Why Nature? Why Now?

It may surprise you to hear that not every child plays outdoors, yet every child has something to gain by doing so - which has inspired this blog and soon to be, I hope - community.

In an age of devices and technology, children have lost over 50% of their unstructured play in nature despite numerous studies and research that have found that having time in nature improves children wellbeing, health, and nature connection that sparks that joy to play outdoors.

Advocating for equitable nature play and fostering a connection for children was a somewhat realized passion of mine for over a decade before I actually realized it was the foundation for my pedagogy as an early childhood educator - entirely.

There is no question in my mind that any lack of interest or enjoyment perhaps is rooted moreso in the lack of exposure to nature that it is actual dislike of playing outdoors. It’s time to unplug.

NATURE is GOOD for children.

According to a recent study, Children who live in areas with natural spaces (forests, parks, backyards) from birth may experience fewer emotional issues between the ages of 2 and 5, according to a recent study.

Of all of the developmental factors I considered when hitting play on this, social emotional growth and health was a pillar for me.

I feel extremely fortunate to live an area with parks, trails and learning experiences that truly give all of us opportunities to connect and explore nature - especially children. As I started to think about why I wanted to finally start this blog, creating more awareness about what we do have access to in Dayton, OH was definitely part of the vision.

As I dive further into that vision, I am excited to be part of creating more awareness about the developmental impact of nature based educational experiences, ideas and curriculum planning for homeschool families as well as nature immersive events in the Dayton region hosted by organizations with a similar mission as my own.

While my focus here is mostly the little ones, a reminder that having a connection to nature and spending time in it - is also good for you as individuals and caregivers.

Upcoming events, a recap of my time at the Miami Valley Leave No Child Inside Educator Symposium this March, learning opportunities & ideas for the seasonal transition/Spring, as well as an update on my newsletter.

Thank you for reading and being here!