Come out and play!

The notion that fresh air is good for you is nothing new, and there are reports that support this with findings of fewer infections among both children and staff at preschools where a lot of activities are arranged outdoors. Being out in nature also helps children develop better balance and mobility. Research shows that play and movement outdoors, in green environments, improve both gross and fine motor skills. In other words, moving around in environments other than the flat surfaces we have indoors is quite simply good for the development of our children – albeit that they might occasionally take a tumble or graze a knee. The types of games children play outdoors have the benefit of being open and flexible, thus allowing children to test their abilities and see what the physical environment has to offer: opportunities for climbing, sliding or crawling. It is, of course, important to keep children away from steep slopes and large bodies of water – or at least to stay close by, with your child well within reach.

There are also studies that have shown that playing in nature promotes creativity and the ability to concentrate. It has been shown that time spent in nature has a stress-relieving effect on adults, and the same is also believed to apply to children, who often have lots of energy in their bodies. Furthermore, we all benefit from exposure to a little daylight, among other things to help us form vitamin D in our skin, and to regulate our circadian rhythms so that we feel alert during the day and tired in the evening. In other words, there are plenty of good reasons to plan a picnic, go sledging or arrange other types of fun and games outdoors!

Regular exercise and playing outdoors

Unfortunately, the children of today often get too little movement and exercise. It can easily happen that we end up spending a lot of time indoors in front of our screens and devices, especially on weekends and evenings when it’s a bit cold and nasty outside. And while there’s no denying that it feels great to snuggle up on a nice warm sofa, the fact is that children’s bodies are made to move around a lot, and they can easily become frustrated if they receive too few opportunities to exercise their bodies and move around. Spending time and playing outdoors makes a big difference in terms of how much movement a child experiences, as outdoor play causes children to move around a lot more than when they play indoors – which is great. Running, climbing, kicking a ball, bending here, there and everywhere, and rolling around on the ground – all such activities and movements are beneficial for both body and soul! Being outdoors stimulates our senses, and children are often inspired to play by the vast distances and the feeling of freedom they experience.

Outdoor games for children

In most cases, just going outside is usually enough to make children run about and want to explore the world. Most children have an innate need for excitement, and it can be incredibly exciting to explore a forest or see what the world looks like from the top of a rock. It may sometimes take a while before the inspiration arrives, but be patient and give your child sufficient time for his or her imagination to come to life. That said, in the winter or on dreary days, your child might need a little push in the right direction to get into the mood to play, in which case you might find some of these tips helpful:

• Let your child help out in the garden or yard. He or she will probably love picking flowers, gathering leaves or collecting fruit.
• Go out and hunt for “treasure” in nature. Take along a trolley or doll pram on your walk to make it extra fun.
• Create a fun make-believe world. Is there a dinosaur lurking behind the next rock? Or is there a mischievous witch living under the roots of that big tree? Perhaps someone needs to save the little gnomes? Small challenges in a fun make-believe world can really stimulate a child’s imagination.
• Do some baking in the sand with fun shapes. Or create a whole world out of sand for your child’s little plastic toys! Take along a few kitchen utensils so that your child can do some “cooking” using sand, soil and pine cones.
• Put on rubber boots and rain gear, and let your child jump around in puddles when it’s wet outside. All forms of play and games involving water are fun and exciting!
• See if you can find some bugs or small insects, and study them to see what is going on in their lives. “Look but don’t touch” is usually the best rule of thumb for children at this age – their fine motor skills are not yet quite honed for handling small beetles and the like. Teach your child to treat and handle small animals with care – this encourages respect for nature and the value of life.

Please note that all information above is based on Swedish recommendations.