Research shows what many parents have long known, that children who learn and play in nature are healthier both mentally and physically. Active, unstructured play outdoors helps build a child’s physical strength and also helps children build social and emotional skills such as problem solving and self-esteem.

Children today are spending seven to 11 hours per day sitting with media and only minutes per day playing outdoors. With that...

Many of the studies that have looked at the connection between time spent in nature and performance in school. However, one of the most important functions nature plays in a child's development happens before a child enters into formal education. Executive functions such as following directions, working cooperatively and working through problems are all improved when a child spends time outdoors.

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Children who have experiences in the outdoors can have higher self-esteem as they learn to work through problems, test assumptions, and challenge themselves in an outdoor setting.

Facilitating Social Emotional Learning in Kindergarten Classrooms

The development of social emotional skills and competencies is a critical part of early childhood development. This study explored how social emotional...

Self-discipline is an important development that many children struggle with. Spending time in nature can help children slow down, consider their options and make direct connections between cause and effects.

Facilitating Social Emotional Learning in Kindergarten Classrooms: Situational Factors and Teachers' Strategies

The development of social emotional skills and competencies is a critical part of early...

Time spent outdoors supports many aspects of children’s health, including their ability to connect and cooperate with others.

Natural Environments Near Schools are Positively Associated With the Socio-emotional and Behavioral Development of Preschool Children

This study investigated associations between preschool children’s socio-emotional and behavioral (SEB) development and natural features near the schools...

Did you know a simple game of hide-and-go-seek can help develop problem-solving skills? Playing a game like this in the outdoors allows children to make observations, look for patterns and listen to discover where their friends and family might be hiding. Nature presents challenges for children; letting kids use their own ideas to solve them. Such challenges can also inspire cooperation — kids may try solving those problems with other kids...

Have you ever watched children’s faces light up when they catch their first fish, or reap the first harvest from something they planted? In that moment they have done something so much more than catch a fish — they have been empowered with a skill that will help them be self-reliant.

“I enjoy watching my girls try different methods to catch a fish,” says parent Caleb Harris. “Sometimes what they try doesn’t always work, so I encourage...

Have you ever asked children to tell you what they see, think, smell or feel in a natural setting? Are you amazed at how creative their answers can be? Nature has long been the source of inspiration for ideas, works of art, inventions, literature and music. When kids come up with their own games they are fostering their imaginations.

Creativity is a strong component of critical thinking and important in a child’s development. More...

When children build a relationship with nature, they tend to be more inclined to care about their natural world as adults. Learning about food webs, water systems, weather and migration patterns of wildlife all helps kids understand the relationship between themselves and the world around them.

Stewardship can be as simple as sharing a love of the outdoors with another person, or something grander like volunteering. At each touch point,...

When children are given the chance to connect with nature at a young age, they are more likely to care about it as adults. Below are articles relating to how connecting kids with nature will help develop the next generation of environmental stewards.

Converging Evidence From Diverse Fields Offers Causal Support for Nature’s Impact on Learning, Development and Environmental Stewardship

Do experiences with nature ––...

Find research on the effects of children spending time in nature and topics that affect the work we do based in Texas

TCINN has developed a concise health document for the Student Health Advisory Councils (SHAC) throughout Texas to highlight the essential role of free play in supporting students' mental, physical, and academic well-being. Explore this resource to understand the positive impact of free play and its potential to create healthier learning environments.

To view "Nature as a Health Initiative in Schools", click...