5 Reasons Kids Should Spend More Time in Nature

It’s the beginning of the year, but many families are already starting to think about program options to keep their kids engaged during Summer Break…

BEan in Nature offers a deeply immersive, hands-on nature program that inspires creativity and imagination while nurturing children’s connection to the Earth. The program’s summer registration opened earlier this month. 

Did you know that on average, a child gets only 4-7 minutes of outdoor play each day? Meanwhile, they’re spending an astonishing 4-6 hours (or more) each day glued to their screens.  

But let’s imagine something different for a moment. Let’s imagine a world where those numbers were flipped. A world where kids spent hours upon hours exploring the outdoors, soaking up all the wonders of nature. 

The benefits of being in nature are tremendous, especially for children, who are still developing and trying to understand their place in the world. Nature offers a foundation for deeper learning – learning that is based in adventure, challenge, excitement, inquiry, and observation skills. 

Here are just some of the amazing things that happen when kids spend more time in nature… 

Children experience a stronger sense of self. Being in nature encourages kids to interact with the environment around them, and not rely on rigid structure to inform their play. They can explore, discover, and stretch beyond their familiar comfort zones. When we give children the freedom to play outdoors safely, they get a chance to delve into what some might call “risky play.” But this is actually the kind of play that opens the door for children, giving them the opportunity to develop their creative passions as developers, builders, and visionaries, allowing them to grow their autonomy with safe, skilled, nature-led educators.

Being in nature to play, roam, and engage in outdoor spaces, relieves stress. Various studies show how soothing nature can be for a young person's mind. When we’re in nature, our levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) are reduced. With the rise in anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts, it’s beneficial to find more opportunities for kids’ minds and bodies to become more relaxed. An outdoor environment provides this.  Nature is an optimal place to afford children the space to be more present and aware, connected to their bodies, and able to regulate their brain, all of which helps to promote strong mental health. 

Nature offers opportunities for physical activity and sensory motor development. Allowing time for play outdoors inspires adaptation and connectivity to the self and to a sense of place. Time in nature opens the door toward play in exploration, freedom, touching, listening, looking, and physical movement. Children will climb trees, hike, jump over (or into!) puddles, and play tag with their friends. Being in nature invites movement and allows kids to stay active and healthy, and calms anxiety. This creates resilience in their immune and neurological systems.

Spending time in nature inspires creativity and imagination. Being in a natural environment is known to stimulate curiosity and deepen our inclination to imagine and create. Time outdoors helps kids to develop a more flexible mindset and deepens their ability to solve problems. 

Being in nature inspires children to nurture a stronger connection to the Earth. Children are the future stewards of this planet. And it’s no secret that our Earth needs protection, support, care, and nurturing. It’s the children in our world today who will help to make the Earth more sustainable and beautiful for generations to come. Therefore, giving kids the opportunity to understand and connect with nature is so vital. Not only do the benefits of being in nature impact each individual child, they impact our entire planet as well. 

BEan in Nature’s upcoming summer session is not just another program. It’s a deep, immersive experience that will positively impact your child in countless ways – an experience that they will always carry with them, no matter where they go in life. 

Learn more about BEan in Nature’s summer session and sign up here.