Is Nature on Your To-Do List?
As a working mother of three children, sometimes it feels like I live in fast forward. My focus can fall on the to-do list and togetherness gets forgotten. One way I ensure we get some focused attention with one another is to regularly make time to get outdoors together. Yes, I put nature on my to-do list!
For families with young children, the outdoors offers countless opportunities to connect, learn, and grow together. Whether it is a walk along the Greenways Trail in Prescott, an afternoon playing in the river in Camp Verde, or simply exploring your own backyard, nature offers the opportunity to discover something new, together. It offers an opportunity to experience the awe that nature can inspire while providing an easy way to support children’s physical, emotional, and social development.
One of my favorite benefits of family outdoor time is the way it brings us all together. Instead of picking on each other, my kids build forts together, or they throw rocks into a pond next to each other instead of throwing stuffed animals at each other. Nature allows us to slow down, connect and communicate in new ways. Collecting leaves, listening to birds, or climbing over fallen logs all create moments of teamwork, conversation, and joy. These shared adventures become lasting memories that help children feel secure, valued, confident, and connected.
Time in nature also supports physical health for both adults and children. Outdoor play naturally encourages movement through running, climbing, balancing, jumping, and exploring. These activities help children develop strength, coordination, balance, and motor skills while building healthy habits that can last a lifetime. But they aren’t the only ones who get their exercise. Parents can join in too simply by walking, hiking, or playing physical games with their children. Children make great exercise buddies! This benefits heart health, fitness, and overall well-being for the whole family.
Nowadays, one phone notification can induce anxiety. Our minds rarely get a break. Putting screens away to be outdoors with your family can help calm your overworked nervous system. Research consistently shows that exposure to natural environments can reduce stress, improve mood, and increase feelings of calm and relaxation. Natural settings also encourage creativity and imagination. For example, my kids and I create nature collages by gathering small rocks, sticks, leaves, pinecones, etc. and then forming them into a collage on the ground. Sometimes they have me gather the materials and they create. Other times they do the collecting and I create, and sometimes we do it all together. When we get home, things feel calmer, like a long, slow exhale.
Many simple outdoor activities can become meaningful family traditions like our collages. A simple, focused 10-minute nature walk can become something special. If you do it regularly, you will start to notice how the plants on the walk change over time, how the ants hide underground when it’s cold, or where water collects in the biggest puddle after a monsoon. These types of discoveries can spark natural curiosity and observational skills that will stay with your children for the rest of their lives.
For families with very young children, outdoor experiences do not need to be long or complicated. When my kids were infants, we enjoyed laying under a tree together and watching the leaves blow in the wind or the clouds floating by in the sky.
Regular time in nature also helps children develop respect and care for their world. As they observe changing seasons, watch a cicada hatch out of its shell, or listen for a spotted towhee’s distinct birdsong; “Towwww- hee-hee-hee,” children begin to understand that they are part of a larger ecosystem. Families can nurture this connection by talking about local wildlife or participating in a park or creek clean up. These simple actions teach environmental responsibility through positive, hands-on experiences.
Cooperative Extension is a partner of the Nature Niño’s collaborative. Nature Niños is a collaboration of community partners whose mission is to get families outdoor and connected to nature. Added benefits include meeting other families, learning about local resources, and free kids clothes from our clothing swap. Put nature on your to-do list! Bring the whole family to our next event from 10:00am -12:00pm on September 12th at Lower Goldwater Lake in Prescott.
Follow us on Facebook or Instagram @natureninosprescott.
Nicole Lund is a Child Care Health Consultant for the Yavapai County Cooperative Extension. For more information on Nature Niños Prescott or starting a Nature Niños in your town, contact her at Nmlund@arizona.edu