{"id":3402,"date":"2013-05-17T08:32:03","date_gmt":"2013-05-17T14:32:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/?p=3402"},"modified":"2014-09-12T11:54:39","modified_gmt":"2014-09-12T17:54:39","slug":"the-convincing-case-for-sending-your-kids-outside-to-play-alone-inhabitots","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2013\/05\/17\/the-convincing-case-for-sending-your-kids-outside-to-play-alone-inhabitots\/","title":{"rendered":"The Convincing Case for Sending Your Kids Outside to Play Alone | Inhabitots"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 2<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-3407\" alt=\"065_wm\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/065_wm-300x191.png\" width=\"300\" height=\"191\" srcset=\"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/065_wm-300x191.png 300w, https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/065_wm.png 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/the-convincing-case-for-sending-your-kids-outside-to-play-alone\/\">The Convincing Case for Sending Your Kids Outside to Play Alone | Inhabitots<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-3406\" alt=\"1997-2_wm\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/1997-2_wm-300x199.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"199\" srcset=\"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/1997-2_wm-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/05\/1997-2_wm.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>YES!!!!<\/p>\n<div id=\"nuan_ria_plugin\"><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<blockquote><p>A recent story in <em>The New York Times<\/em> discussed how <a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2011\/01\/06\/garden\/06play.html\">play has all but\u00a0vanished\u00a0from childhood<\/a>. The article states, \u201cToo little playtime may seem to rank far down on the list of society\u2019s worries, but the scientists,\u00a0psychologists, educators and others who are part of the play movement say that most of the social and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/childhood-obesity-linked-to-structural-abnormalities-in-the-brain-and-poor-cognitive-function\/\">intellectual skills<\/a> one needs to succeed in life and work are first developed through childhood play.\u201d A great deal of research proves that <em>The New York Times<\/em> piece is right on. Kids are exposed to some serious problems if they don\u2019t get a healthy dose of free, unstructured play.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The American Academy of Pediatrics says that a lack of unstructured playtime causes depression and anxiety in children.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>A Stanford School of Medicine study says that kids who miss out on free, unsupervised play also miss out on cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development and well-being as well as self-regulation, empathy, and group management skills.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.nwf.org\/be-out-there.aspx\">Be Out There<\/a> research notes that <a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/does-your-child-have-nature-deficit-disorder\/\">children kept from outside play time<\/a> are less physically active, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/blog\/freedom-learn\/201209\/children-s-freedom-has-declined-so-has-their-creativity\">less creative<\/a>, more aggressive and have worse concentration.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Research at\u00a0the Morton Arboretum\u00a0notes that\u00a0symptoms of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/an-alarming-number-of-american-kids-are-put-on-prescription-meds-as-adhd-diagnoses-skyrocket\/\">Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder<\/a> (ADHD) are worse when children have no\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/playing-in-the-grass-may-be-the-key-to-easing-adhd-symptoms\/\">contact with nature<\/a>. This research showed that kids with ADHD who do spend time in nature concentrate, complete tasks, and follow directions better than their peers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Kids trapped inside miss out on basic rights of passage, such as forming fun memories,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/rootsofaction.com\/blog\/learning-from-mistakes-helping-children-see-the-good-side-of-getting-things-wrong\/\">making mistakes<\/a>\u00a0and <a href=\"http:\/\/www.psychologytoday.com\/blog\/freedom-learn\/201112\/how-children-learn-bravery-in-age-overprotection\">learning how to be brave<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Children with nothing but screentime have no idea how to manage when screens aren\u2019t available. They get depressed, lose control and have no clue how to entertain themselves. Most kids use the term \u201cAddiction\u201d when\u00a0describing\u00a0their screen time, which is a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.growingagreenfamily.com\/are-people-really-that-addicted-to-technology\/\">serious problem<\/a>. In fact this is a con for parents too. Incredibly, there are whole articles dedicated to advising parents <a href=\"http:\/\/www.redbookmag.com\/kids-family\/advice\/give-yourself-a-break\">how to teach kids to play alone<\/a>! Seriously?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>A lack of outside play time is linked to stress, vitamin D deficiency and decreased\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/dirt-and-germs-equal-happy-and-healthy-kids\/\">disease resistance<\/a>\u00a0in kids.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Kids who don\u2019t experience <a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/many-parents-push-academics-over-play-which-may-harm-kids-health\/\">free play<\/a> miss out on memory growth, problem\u00a0solving skills, language skills, literacy skills,\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/are-new-lego-friends-for-girls-sexist-or-an-awesome-new-choice-for-kids\/\">math proficiency<\/a>\u00a0and much more.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Most health organizations directly link the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/childhood-obesity-is-a-weightier-more-immediate-problem-for-youth-than-previously-thought\/\">growing childhood obesity crisis<\/a> to a lack of independent outdoor play. It\u2019s scary to imagine, but the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.allianceforchildhood.org\/home\">Alliance for Childhood<\/a>, a play advocacy group, notes that children ages 10 to 16 now spend just 12.6 minutes per day in vigorous physical\u00a0activity and an average of\u00a0<strong>10.4 waking hours<\/strong>\u00a0each day relatively motionless. We\u2019re talking about a generation of kids who are living their entire childhood sedentary, an issue that is\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.inhabitots.com\/are-blue-cross-and-blue-shields-childhood-obesity-psas-smart-or-shaming\/\">directly linked to obesity<\/a>\u00a0and many other health problems.