As a child in the 80’s I spent my time watching Dukes of Hazard and playing the original SEGA. Also, the more I think about it, I spent a lot of time on my bike, exploring the neighborhood with friends; drainage ditches, playgrounds, bike races, etc. You may have similar memories of your childhood.
I recently started reading Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv. This book talks about how children today are not in nature having unstructured playtime so they are losing creativity and not as good at developing community. He calls it nature-deficit disorder, which is in no way a medical term, nor does he want it to become that. It is a very interesting book and of course I had the poster child for it on a recent trip. Chris was a high-strung 7th grader that wouldn't sit still most of the time. The exception to this was while he was waiting to climb he sat at the bottom of the climbs by the water and tossed little rocks in and kept himself occupied for a long time. Then we were hiking and he was excited to see what was down the river. He saw a rock and his imagination caught up with him and he said, "Hey that looks like a big crocodile head." This got me thinking about this book, so I asked him if he played outside a lot. He said, "No, I just play inside on my PS3." Bingo!! The book is right. This child, who at first glance anyone would say has ADD, just needs to get outside and play more. Burn off some energy. Have an outlet for creativity. See God's creation.
It was pretty cool timing of reading this book and meeting this really great student. He has a lot of potential; I just don't think PS3 is going to bring it out.
What are some of your childhood memories in nature? Forts, naps, bike ramps, archeology… What about as an adult?
How have those times shaped you into the person you are? What affect have they had on your walk with Christ?
Take time to answer these questions for yourself. I would love to see some comments of people sharing what they’ve thought of. Tell us about anything, from bike ramps gone bad to life-changing moments.
But most importantly…GET OUT MORE!! AND GET YOUR KIDS OUT MORE!!
I recently started reading Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv. This book talks about how children today are not in nature having unstructured playtime so they are losing creativity and not as good at developing community. He calls it nature-deficit disorder, which is in no way a medical term, nor does he want it to become that. It is a very interesting book and of course I had the poster child for it on a recent trip. Chris was a high-strung 7th grader that wouldn't sit still most of the time. The exception to this was while he was waiting to climb he sat at the bottom of the climbs by the water and tossed little rocks in and kept himself occupied for a long time. Then we were hiking and he was excited to see what was down the river. He saw a rock and his imagination caught up with him and he said, "Hey that looks like a big crocodile head." This got me thinking about this book, so I asked him if he played outside a lot. He said, "No, I just play inside on my PS3." Bingo!! The book is right. This child, who at first glance anyone would say has ADD, just needs to get outside and play more. Burn off some energy. Have an outlet for creativity. See God's creation.
It was pretty cool timing of reading this book and meeting this really great student. He has a lot of potential; I just don't think PS3 is going to bring it out.
What are some of your childhood memories in nature? Forts, naps, bike ramps, archeology… What about as an adult?
How have those times shaped you into the person you are? What affect have they had on your walk with Christ?
Take time to answer these questions for yourself. I would love to see some comments of people sharing what they’ve thought of. Tell us about anything, from bike ramps gone bad to life-changing moments.
But most importantly…GET OUT MORE!! AND GET YOUR KIDS OUT MORE!!
-Shane Seaton
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