I have just finished reading Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder and have to say it is one of, if not the most interesting and thought provoking books I have read in years that I wasn’t required to read. As you can probably deduce from the title, the book is about how children have become disconnected with nature, why that’s a bad thing, and what is being done (including some things parents themselves can do with their child) to fix this problem. Though I am not a parent, teacher, or work with kids at all (at the moment) the message in this book can be applied to everyone.
I am part of what the author calls the first “de-natured” generation. In my grandparents, and even my parents, generation kids ran out the door at 8 in the morning and didn’t come home until supper. They were outside in the mud, building tree houses, riding bikes, falling off bikes, collecting rocks (and bugs), and just having a good time. True I may be romanticizing the past but you can’t deny the fact that kids really don’t do those things anymore they’re stuck in front of the TV, computer or video games. And parents let them. Stranger danger, strict rules regarding play, the creation of no play natural areas (national forests, parks, etc.) organized sports (yes, sports), along with many other things are adult constructs that have all but eradicated natural play. Yes organized sports, protection of land, and safety of a child are all great things. People are just getting a bit obsessive over them.
Let’s take stranger danger as an example. I have a few issues with this issue. One, the fear of abduction is way over exaggerated. All but a tiny fraction of kidnappings are carried out by someone the child knew. Two, when a parent (and therefore child) fears all strangers the child is kept indoors and entertained by the TV and computer. This promotes a sedentary lifestyle and all the fantastic health benefits that come with it. Three, stranger danger creates fear of all strangers. If you are going to teach your kids about dangerous strangers (which you should) teach them about good strangers to, people the child can go to if they are in a sticky situation. I have had discussions on this topic with several people, all of whom have had children. None of them agree with me. They say I’ll change my mind when I have kids. Maybe. I hope not. The author makes a point in saying that when a child is allowed to experienced unstructured nature, they learn to test their boundaries and trust their instincts which will benefit them if they do happen to run into a sketchy being.
Although I am technically part of the “de-natured” generation I feel I was luckier than most in having spent most of my childhood outside (at least the parts I remember). I remember afternoons with the neighbor kids playing…well, anything. The field across the street was a great place to ride my bike through and there was actually a tree house built in the woods just past the field. This field has since been roped off to kids and much of the woods were torn down to create a road to a new development. This book talks about the wonder and amazement a child experiences in nature. That is not an idea exclusive to the under 12 age group. I remember this past summer working on an organic farm in southwestern MN and watching storms roll in. I could see on the horizon all day something was brewing and as it would get closer I would run from the dirt road to the back of the barn just to get a better view of the surreal cloud formations. I would stand there as long as I felt it was safe (usually until it started pouring). Many of the storms would only last an hour or so and we would then be greeted by the most amazing views I have ever seen. The dark gray clouds would still be over head, and it may yet have been raining, but the sun would break out of the clouds on its way past the horizon while in another direction the brightest rainbows I have ever seen (ending with the gnomes of Dawson, by the way) would be stretching across the sky.
I’m not entirely sure why I wrote this post. After reading this book I just had an itch that I guess needed scratching.
love the blog! glad you wrote again:)