A new study from Great Britain bodes poorly for children and their outdoor lives. According to researchers at Hertfordshire University, while most children are open to outdoor play, their parents are not, and a lack of confidence is often the reason.
Parents are overly fearful, the survey said. They fear cars, injury, abduction, ending up on private property, children running away, and .. dirt. From the study:
There seems to be an obsession about cleanliness. Perhaps because children are in expensive clothes, mud seems to be abhorrent.
What happened to play clothes? Are children showpieces? It makes sense to use inexpensive or used clothing precisely for play, to be dirtied and stained. Play is the job of children! Dress them appropriately and let them explore.
Another issue? Lack of map-reading skills. Said senior lecturer Debbie Pearlman Hogue:
None of the mothers I spoke to could read a map.
This is downright pitiful. As a result of skewed priorities and an extreme lack of skills, a whole generation is being deprived of outdoor play and experiences which, in turn, is going to render each successive generation increasingly bereft of experiences and abilities until we all just stay huddled inside our homes.
Poul Christensen, chairman of Natural England, says:
Children are being denied the fundamental sense of independence and freedom in nature that their parents enjoyed.
Children now want more opportunities to play outdoors. Whether through pond dipping or tree climbing, nature-based activities can play an important role in the educational and social development of children.
England’s Royal Society for the Arts points to a “risk averse” culture in which “youngsters were being deprived of the freedom to develop, to manage and take risks – and, ultimately, to grow up.” Of course, this phenomenon is not unique to England – It’s prevalent in the U.S. and in much of the industrialized world.
How can we reverse this unhealthy trend? A few ideas:
Make outdoor play a public priority by designing parks and safe, green play spaces.
Make outdoor play a personal priority by getting outdoors as a family or joining a nature club.
Educate parents about legitimate and unfounded fears.
Learn to enjoy wild spaces and trails as much as mediated, organized playgrounds and parks.
Dress kids appropriately for play and weather.
Walk instead of driving when possible.
Make friends with your neighbors.
Learn to read a map and kindle a sense of adventure about going somewhere new.
This site explains map reading and also offers some exercises and games for beginning map readers.
As an aside, I’ve always loved maps and atlases. I appreciate knowing the “lay of the land”, getting the big picture. For that reason, I don’t rely on GPS devices in cars. They remind me of driving through a tunnel, being told only what I need to know. I’d rather be armed with information and perspective. I fear that devices like GPS, while helpful, also tend to do the work for you, and that their prominence will only render people less capable of navigating their own, not to mention other, neighborhoods.
If kids and adults merely go out their doors and explore, and engage in simple map use and games, like treasure hunts, they’ll find themselves empowered to use maps and they’ll have a lot of fun. Look for treasure hunt tips in a future post.
Kings Norton Park in Birmingham, England: benkid77, Map of Twickenham, England: Creative Commons
