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By John Dockendorf “Dock”
Executive Director, Adventure Treks
Executive Director, Camp Pinnacle
Dedicated to Outdoor Adventure and Youth Development for Ages 8 - 18
As the parent of four children, I witness animprovement in family dynamics whenever we are able to spend time outsidetogether as a family. Whether it’s just playing games or better stillgoing on a family hike or bike ride, we just seem to get along betteroutside. Conversations come more easily and we actually seem tolisten to each other. Nobody is distracted by a digital screen, a magazine or aringing phone. Outside, we play with each other, look out for each other,and share smiles as we witness a brilliant vista or waterfall. Somehow ourkids’ complaints about “how much they hate hiking” miraculously disappear bythe end of the trip.
The cognitive and social benefits of time spent in nature are now well documented. Children carry lessstress; and demonstrate better brain development, better mental health andbetter physical health when they spend significant time outdoors and in nature. A 2012 British Study shows how even a few days spent in nature can improveboth executive function and creativity skills.
Although Adventure Treks is a natural solution to the challenge of gettingteenagers outdoors, three great weeks in the summer needs to be reinforced byfamily outdoor adventures the rest of the year. At Adventure Treks, welight a fire for a lifetime love of all things outdoors. Your job is tokeep the fire stoked with regular family outdoor activities.
We get it. It’s easy to want to get your family outdoors but difficult toactually do it. Schedules are crazy. Youth sports and extra-curricularshave become all-consuming. As video games become even more “exciting,”inspiring kids to go on a family hike becomes more challenging. And thenit always seems just when you have moved the heavens to get everyonecommitment-free, the heavens themselves move, the rains set in and plans arepostponed… until next month or next year.
Besides crazy family schedules there are also access issues, equipment issuesand expertise issues. The good news is that even if you areinexperienced, if you have a child who has participated in Adventure Treks,your child should know enough basic outdoor skills, and have good enoughjudgment, leadership and risk management skills to be able to take anactive role in planning and leading your next family excursion. Empower them and let them show off their skills!
You do want to make sure your zealous Adventure Treks kid doesn’t plansomething a little too epic for all concerned! So, if you are bringingyounger siblings along, I wanted to offer some strategies to make sure theyounger siblings have fun, too. These are all little tricks we use atAdventure Treks and at our summer camp, Camp Pinnacle.
• First begin by understanding that in a world where kids’frame of reference is the Harry Potter ride at Disney, a casual walk in thewoods doesn’t pack the punch that a roller coaster can. Also rememberthat few people find walking uphill to be fun. A successful outing beginswith embracing and overcoming the negatives.
• Let your child bring afriend. In fact encourage it – It will make all the difference – oftenthe promise of a friend coming turns a potential hike from a big negative to asmall positive. This can get a little sketchy when you end up with 7 kids and 1adult, but I find my kids always behave better and are more eager to trynew things with friends present.
• Limit your scope –The epicadventure you have in mind may turn kids off to the outdoors forever. Most adults have that memory of an outdoor adventure in their youth that endedin near disaster – While this makes for a good story –kids aren’t as resilientas we’re certain we used to be. If in doubt, always hike less (at leastwith young kids) rather than more. Just because you get out infrequently,don’t force your kids to “go big or go home!” Getting back to the car a littleearly is always better than hiking in the dark. Remember you are investing inthe future!
• Choose a destination when possiblewhere there is something special. Unless your child is an inspireddendrologist, few kids find rewards from just walking. The incredible view, thestriking waterfall, the special swimming hole, an old shelter or a blueberrypatch all serve as a reminder that effort and reward are related. If yourscenery is limited have a special treat or game planned for the midpoint andfind ways to embellish the neat small things you do see along the way.
• Bring goody bags – My kids don’tget a lot of candy but we loosen the rules for the woods. Giving eachchild a small personal snack bag from which they can eat from and trade from atwill works! It’s also a great emotional intelligence test. You canpredict your kids’ future success simply by seeing who finishes their goody bagbefore the hike begins and who saves the best treats until the end!
• Make the most of smallopportunities and make use of nature’s play areas. Especially with youngchildren, save time to play. Hold balance contests on logs, try and jump fromrock to rock, cross a stream several times in different ways, and find stumpsand natural ramps to jump off. Kids will often remember the timespent playing more fondly than the hiking.
• Have an arsenal of riddles, naturequizzes, word games and activities ready to make rest time along the trailfun. Games are also great filler when conversation runs thin! Neverunderestimate the power of a scavenger hunt and a little friendly siblingcompetition to add spark.
• Whip out a special treat like afireball when the hiking gets challenging. Distractions are good. The“heat” of the fireball will help kids “forget” the steepness of the trail!
• Try to find a beautiful placealong the trail, spread your kids out and give them a minute or two forreflective silence. Don’t overdo this or take it too seriously but it’s alwaysnice to begin the habit of reflection in the outdoors. Small habits in youthpay benefits later.
I hope you can use some of these ideas to embellish your next family hike – thegoal is to make time spent outdoors a family habit and keep it fun enough thatthey won’t argue too loudly when you want to go again! At Adventure Treks, we want to be your partner in getting your kidsoutside. It’s usually easier for us to get kids excited about beingoutdoors than it is for you. Adventure Treks supplies the friends and“larger than life” instructor mentors who are eager to share their love foroutdoor activities. Our program has been carefully designed to makeoutdoor activities exciting and appealing. We want kids to have fun earlyin the process, succeed easily and then we can build on their successes. I know this is a different approach than how we as adults did things aschildren. We were frequently told to “suck it up!” But times have changedand children of the digital age live in a different world than we did. Ifwe are going to keep them outdoors and perhaps inspire the next John Muir orRachel Carson, we have to bring young people into the outdoors gently.
The benefits of getting your kids excited about the outdoors are great. Therisks of raising a child who never leaves the family basement shouldn’t beignored. We believe that the outdoors is a wonderful tool in helping to raisegreat kids!
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