Forest Kids
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<strong>Forest</strong> <strong>Kids</strong><br />
ture Network.<br />
Before long, helicopter parents were getting a bad name. Now<br />
the buzz was turning to “free-range kids” who were allowed to<br />
wander, and “slow parenting” through unscripted days and time to<br />
daydream and watch the sky.<br />
Last year, Svenneby visited family in Norway for three months.<br />
She found the same pressures felt by Toronto parents had permeated<br />
her old neighbourhood near Oslo, in spite of the Norwegian<br />
spirit of embracing the outdoors. <strong>Kids</strong> were glued to screens, parents<br />
chauffeured them to activities, everyone was in a rush. But at<br />
the same time, forest kindergartens were booming, she reported.<br />
And young children who attended spent hours moving about,<br />
breathing fresh air and building habits that would affect their lifestyle<br />
and allow them to find their place in nature. She sent You-<br />
Tube links so I could see for myself.<br />
Outdoor educators are in favour of getting students of all ages<br />
out into nature. But the early years are a logical place to start. It’s<br />
easier to adapt preschool and kindergarten format and curriculum<br />
to an outdoor environment. And it fits with new research that<br />
supports play-based learning, which sees play as a key to building<br />
imagination, confidence and cognitive and social skills.<br />
We are at a crossroads. Surveys show Canadians believe being<br />
outdoors improves quality of life, yet the amount of time they<br />
spend there is declining. The school day provides an opportunity.<br />
Full-day kindergarten is being ushered in across Ontario and with<br />
it, rising concerns about how children will fare with so much of the<br />
day spent between four walls. There are huge challenges to finding<br />
enough indoor space.<br />
At the same time, cities are not all traffic lights and cement.<br />
Toronto, the country’s biggest, boasts more than 1,600 parks, ranging<br />
from neighbourhood parkettes to rambling landscapes such as<br />
High Park and Sunnybrook. There are many schools within walk-<br />
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