Everybody out!
20 August, 2020
This article is intended as a moment to rethink September , but also the whole school year that is beginning. To try to find ways to make our daily life full of uncertainties, changes and sometimes stress easier for our children, but also for us.
A start of thinking...
During the summer, I noticed that when I felt more stressed or had too much, I went outside. The sun, the calm, the trees , the flowers... it made me feel good. I have also observed that when my children are very rambunctious and they need to get their energy out, I send them outside to play. They can run and exercise; outside does us good! It allows us to refocus on ourselves and regain our balance .
The summer also allowed me to read and reflect on my practices as a teacher, but also as a mother. My reading led me to the book “Perdus sans la nature” by François Cardinal . A book that caught my eye , but also turned me upside down at times, confronting me with some of my ideas or ways of doing things. The author explains thatchildren need free play time, but above all free time outside . He says that in general , as parents, we tend to overload our children's schedules and that they no longer have time to be bored and develop their creativity. The experts quoted also mention that our children lack time outside to exercise and to be in contact with nature . It has a big impact on stress, anxiety, concentration/attention, obesity, nature awareness , etc.
I continue my reflections and I come across the Instagram account of 1000 hours or tside . I meet there Gin ny, mother of five children wishing to revolutionize childhood with nature. In fact, she challenges us to spend 1000 hours outdoors with our children in a year . Wow! Basically, that's almost three hours a day! For us, this represents a major challenge! In winter, I'm not a great sorteuse and I appreciate the warmth of the house! However, I like his point which proposes to encourage the moments outside . It goes without saying that she includes the parents in the process and invites us to take part in the challenge .
New tools to help
We know from experience that children learn by imitation . So if I send them outside to play, but I stay inside , I'm not consistent. So let's all go together! For my tribe , I 'm not aiming for 1000 hours for the year, but I plan to spend more time outside, a little every day!
Endless Possibilities
Daily life is often full of unforeseen events and this can generate a lot of stress for each member of our family. Nature can allow us to keep a certain balance and allow ourselves a little softness to get through. I encourage all parents, but also all teachers, to spend more time outdoors with children. In addition to giving us a ton of learning opportunities, the time spent outside also allows us to offer children a privileged time (a little every day) to burn off all the accumulated stress ; this beautiful big energy, but also all the tension they can feel in their daily lives. The children will also certainly have a ton of ideas to furnish this time! Let 's treat ourselves to this family time outside . Let's take it one step at a time and welcome the unknown together into nature!
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