How many times a week do you experience nature? Once, twice? Everyday? Chances are you experience nature many times throughout the week, whether showing gratitude for the sunset, admiring the view, or feeling the breeze and sunshine on your face. I experience nature multiple times daily and strongly believe that children need to be in nature to thrive. Any experienced teacher will tell you that nature helps to calm a child. The child who is running around, screaming, and looking for sensory input is immediately put into a trance when they arrive at the playground.
As Tu’Bshvat approaches, it’s that time of year to start talking to the children about the environment and nature and how to keep our planet clean…But wait, start to talk to them? Nature should always be something we experience with the children from day one. Even if you are not explicitly talking to the children about the environment you are still explaining how and why we need to appreciate the Earth. Did you ever tell a child to turn the water off because it was wasteful? Or to put the piece of paper in the recycling bin? Or simply hold a rock because a child handed it to you. Tu B’shvat celebrates the Earth, nature, and all the wonderful moments they give us.
I am fortunate enough that the preschool I work at has a forest nearby. If you turn left, you hear the noise of the city: firetrucks, construction trucks, bicycles, trains. To the right there is a forest. A wall of trees and a floor of mud, dirt, and leaves welcome you into the forest. Do you know how to walk through mud? Of course, you do because you had the experience to know where your feet should go and how slippery the mud will be. Young children are still deducing the right skills to use when walking through mud. The first time I took my class of 16-month-olds to the forest, they were just learning to walk and had no idea how to walk on the different textures of the earth. They tentatively placed one foot in front of the other, stopping frequently for encouragement. At the first fallen tree most of the class was not sure what to do. The log is imbedded into the dirt, creating a step, but the height was too much for their little legs. One friend had the idea to sit on his bottom and slide over. That worked for him, and a few other friends tried the same tactic. Those who did not want their clothes to get dirty had to figure out a different way. Some friends went on their tummies and one friend went all the way to the end of the log and walked around it. Within the first ten minutes, the children were already problem solving. Not only were they figuring out how to get down the logged step, but they were also using their spatial awareness and observational skills to guide their thinking. By the end of the year, these children who were nervous and unskilled at walking through mud and climbing over logs were able to walk a full mile over many more logs, stones, and hills to a grassy field with confidence and vigor.
When children experience nature, they experience many new and different sensory experiences which prompts curiosity and problem solving. Children love to be outside no matter the temperature or the weather. The problem is adults. Adults do not like to get wet in the rain (nor do they tend to have extra clothes to change into at school). Many adults do not like to be cold weather, which can vary from 50 degrees to 20 degrees depending on who and where you are. However, this mentality of “it’s too rainy” or “it’s too hot” is only passed on to the children. It might be too hot but that can be managed through waterplay, popsicles, and staying in the shade. It might be too rainy, but being prepared with rain boots allows the children to think about the good of the rain. The key is the right clothing. “There’s no such thing as bad weather. Just bad clothing.”
So, let's stop making excuses and embrace the outdoors, rain or shine. Let's be the generation that nurtures a love for nature in our children, not just on Tu B'shvat, but every single day. Because in the end, a healthy planet and happy children are the greatest treasures we can leave behind.