Today’s Kids Spend Half The Time Playing Outside That Their Parents Did
Kids these days spend half the amount of time playing outdoors that their parents did, according to a new survey.
The National Trust quizzed 1,001 parents of children aged 4-14 and found that while more than 4/5 of them thought it was important that their kids learn tech skills, nine out of ten would prefer they develop a connection with nature.
Nearly every parent asked (96%) thought nature was important and that playing outdoors was important for their children’s development.
But the research also found that today’s youth spend just four hours playing outside (compared to their parents, who claimed to spend 8.2 hours outdoors when they were kids).
To encourage more outdoor play, the National Trust has come up with 50 things you should do before you’re 11 and three quarters, including rolling down a really big hill, picking wild blackberries and swimming in the sea.
When was the last time you went blackberry picking? [Food and Drink/REX/Shutterstock]
It is also championing the humble stick as this year’s must-have toy, and musician and Game of Thrones star Raleigh Ritchie is on board.
He’s written a rap about the many and varied benefits of the stick, explaining, “For some people, a stick is just a stick. However, I want to encourage young people to see that actually the possibilities are endless. It can be a pen, a sword, a witch’s broom, a dragon’s bone… anything.
“That’s what childhood should be about - getting outdoors and going on adventures, using your imagination to customise the world you see and feeding that appetite for fresh air and fun.”
National Trust ranger Ed Anderson added, “With the natural environment under pressure, we hope that instilling a love for nature in our children now will help us encourage them to continue to protect the beauty of the great outdoors for years and generations to come.”
Here is the National Trust’s list of 50 things to do before you are 11 and three-quarters:
Climb a tree
Roll down a really big hill
Camp out in the wild
Build a den
Skim a stone
Run around in the rain
Fly a kite
Catch a fish with a net
Eat an apple straight from a tree
Play conkers
Go on a really long bike ride
Make a trail with sticks
Make a mud pie
Dam a stream
Play in the snow
Make a daisy chain
Set up a snail race
Create some wild art
Play pooh sticks
Jump over waves
Pick blackberries growing in the wild
Explore inside a tree
Visit a farm
Go on a walk barefoot
Make a grass trumpet
Hunt for fossils and bones
Go stargazing
Climb a huge hill
Explore a cave
Hold a scary beast
Hunt for bugs
Find some frogspawn
Catch a falling leaf
Track wild animals
Discover what’s in a pond
Make a home for a wild animal
Check out the crazy creatures in a rock pool
Bring up a butterfly
Catch a crab
Go on a nature walk at night
Plant it, grow it, eat it
Go swimming in the sea
Build a raft
Go bird watching
Find your way with a map and compass
Try rock climbing
Cook on a campfire
Learn to ride a horse
Find a geocache
Canoe down a river
How important do you think it is for your kids to play in the fresh air? Let us know over on Twitter @YahooStyleUK
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Lead image: Monkey Business Images/REX/Shutterstock