Opinion: Get kids to play outside

Scenic park and hiking trail in the Ozarks, Image Credit: Brennan Wills

Running around in the backyard, feeling the cool breeze in your hair, imagining a wide world of possibilities is one of the most expressive and liberating moments in a child's life. In these moments, they are encouraged to engage in physical activity and develop their imaginations, leading to a higher cognitive ability later in their growth. However, today's youth are spending less and less time outdoors, instead opting to enjoy the stimulation of their iPads and their television shows. If not confronted, this could pose a serious risk to cognitive development and social skill building.

According to social psychologist Kristin Anderson Moore, today's children are spending 35% less time outside than their parents did. She says that the contributing factors are increased screen time, urbanization, and safety concerns in today's world.

Studies show that outdoor play can enhance happiness and reduce anxiety in children, citing that it helps them with problem-solving skills and creativity. The sensory experience that comes from embracing the sights, smells, and sounds encourages children to think more descriptively and have more optimism in their daily lives.

However, all of that productive play time is being reduced. In today's world, many youths prefer to stay indoors under the careful supervision of their own electronic devices. It's causing a genuine social crisis for children who may lose the ability to have stable face-to-face interactions later in life. This would limit social skills that would otherwise help them with interviewing, with public speaking, or even with dating.

In the extreme sense, staying indoors with electronic devices also limits physical activity, which could lead to obesity or thinning bones later in life. It is important for us, when we are young, to expose ourselves to acts of physical exertion, which engaging in nature can provide.

It is important for parents to take every advantage possible to use the resources available to them to foster an interest in the outdoors in their children. Take them for a walk in the park or around the block. Make sure their school has lots of time set aside in playgrounds or programs that teach about nature.

Other recommendations from medical professionals encourage parents to take more walks with their kids or even talk about nature to encourage them. There are some other practices that can help parents to set boundaries around those items that prevent children from engaging with the world around them. Experts recommend that parents should limit screentime, plan family activities outdoors, and encourage nature exploration.

When I was growing up, one of my favorite places to go to was this park by a lake. At the park was a playground, a swing set, and a large hill that was enjoyed by a whole community of sledders in the winter when it snowed. But my favorite part of that park was the large tree with branches that swept the ground beside the playground that was big enough that a small child could crawl under the low-hanging branches and feel like he was living in a house made out of tree branches. It was a shelter made of life, soil of the outdoors, an imagination-stimulant of natural wonder.

For parents today, it is easy to feel concerned for your child when you read the latest Facebook post about the latest scary story about local danger in the community. It effectively ensured the end of those far-off days when those parents were children, and their parents just let them run around outside all over town after dark without so much as a phone call. Today's phones with texting capabilities and family location sharing features have enabled parents to keep a close watch on their children no matter where they are. These safety features should encourage parents of older children to allow them a little more liberation when playing with their friends out of the house. As long as safety is assured, parents should rest easy knowing but be brave in entrusting their children with responsibility.

It may be easier just to give a child an iPad and let them sit satisfactorily on the couch entranced by its glow, but it will ultimately lead to developmental decline if not kept in check. To be clear, technology isn't a bad thing, but it needs to be controlled and monitored rather than given free room to keep a child pacified and contented. Even if a child doesn't want to play outside, parents need to start to encourage them early on to connect with the rest of the world through physical interaction.

Start the process today of showing the future of the world why this is a world worth exploring for themselves.