can invite you to see it for yourself. Try it with your family and watch the stress of the everyday melt away in your child. Nature is the ultimate inspiration, and your child will thank you for any opportunity to connect with it.