The Importance of Children Interacting with Big Nature

People often grow up assuming the environment around them is the way it’s supposed to be. This is problematic as ecosystems are diminished and degraded — fewer trees, less wildlife, emptier and quieter natural spaces. A child born today may look at a thin strip of grass and a few shrubs and see perfectly typical nature, even though their grandparents’ generation knew meadows, forests, and wild places teeming with life. Researchers call this “environmental generational amnesia.” In with each passing generation, the bar for what counts as healthy nature slips a little lower, and no one notices, because from the inside, it looks ordinary.

One promising response is to give children more chances to spend time in nature, and not just in small doses, but in big, expansive natural settings whenever possible. To show what that looks like in practice, researchers studied children at a forest-based nature preschool and watched how kids actually interact with the outdoors. They identified clear patterns in those interactions, which appear to help children build the skills, knowledge, and values they need. And, just as important, they develop deep, personal bonds with the natural world that may stay with them for life.