There’s been a lot of buzz recently about the importance of giving your child a “Green Hour” every day, or at least on a regular basis. For those of you that have no idea what that is (or think that I might be covertly trying to reference illegal activities), the term “Green Hour” was coined by the National Wildlife Federation in 2007. It’s defined as “time for unstructured play and interaction with the natural world.”
The following information was taken from research compiled by the NWF. If you are interested in reading more, check out their site. Take a moment to let these alarming statistics sink in…
• The average American child spends 4-7 minutes of their day in unstructured outdoor play.
• The average American child spends a whopping 44 hours a week staring at some kind of electronic screen.
• In the past 30 years, childhood obesity has more than tripled.
• The United States has become the largest consumer of ADHD medications.
• Childhood prescriptions for anti-depressants are on the rise.
Now consider this research that shows how vital outdoor time is for a child’s body, mind, and spirit…
• Outdoor play is a key component in building healthy bodies and preventing obesity.
• Kids who spend a lot of time outside tend to have better distance vision than their indoor counterparts.
• Offering environmental education programs in school improves standardized test scores.
• Exposure to natural settings may be widely effective in reducing ADHD symptoms, as well as anxiety and depression.
• Children’s stress levels fall within minutes of seeing green spaces.
So I’ve decided to start another series of posts on my blog about our family Green Hours. I figure this will serve two purposes – it’ll hold me accountable to make sure my little guy gets enough outside time, and it will hopefully motivate others to do the same with their kids! And even if you don’t have any kiddos of your own, you can still get involved – in my opinion adults need a Green Hour just as much as the little ones!!!
So far we’ve only been in Charlotte for a couple of weeks now but already we are loving all the green space we are finding around our neighborhood! Little C’s fave so far has been Davie Park. C is too little to play on most of the playground apparatuses, but he didn’t let that stop him from trying! We were there ond day last week for over an hour, basically just wandering around amongst the playground equipment. C toddled EVERYWHERE, waving and laughing, exploring all of the colorful poles, tunnels and slides. He loved watching all the big boys and girls and seeing all the cool things they could do!
We’ve also been doing some exploration by bike – me on the bike, with C being hauled behind me in the trailer. So far we’ve hit the park, several shopping centers, as well as the 4-mile Greenway. It’s perfect – Mommy gets her exercise on the way there and back, and C gets to run around at our destination!
So what about you? Does your family have a go-to “green” place? Join the discussion by leaving a comment…or head on over to my blog for more outdoorsy family ideas, as well as trip reports and gear reviews! http://erica.thelineberrys.com
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