The Saturday Question: How Do You Help Your Child Connect with The Outdoors?

5 Responses for "The Saturday Question: How Do You Help Your Child Connect with The Outdoors?"

1. andy in Germany May 3rd, 2009 at 1:50 am 1

   I guess I never thought about this: we use bikes as transport so the boys are outdoors frequently, and I’m often pointing things out to them. I also try and go to the woods rather than playagrounds, or through the woods then to a playaground.

   As to dirt eating, my father in law is a doctor and he doesn’t worry too much about it so I tend to be relaxed: it’ll work its way through.

2. Jillian May 3rd, 2009 at 11:52 am 2

   My fiance and I love the outdoors, me more then him. Our mini man is almost 1 year old and i’ve been taking him on walks outside since he was a tiny baby. We now live very close to the beach and take him there at least 3Xs a week. We let him walk around eat some sand, feel the water and touch all the different things on the shore while telling him what they are. He loves picking up shells and seaweed giving them a good stare (maybe a taste too). I also let him run around on the big soccer fields behind our house where he chases after birds, picks flowers/weeds and samples the grass. I used to worry a lot about him eating dirt, but now i think a little bit won’t hurt him, it should actually make his stronger. I realized that without actually tasting it, i could look around and know, i mean really know, what everything would taste like. At some point in our lives we’ve all put a piece of wood, metal, feather, plastic, grass, dirt etc. in our mouths and this is the time for him to do it. I’d much rather him eat dirt then lint off the floor at an indoor play area!

3. Going Green Mama May 5th, 2009 at 4:50 pm 3

   We’re a big outdoor family too. And we love to garden as well. My daughter has been helping as long as she can walk!

4. Tiffany May 8th, 2009 at 1:25 pm 4

   If it’s not raining (and sometimes when it is) – we are outside. One of the biggest contributors to this is that we live in a neighborhood with a lot of kids my daughter’s age (2.5) and there is always someone to play with. We also take her hiking ( about half the trip she will ride in her Kelty backpack and the other half she will walk ). We also purchased a tent trailer last summer for camping and it has been fantastic – it makes it so much easier with kids. Everything is always packed and all I have to do is get some clothing and food together. We have another baby on the way and plan to take him/her with us, too. Finally, we also purchased a Strider running bike that allows our daughter to go for long walks and runs with us. She is incredibly fast on it!

5. esme May 14th, 2009 at 11:34 am 5

   “god made dirt so dirt don’t hurt” — if you garden, then you know that there is nothing like the sweet, loamy smell of good soil. Soil experts taste, smell and touch the soil to get a feeling for its health. It’s only natural that children should want to try it as well. Mine has ( a few times!) and it is always funny to see her reaction.