1 There is an emerging awareness and concern that children are less and less likely to have experiences that involve the simplest interactions with nature—the plants, animals, and the earth around them—as a part of their continuous learning process. As we look at the children around us, we observe them living increasingly unhealthy lifestyles. For many, childhood is spent overly plugged in and programmed inside their homes, schools, and community settings in humanmade environments, eliminating the out-of-doors, the benefits of nature, and all that exists in the natural environment (Wike, 2006).

2 Even a generation ago, children spent more time outside, because it was the normal thing for children to do. Adults did not question the value of time spent out-of-doors and had much less anxiety about the risks involved. Children walked and played outdoors and planted things in the dirt; they rode their bikes, invented games, and spent the majority of their time in less structured activities and natural environments. Very young children carried out these activities in their yards and immediate neighborhoods. Urban environments offered the occasional playground and vacant lot. Older children roamed beyond their neighborhoods to adjacent lands, streams, woods, or urban parks. Exposure to the natural world brought opportunities for children to make sense of their surroundings and to develop their own sense of “place.”

3 Over a relatively short time, we adults have allowed this connection to the natural world to slip gradually away from children’s lives. Evidence of this trend surrounds us:

Children now spend nearly 30 hours a week watching a TV or computer screen, listening to something through headphones or, for older children, using cell phones or media players;

Children experience increasingly timed and structured family lifestyles with less emphasis on unstructured outside time. Particularly in more densely populated countries, urban growth has eliminated green spaces and natural environments. Fewer families are vacationing in national parks (Fish, 2007). Together these changes keep many children separated from nature and without time for solitude or um-programmed experiences.

Instructional time outside, recess, or unstructured playtime is being eliminated from the school day (Clements, 2007).

Outdoor play spaces or playgrounds have become safer at some sites due to national playground standards, but in other locations, play spaces have been eliminated or often lack the natural elements that encourage a different kind of interaction among children (Moore & Wong, 1997).

The curriculum for children in centers and schools is becoming narrower, with more time spent on teacher-directed lessons and testing and less time spent investigating and learning through activities that build on a child’s sense of wonder, curiosity, and the benefit of first-hand experiences (Hyson, 2003; McMurrer, 2007; Marcon, 1999).

4 Consequently, we have gradually found our children growing up in a clash of optimal and minimal learning opportunities. Optimally, technology opens worlds never before so readily available to children; however, the opening of this side of learning has contributed to shutting the door to children’s access to the more natural environment that gives a lasting attachment to children’s sense of place and their awareness of the habitat and environment nearest to them. This lack of connection can engender both apathy and ignorance in children’s early perceptions of the world around them and their roles in enjoying, learning from, and protecting it.

(Adapted from: https://www.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Call_to_Action.pdf)

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