Time to get dirty
Last week the weather was ninety degrees different than this week (almost literally). Walking the path to join our team of volunteers and trail builders at Kootenai Elementary, I noted that the lupine still had color, the grass was a vibrant green and seemed almost wet enough that you could wring it out, and the birds played back and forth from tree to bush.
I couldn’t help using my quiet moment to wonder how many children will wander through this special place, deep in thought, noting their own observations when this project is finished.
I have really high hopes in regard to our work with Lake Pend Oreille School District. From where we started, with just a few classes nine years ago, to now, with four outdoor educators on staff in elementary schools to inspire children to observe and learn in nature, the next years feel so aspirational.
Kids need nature more than ever.
It seems silly and a bit ironic what I will say next.
Google it.
Put that line in on your browser, “Kids need nature more than ever.” You’ll see this article, and this article and articles like this about how kids in an urban city had the opportunity to go to summer camp and saw a whole new world.
Even in wild and rural states like Idaho, our kids have forces trying to pry them from a walk in the woods. Any parent will sympathize and probably throw a curse word or two when it comes to the struggles with technology and social media.
It is important work to help kids become comfortable in nature, happy to be dirty, laughing around a campfire, splashing in a puddle.
One of the authors of an above article said it so clearly,
“Kids who spend time in nature see the world differently. They see new possibilities. They feel connected to something much bigger.”
As we delivered program after program in our local schools, and requests for these programs grew, we knew that adding staff to fit the need would never be enough. Instead, we chose together to make nature as accessible as possible to as many children as possible by converting portions of play yards into wild and wonderful spaces.
Our goal is to make the wild and the woods familiar to our youth. We figure that if we help to begin this relationship, it will have no end. It will lead to summer backpack trips into the Selkirks as teenagers, outdoor adventures as young adults, and laughter around campfires with friends throughout the long journey of life.
High hopes and community spirit will help get us there.
Wishing you a lazy day in nature soon,
Katie
