Great Outdoors: Why you need a wild child

21 September 2015 - 02:02 By Cathy Bussey, ©The Telegraph

Get outdoors, the weather's lovely. Summer is on its way and its time to put away the tablets and televisions and get your family out absorbing some vitamin D (safely behind a layer of a high-factor sun screen, of course).Author Lucy Aitken's 30 Days of Rewilding, based on getting her children back into nature, lists many of the positives of getting muddy.She has plenty of ideas for those seeking wildness a little closer to home, from outdoor playgroups or setting the alarm an hour early for time outdoors before school and work, to carving a whistle out of a carrot, planting native wildflowers and making mud pies."I am fascinated by research showing the impact of time in nature on health and happiness," Aitken says. "In Tokyo, a study found elderly people who live within walking distance of an open space live longer than those who don't. And there are studies showing the role mud can play in fighting depression."The Wild Network, a UK-based movement working to get more children outdoors, says the amount of time children spend playing outside has halved in one generation and only one in five children aged under 12 has a connection with nature.Lack of time, the proliferation of technology, vanishing green spaces, a fear of stranger-danger and a risk-averse society are all cited as barriers to time outdoors.The implications of "nature deficit disorder", a term coined by Richard Louv in his book Last Child in the Woods, are grave. A wide range of behavioural, emotional and physical problems can be linked to too much time spent indoors.Aitken urges parents not to give up on giving their children "wild" experiences in nature. "What I think is missing is the sense of get up and go. We should all just get outside and love it," she says. "I wish parents would see the outdoors as a great opportunity rather than another thing you have to do so your children don't suffer obesity and mental health problems.""Parents are desperately searching for ways to get their kids off screens and into the fresh air," says Mark Sears, chief executive of The Wild Network. "Every day we read new research about the importance of getting kids outside - and people are finally beginning to notice."Aitken hopes her book will inspire parents to coax their children away from technology and make their own adventures."They remember that outdoorsy experiences formed some of the best bits of their own childhoods," she says. "Everyone needs to taste the freedom of the wild."How to get the kids out of the housePut them in charge of watering the plants.Plaster a bit of fence with some claylike mud from the garden and let them mould and shape faces with it until you have a wall of gargoyles.Play wild bingo with free downloadable printouts - try seedsandstitches.com.If you live near the coast, go to the beach and make sand sculptures using what the tide washes up.Play bowls or boules - everybody loves it, from toddlers and teens to granny and grandad.Play outdoor sardines or What's The Time, Mr Wolf? If you've forgotten how, Google it.Lie back on a rug and stargaze.Go on a hike in your neighbourhood.Make your own nature table.Fly a kite.Collect interesting stones and rocks.Learn the names of plants and trees in the garden.Cook on a campfire and tell stories around it...

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