{"id":45733,"date":"2022-08-17T21:52:45","date_gmt":"2022-08-17T21:52:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.firstthingsfirst.org\/?post_type=first-things&p=45733"},"modified":"2022-08-17T21:52:47","modified_gmt":"2022-08-17T21:52:47","slug":"helping-young-children-find-nature-outside-the-front-door","status":"publish","type":"first-things","link":"https:\/\/www.ftf-stg.magnetry.com\/es\/first-things\/helping-young-children-find-nature-outside-the-front-door\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping young children find nature outside the front door"},"content":{"rendered":"

For families who want to introduce their babies, toddlers and preschoolers to outdoor play, there\u2019s only one main thing to know: nature is everywhere.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the advice from Ellen Bashor<\/a>, education director of Nature Ni\u00f1os in Prescott.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t have to drive to a big park. You don\u2019t have to have hiking gear,\u201d Bashor said. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to leave your yard or your house to access the benefits of outdoor and nature play. Young children have the ability to connect with nature anywhere. You can explore three square feet and they\u2019ll find magic. There will always be a beetle to follow or a line of ants.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parents and caregivers can start looking for nature right where they are.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can watch the different cloud shapes and how they blow,\u201d Bashor said. \u201cPoint out the light and shadows and the pattern. Nearby nature is the most powerful tool we all have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bashor wants parents to get rid of the idea that they have to travel for nature. They give the example that a child can see a beetle either at the Grand Canyon or just outside of their apartment.<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung children don\u2019t have the same social expectation to arrive at a significant site or location,\u201d Bashor said. \u201cThe significance for them is being with their caregiver outside.\u201d<\/p>\n

Play in an outdoor, natural environment helps engage a young child\u2019s senses\u00a0and allows toddlers and preschoolers to exercise their bodies and minds.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is nothing more different than nature,\u201d Bashor said. \u201cNo leaf is the same. Every one provides an opportunity to compare and contrast to discover and create. For a child, a pinecone can be a school bus, a spaceship, a bear, your mom or dad. It challenges our brains to think and create in new ways.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the best ways for parents and caregivers to get their child involved in the outdoors is to draw on their own childhood experiences.<\/p>\n