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Christine Rolka Director of Education |
Now’s the time for conservation education
I’m sure I’m preaching to the choir when I say the outdoors is good for you. We’ve all enjoyed a sunrise in the woods, an afternoon on the lake or simply a morning cup of coffee on the porch. The outdoors is commonplace for most of us.
But the national trend over the last 20 to 30 years says something different for the youngest of U.S. citizens. More time in front of TVs, computer screens and video game consoles has meant less time outside playing tag or digging in the dirt.
Electronics are not the only culprits. Now more than ever, kids’ schedules are packed with ballgames, piano recitals and homework — all wonderful components to a well-rounded childhood.
What’s missing is time to discover the great outdoors.
Author Richard Louv talks about a disconnect with nature among our country’s youth in his book, Last Child in the Woods. The book inspired the national Children & Nature Movement and led him to co-found the Children & Nature Network. Research by Louv and his collegues point to the same finding: Kids need to be outside.
Not only does the outdoors provide mental and physical health benefits, when used in the context of education, outside learning even enhances teacher enthusiasm and children’s test scores.
The NWTF has connected thousands of kids to the outdoors since 1981 through its JAKES program. Since then, we’ve ramped up our efforts to introduce more young people to nature through classroom-based resources, conservation training workshops for educators and hands-on events for children. We also reward young adults who have nurtured their outdoors passions, while maintaining high academic standards, through a national scholarship program. (Read about this year’s winner, Amanda Bowering)
More recently, the NWTF supported the No Child Left Inside Act of 2009, which mandates programming and dollars for environmental education. Our most important role in this movement is to educate students and teachers alike about the role hunting plays in conserving our treasured natural resources.
The entire Child & Nature Movement provides the NWTF with even more opportunities to tell our conservation success story by sharing our programs and resources with parents, educators and volunteers — anyone who seeks to nurture the next generation through nature-based learning.
Through our efforts, including hosting educator training workshops, participating in education conferences and curriculum development initiatives, placing NWTF education boxes in schools, building industry partnerships, and hosting museum programs, we’re connecting more young people to the outdoors on both state and national levels. And volunteers like you spread our message in your hometowns.
These pages showcase some of the best programs, projects and people in our education efforts. My hope is that it becomes a place to find new ideas and inspiration, as well as where you can share what you do to ensure that, indeed, no child is left inside. — Christine Rolka