Why Have Children Learning Outside Everyday For School-Length Hours?
Especially during the colder months when we can be comfortable indoors?
Asking that question is like asking:
Why cook meals when you can order out or have someone else make every meal for you?
Why walk when there are electric wheelchairs & cars to get us everywhere?
Why do anything when we can have electronics to entertain us 24/7?
We live in a time where we have advancements all around us for absolutely everything. Through this blow up of luxurious technology, society has forgotten to use wisdom to manage our use of these tools. To a point where today we have normalized ABUSIVE behavior to these technologies and to ourselves. We have made it normal to give away our natural abilities & adopted an attitude of ‘why do that, it’s too much work’.
It’s really coming down to the question of
Are you going to do it yourself? (Independence)
Or are you going to have someone, or something, do it for you? (Co-Dependence /Reliance)
And most importantly...
Are we teaching children to be INDEPENDENT or CO-DEPENDENT?
Are we giving children more experiences to be uncomfortable and therefore learn adaptability; so that they can go out of their comfort zone easily?
Or are we giving them more experiences to remain comfortable at all times?
There needs to be a balance between actions that create comfortable & uncomfortable experiences. A balance between proper using & abusing of tools and luxuries. Without that balance, anyone’s growth is stunted. Stunting children’s growth at the beginning of their learning career can make or break their willingness to try new things, take risks, follow their dreams, expand their knowledge, or meeting new people for the REST OF THEIR LIVES.
What’s your opinion about the importance of this balance?
Now to really answer the leading question of ‘Why have children learning outside everyday for school-length hours?’:
Today, being outdoors for long periods of time is uncomfortable to most people and children. Humans are an incredibly adaptable and resilient species. The more time we spend outdoors, the easier it is for our bodies to regulate temperatures. There is much both children and adults can gain from a natural, woodland, learning environment; such as:
boosts in academic learning, personal development, and environmental stewardship.
learners experience shifts in perseverance, problem solving, critical thinking, leadership, teamwork, and resilience
establish pro-environmental behavior, particularly by fostering an emotional connection to nature.
nature-based instruction outperforms traditional instruction; thousands of studies provide strong evidence of this through the use of a wide range of experiments, instructional approaches, & analyzing the outcomes of standardized test scores and graduation rates.
promotes learning by improving learners’ attention, self-discipline, stress levels, interest and enjoyment in learning, as well as physical activity and fitness.
naturally provides a calmer, quieter, more cooperative, safer context for learning; while cultivating autonomy that fosters developmentally beneficial forms of play
***All bullet points are paraphrased from the article;
Written by Erika Zimmerlein, Founder of NYLL
10/09/2023
