Out of touch with nature???

A new report has found that British youngsters spend less time outdoors than any generation in history, with 73 per cent saying they spend more time watching television than playing outside. Thirty-six per cent said they go outside to play once a week or less, while 63 per cent admitted using video games once a day.

More than one in five children – 21 per cent – said they had never visited a farm, while 20 per cent said they have never climbed a tree. The poll of 2,000 kids aged eight to 12 highlights how a generation is growing up out of touch with life outside. With Wildlife Explorers and a whole team of Youth and Education staff like field teachers trying to engage Children to learn about the Natural world The RSPB wants Youth to get involved more in Nature, Wildlife and their surroundings. How does everyone feel about this new report? and How do those of you with Children teach your kids about Nature and Wildlife?

Love to know your thoughts?

Tom

  • Hello everyone, a very interesting thread. I do not have a solution. I am not a parent but have been a maths teacher for about 15 years.

     When I was young, my sisters, friends and I played outside most of the time and frequently one of us would return soaking wet after falling in the beck near our home, and we were usually filthy after a days play (my poor mother, there were five of us!)  We went cycling, climbing trees, building dens etc. but I cannot remember being encouraged to have an interest in wildlife. It is just something I have become more interested in over the years. Children who have parents who involve them in their hobbies and interests are very lucky I feel. 

    I may be wrong but I believe that the main fear parents have, regarding letting their children play outside, is the traffic. I think between 2500 and 3000 children were killed or seriously injured on our roads last year. Of course there are huge parks and wildlife centres without traffic but the youngsters still have to get there.

    I do rather resent the implication that yet again it is teachers who are failing children. Society really must decide whether it wants specialist teachers or it wants people who know a bit about all subjects and teach everything including sex education, drugs, cooking, managing a home, wildlife watching, sewing and kntting, how to manage a budget, how to clean a house, how to care for a baby, how to be a decent citizen, how to stay out of prison, how to succeed on the X factor etc. etc..(Sorry I am getting sarcastic now) If that is the case, then don't expect good GCSE and A level mathematics teachers, we need to know our subject inside out to degree level to teach it to a high standard.  

    However, having got that off my chest, of course, in common with all teachers, I do spend a lot of time helping or running extra-curricular activities. My children know all about my interest in wildlife. It is a common ploy for them to ask me about my frogs or birds etc to make me "forget" about a test or setting homework. I even have a couple of wildlife posters on the walls next to posters of fractals and maths jokes.(Ofsted were not impressed). I will write lesson plans to include info. on wildlife issues. However, more and more in schools now, the pleasant activities are run by only one teacher with a few assistants so we do not have the enjoyment we used to. We are expected to run extra exam revision lessons, homework clubs, detentions etc. rather than digging ponds and going on nature rambles, we just don't have the time. :-(

    With regard to the obesity problem in this country. I have taught in Wales, Isle of man and Cumbria and have never taught an obese child. One or two are chubby and occasionally I have met a fat child, so the statistics on obesity baffle me as well.

    I absolutely support the RSPB in trying to encourage more children to take an interest in the outdoors and wildlife. I just dispute the implication that it is teachers fault yet again. :-)

     

  • Anonymous
    Anonymous 17/08/2010 08:36 in reply to Goldcrest

    I remember doing a lot of voluntary work for Youth clubs when I was younger. At one stage, a friend, and I opened up a Youth Club of our own, and it ran for nearly 5 years.  We met other people who where leaders and we remained friends with them for many years to this day.  The church where happy to let us use their facility for free and they contributed financial support for everyday things like juice and sweets.  The kids loved the fact they where not at home and that is what they wanted, a place to meet up with their friends away from home, and talk about all sorts of things that where important to them.  I spent my time doing this in the 80's

    At one stage I remember doing some work for the SSPCC -  (I lived in Scotland at the time), and that meant taking kids out for day trips to the Zoo, or for a walk in the Park.  It was amazing how many kids from deprived areas, who had unfortunate upbringing did not appreciate the things that many people/children would take for granted... like a trip to the museum or anything like that at all.

    I know I have contributed a lot of my time helping the less fortunate of us in this world.  There are not many people who are interested in giving up their time to do that - and i am not a teacher.... just a person who is interested in helping people - it simply opened a persons own mind up to having good relations with people,  at all ages/levels.  Just simply living in a positive manner in a complex world.

    If I was retired officially now and had tons of time on my hands never to work again I would do something like get my riding certificate sorted and teach disabled kids to horse ride, or something similar. Maybe take kids out for walks and nature trips and doing voluntary work for wildlife groups - that would be really enjoyable.

    Jef: I can appreciate what you have said about being a teacher.  Yes, I agree that much of the education system is blamed for a lot of problems that are going on these days.   There is such a large percentage of family break ups/bad relations/lack of commitment in the family unit now that it does not help children grow up in a environment that is good for them and detracts them for focusing on what really matters.  Some parents do not give their kids the moral support they need, and they should be doing that 24/7

    So, yes, the RSPB does matter in this case along with many other wildlife groups who focus on kids needs so that is good too.

    Regards

    Kathy and Dave

     

  • The problem is that lots of families are struggling at the present time and don’t have there own means of transport. In addition public transport in lots of rural area’s have been cut because of the subsidies that they used to receive. I don’t have my own transport, but I do belong to a local RSPB Group where I live. But the cost of travelling on one of our monthly coach trips are quite expensive and lots of people might not be able to afford to pay to on the monthly birdwatching coach trips, such as myself of which I’m lucky to be able to go on regularly. Also unless your like myself and have a concessionary travel pass and I use that to go by myself all over birdwatching. Particularly in my area that has food banks and lots of families have to use them sadly, lots of those people couldn't afford the cost of travelling on public buses as they are very expensive and if they want to get out birdwatching or any other activity, the cost can be very prohibitive for lots of families for using public transport, at least in the area where I live and of course they can’t afford there own means of transport. So trying to get those families an interest in wildlife or even access to open countryside is very prohibitive because of cost. There is a food bank close to where I live. I’m just thankful my Mother and Father had a car and I started birdwatching at the very early age of 5 in the 1950’s when birdwatching was very much a minority interest compared to today. Visiting an RSPB reserve in that era was very very quiet when visiting as hardly anyone was interested in birdwatching and other forms of wildlife unlike today as there is a huge interest with large numbers of the UK public visiting some of the well known RSPB reserves. But sadly there are more people now who are very poor and can’t afford to go birdwatching, even by public transport which is very sad. I can count myself very lucky that I can afford to get out all over the UK birdwatching as I know lots of other local families can’t afford to travel like myself. I just had to put in some detail the other side of why in some areas of the UK particularly in urban like where I live it can be difficult for some people as they have much bigger problems for themselves before they start thinking of having an interest in birdwatching and other wildlife.

  • Until the mods remove it, the post by Michael santana is a SPAM & don't click on the "essaytyper" as its advertising & not sure if it's safe. Can others flag him & this post up too!

  • Thanks for that warning. Glad I didn’t click on anything. Didn’t realise that it was spam. Some of the spam posts are getting very clever and I didn’t realise it was spam.
  • TV,what TV. Summer hols we were out at 8 back in for a bath before the street lights came on. Only coming in to grab a sandwich and a bag of Tudor crisps, and put a fresh plaster on ! We lived in the middle of a large town,but we could always find a piece of waste land to make a den or a beck to swing over or catch sticklebacks in. That's where I learnt to love my wildlife.
    There was a lot to be said for nothing on the TV and growing up in the 70s.