Here Are Four Reasons to Get Your Children Out To Play

Vancouver with it's fair weather is the perfect city for all year outdoor activity and both Fall and Winter are the perfect opportunity for kids to play outside. Unfortunately, many children are so caught up in their electronic devices that they don’t see the joy in playing in nature.

Here's a list from the experts on why we need to get our kids moving!

1. Combating Obesity

Kids that play outdoors will burn more calories. Indoor play does not engage children to be as physically engaged. The outdoors offers our kids more room to run, jump, climb and has the added bonus of FRESH AIR!

Plenty of U.S. and U.K studies have confirmed a direct correlation between outdoor play and reduced rates of obesity among children. More time outdoors means healthier body weight and reduced risk for chronic illness in adulthood.

2. Developing Conflict Management

Unstructured outdoor play helps children develop "executive" skills. Social skills are an important means for children to learn how to handle conflict.

When kids play outside, they are less likely to turn to adults to help them settle conflicts. They also tend to use their imagination more by substituting toys with nature.

3. Improving the Mind

Here are some stats from the Nature Conservancy about how playing outside can help kids’ brains:

After four days outside, backpackers scored 50 percent better on creativity tests
20 minutes of walking outdoors improves a child’s concentration levels
65 percent of kids say they feel “calm” and “happy” while spending time outside

4. Preserving Quality of Vision

Natural light is very helpful for developing young eyes. Time away from the computer screen allows childrens' eyes to recover and develop in a natural setting.

If you want your kids to have good vision, send them outside to play. Scientific research found that kids who were outside for at least 14 hours were significantly less likely to need glasses later in life.