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<blockquote><p>Kids who don\u2019t get to be outside will not care as much about protecting the planet once they become adults. One study notes that the most direct route to caring for the environment is participating in \u201cwild nature activities\u201d before the age of 11.\u00a0<em>(Wells and Lekies, 2006).<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"nuan_ria_plugin\"><object id=\"plugin0\" style=\"position: absolute; z-index: 1000;\" width=\"0\" height=\"0\" type=\"application\/x-dgnria\"><param name=\"tabId\" value=\"ff-tab-17\" \/><param name=\"counter\" value=\"280\" \/><\/object><\/div>\n<\/p>\n<div class='wp_likes' id='wp_likes_post-3402'><a class='like' href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(3402);\" title='Like' ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-likes\/images\/like.png\" alt='' border='0'\/><\/a><span class='text'>1 person likes this post.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class='like' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(3402);\">Like<\/a><\/div>\n<div class='unlike' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.unlike(3402);\">Unlike<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 2<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span>The Convincing Case for Sending Your Kids Outside to Play Alone | Inhabitots. YES!!!! A recent story in The New York Times discussed how play has all but\u00a0vanished\u00a0from childhood. The article states, \u201cToo little playtime may seem to rank far &hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2013\/05\/17\/the-convincing-case-for-sending-your-kids-outside-to-play-alone-inhabitots\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,14],"tags":[210,108,124,209],"class_list":["post-3402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-academia","category-general","tag-growing-up","tag-life-in-general","tag-modern-life","tag-parenting"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Hsb6-SS","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1646,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2011\/04\/03\/screen-time-for-kids-is-it-learning-or-a-brain-drain-mindshift\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":0},"title":"Screen Time For Kids: Is it Learning or a Brain Drain? | MindShift","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"April 3, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Screen Time For Kids: Is it Learning or a Brain Drain? | MindShift. For me, it all boils down to just a few things: 1. In all things, moderation. And balance. Technology is great and kids should have access to whatever their parents can offer, but they should also get\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3222,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2012\/12\/23\/the-author-list-giving-credit-where-credit-is-due\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":1},"title":"The Author List: Giving Credit Where Credit is Due&#8230;.","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"December 23, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"phd031305s.gif GIF Image, 600\u00a0\u00d7\u00a0260 pixels. Author lists SHOULD demonstrate scholarship and the advancement of knowledge. They should NOT be about politics. They ESPECIALLY should not be about paying 'homage' or stroking egos. Sadly, and, more and more, they are. I realize this is typical. That doesn't make it right. I've\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5215,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2015\/07\/31\/vital-importance-of-summer-down-time\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":2},"title":"Vital Importance of Summer Down-Time","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"July 31, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"What do you think of having a summer \"off\"? Do you think kids suffer from being away from school for 2 months in the summer? I think it is essential. I worry about what we lose when kids don't have free time. I was listening to a radio program the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"1986-adam-beach_wm","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/1986-adam-beach_wm-300x247.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4313,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2014\/09\/05\/turns-out-play-is-play-even-if-its-a-videogame\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":3},"title":"Turns Out, Play is Play, Even If It&#8217;s a Videogame","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"September 5, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Well that's nice to hear. Children get the same value from playing videogames as they do from other forms of imaginative play. A Surprising New Study On How Video Games Impact Children. However, the findings do indicate \u201cthat electronic play has salutary functions similar to traditional forms of play; they\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Games&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Games","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/games\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3628,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2013\/07\/12\/wholesale-adoption-of-ipads-by-schools-a-mistake-educational-technology-and-change-journal\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":4},"title":"Wholesale Adoption of iPads by Schools a Mistake | Educational Technology and Change Journal","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"July 12, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Wholesale Adoption of iPads by Schools a Mistake | Educational Technology and Change Journal. YES! YES! YES! See my own reasons for why the iPad is not the answer here. Others are saying similar things. The thing is, iPads a re fine if most of what you want to do\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1954,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2012\/01\/15\/the-rise-of-the-new-groupthink-nytimes-com\/","url_meta":{"origin":3402,"position":5},"title":"The Rise of the New Groupthink &#8211; NYTimes.com","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"January 15, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"The Rise of the New Groupthink - NYTimes.com. I've long suspected that many (if not most) people who insist on groupwork for everything do so because they can't really produce anything on their own. Working in groups is great and necessary, but it really is important for people to be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/general\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3402"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4483,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3402\/revisions\/4483"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}