Last Child on the Couch

Geocaching.com

Growing up in Norway in the 70s and 80s, there were (and are) plenty of organized sports. Indoor and outdoor. Organized sports promotes teamwork, skill and friendship

Thank you Backpacker for an inspiring article about local efforts to address nature-deficit disorder. Spreading the word to parents, caregivers, and teachers is critical. The more exposure this topic gets, the better.

Most parents need to learn how to supervise and direct their kids.. then they will have a happier family, and will have a richer experience outdoors when their children are taught to be still and listen to the sounds of the forest, and the wonderful creation all around them.

most parents today do not properly supervise their kids. please leave them home so others can enjoy the outdoors in peace and quiet.

I too am a Girl Scout backpack trainer in San Diego who spends a lot of time not just getting girls in the back country, but helping adults get their girls outdoors. The kids really want to be there, but the adults have all kinds of barriers. I just finished teaching an outdoor session at a conference where the leading barriers to getting girls outdoors were bugs, dirt, and parents. Seems we need a 2-tiered approach here! The more frequently girls & boys and their parents get outdoors, off the soccer field and into the dirt, the more they may come to embrace all the wonderful gifts nature has to offer.

As a kid, I did not need my parents or an organized group to take me, or me and my friends, into the woods and fields. We went on our own. We played hide and seek in corn fields, wandered into woods, swamps, and thickets and along streams, all by ourselves. Sure, we had guidance ("Be back by ..., and don't go beyond ...", but we were out there by ourselves, experiencing what seems almost taboo today, RISK. We seem so paranoid about security today ("Don't talk to strangers.", "Carry your cell phone.", kid-monitoring electronic devices...) that we won't let our kids take even minor risks, and it's taking risks that will help them mature and become self-sufficient.
My point is that it's not just getting kids off the couch and into the woods that matters; it's letting them experience nature by themselves much of the time.

Natural Lands Trust has programs to do exactly this. Teach kids to experience nature and not fear it.

The above post from Heather L. on August 17 is very interesting. (I don't have kids and don't lead a children's group, so I don't have any assumptions here). Why are parents organizing new groups instead of making use of existing organizations like the Girl Scouts, which presumably have infrastructure and experience. Why reinvent the wheel? Is it because parents fear to turn their children over to other adults? The commitment required by one of the existing groups, in time, money, and "product."?

Interesting article allthough I have to correct with regards to the term "friluftsliv". That term is typically not used for outdoor play, but refers to the recreational and exercise activities finding place in nature. It would include hiking, camping, cross country skiing etc.

It certainly isn't a new idea, but it is something that is drastically needed more than ever.

The great work and leadership of the Boy and Girl Scouts can not fully supplement the lack of daily exposure to the outdoors that children are experiencing at home and at school. A trip into the wilderness is a wonderful and memory filled experience, but it is the daily exposure to being outside (all year round in all kinds of weather)that children are getting less and less exposure.

Activekidsclub.com is not just about going out in the wilderness, but daily fun for both parents and children in all kinds of weather. Whether it is in the 100 acre forest or the park around the corner we want to see kids outside having fun and getting dirty. We currently are calling on parents and caregivers in the US to start an outdoor playgroup in their area park and meet once a week no matter the weather.

Number 11 - Grandparents Can Introduce the Outdoors to the Grandkids - If the parents feel pressed for time, grandparents can help fill the gap. I am really looking forward to having grandchildren and taking them camping and hiking and biking and creek walking.

Thanks for the great- positive- article! People need to know what they can do, you're helping that along.

Kyle Macdonald, Bay Area Wilderness Training

This is not really a new idea, just a re-framing of something that the group I'm part of has been doing for 98 years. I am a Girl Scout leader for 22 years, and have led several backbacking trips on the Ice Age trail, as well as canoe trips and various other outdoor adventures.