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Nature Play

We believe that Nature Play is vital to a child's being. Nature play significantly improves all aspects of child development – physical, cognitive, social and emotional. Playing outdoors grows resilience, self-confidence, initiative, creativity and more.

“Passion does not arrive on videotape or on a CD; passion is personal. Passion is lifted from the earth itself by the muddy hands of the young, it travels along grass- stained sleeves to the heart. If we are going to save environmentalism and the environment, we must also save an endangered indicator species: the child in nature."

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Richard Louv

Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder, 2005

Nature is Nurture

What an amazing quote from an inspirational author and what is more important to teach our students and children than a love of the world that sustains us all.

For too long schools have been institutions for the industrial capitalist society we live in and we have lost sight of the essence of life itself.

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According to studies by Nature Play SA, our children spend less than 2 hours a day outside and 87 percent of children spend more time playing indoors than outdoors. Additionally, in South Australia, children spend an average of 4.5 hours a day in front of a screen, exceeding the national average by half an hour!

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We are at a crucial point in history where we need to give our children valuable exposure to the natural world through initiatives such as Nature Play SA.

How can we expect the next generation to care for something they have had no exposure to?

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Children spend 7 hours a day for 13 years of their lives in schools so what a great opportunity to give these students just a little exposure to beautiful natural environments where they can play, learn, relax, and develop a love and understanding for mother nature and the great outdoors..

Nature Play resources

This section of the website is intended to be a learning base for all things nature play. Please find some useful links for more information, and watch this space for further research and developments on the initiative.

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