MNN - Mother Nature Network

Remember when you were little and your parents used to make you "go play outside" until supper time?  Turns out they had the right idea.

 

In his book, Last Child In The Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder, author Richard Louv argued that kids today have become increasingly alienated from the natural world.  And this disconnection, Louv contends, is directly responsible for many of the mental and physical challenges facing our children today.  

 

That's the bad news. 

 

The good news is that this "disorder" is easy to remedy...with a daily dose of the outdoors.  And you don't have to worry about coming up with an activity or buying special equipment.  In fact, your kids will get more out if it if you don't.

 

The National Wildlife Federation recently started a campaign called The Green Hour to encourage parents to get their kids outdoors for one hour of unstructured play every day.  Their website has lots of great info and activities to help kids get back in touch with the natural world. 

 

So go ahead, kick your kids outside today (bundle them up if you need to!)  You'll both be glad you did.