Tag: outdoors

Advice on maximizing outdoor play can be found in these books

- Beth Leave a comment

There is still time to enjoy the great outdoors before summer ends. Even when the seasons change you can still spend time with your family in nature. If you are looking for a little guidance on playing with your kids outdoors, the Literacy and Learning Collection can help. (Descriptions from the publishers)

Finding ecohappiness : fun nature activities to help your kids feel happier and calmer by Sandi Schwartz – Raise calmer, happier, healthier children with these fun, hands-on nature activities for parents and kids to enjoy together. What we all suspected intuitively for generations, science has now confirmed: spending time connecting to nature is a safe, effective tool to help improve our health and happiness. In Finding Ecohappiness, author Sandi Schwartz guides families in building regular habits of experiencing nature to reduce stress and boost mood. She explores key positive psychology tools from a nature-loving perspective. You will learn some simple, practical tips for incorporating these tools — awe and gratitude, mindfulness, creative arts, outdoor play and adventure, volunteering, food, and animals — into your daily routine to help your children thrive and live a happy, balanced life.

Young adventurers : outdoor activities in nature by Susie Rae – Outdoor activities are fun, exciting, and can be found right around the corner! Get outside and ride a bike, climb a mountain, or spot wildlife and go camping. Whether in the local park, your backyard, or amongst the trees in a nature preserve — the great outdoors is the place to be! Young Adventurers energizes children to get out of the house and enjoy the outdoors, engage with their surroundings, find new friends and gain confidence through important experiences, while learning to appreciate the wonders of nature.

Balanced and barefoot by Angela J. Hanscom –Today’s kids have adopted sedentary lifestyles filled with television, video games, and computer screens. But more and more, studies show that children need “rough and tumble” outdoor play in order to develop their sensory, motor, and executive functions. In this important book, a pediatric occupational therapist explains why unrestrained movement and outdoor play are vital for children’s cognitive development, and offers fun, engaging activities to help ensure that kids grow into healthy, balanced, and resilient adults. Available in print or as audio book on CD.

Play the Forest School Way by Peter Houghton and A Year of Forest School by Jane Worroll – The rise of the Forest School movement in recent years is part of a groundswell of concern about the wellbeing of our children, with many media scare stories about child obesity, ‘nature deficit disorder’ and lack of exposure to risk. These books bring the activities and ‘learning through nature’ ethos of Forest School to the parents of nursery and primary school-age children. Both are packed full of ideas and celebrate the Forest School philosophy of encouraging self-esteem, confidence and social skills through engagement with nature.

Wallace the Brave by Will Henry

- Callen Leave a comment

If you love comics and graphic novels about friendship, discovery, and the joy of being weird, you won’t want to miss out on Wallace the Brave by Will Henry.

This comic series, now in its fourth collected volume, centers on the bold and imaginative Wallace in his picturesque hometown of Snug Harbor, where he lives with fisherman father, plant-loving mother, and feral little brother Sterling. Wallace is outdoorsy and adventurous, making his own fun with the help of best friend Spud, brainy Rose, and aggressive Amelia. This is a utopic read filled with hope, light, and appreciation for the small comforts of life — alongside quirky humor and pride in being different.

A wholesome heir to Calvin & Hobbes and as healing to read as the Tea Dragon Society, Wallace the Brave is recommended for all ages who need a gentle, humorous read.

The Great Outdoors: Spring Idea Books

- Callen Leave a comment

As the weather starts to get warmer, I start itching to get outside, not only to walk (you might remember I’ve rhapsodized about walking in the past) but also to take pictures (I especially love a good nature scene) and just frolic! I wouldn’t be surprised if you’re in the same boat, given the year we’ve all had. Today I’m recommending some books to how to enjoy the outdoors as spring dawns, and so my first pick is this 2020 book: Photo Basics by Joel Sartore. Published by National Geographic, it gives great ideas on how to capture great images indoors and out; perfect for flowers poking out of the melting snow or late afternoon sunlight.

If you’re like me and you take photos while walking out in nature try these: Great Iowa Walks, an oldie but a goodie, giving some ideas of walks you can take in the state; or, in the same spirit, try Biking Iowa for bike-friendly trail rides. For quick getaways, try Great Iowa Weekend Adventures by Mike Whye or the Iowa Curiosities guidebook, available both in print and on Overdrive. To find Quad City-specific trails and adventures, check out qctrails.org for an interactive map and robust search experience.

If you’re looking to branch out and take a backpacking trip, you might like Backpacker Hidden Gems: 100 Greatest Undiscovered Hikes Across America, highlighting less-known hiking trails all across the country, or the more local Best Easy Day Hikes Cedar Rapids: Including Iowa City and Cedar Falls/Waterloo. But either way, you may want to take along Be Prepared: Hiking and Backpacking by Karen Berger. More of a cyclist? Take your bike off-road with Mountain Bike Master by Mark Langton.

If you want to focus on an urban/suburban fitness aspect, you could try Walking for Fitness by Nina Barough, or Bicycling Bliss by Portia Masterson. Don’t feel your stamina is up to going outside just yet? Ease into the outdoors with a DVD walking workout like Walk Strong: Burn Fat and Have Fun. If you’re looking for a lifestyle overhaul focused on walking and the outdoors, try The Finnish Way by Katja Pantzar.

Get the whole family involved with 101 outdoor adventures to have before you grow up by Stacy and Jack Tornio. For a deeper dive into camping and fun outdoor skills, try How to Play in the Woods by Robin Blankenship, Born to Explore by Richard Wiese, or I Love Dirt by Jennifer Ward. You could also start a family garden with Plant, Sow, Make & Grow by Esther Coombs. Then, take it to the next level with The New Gardener’s Handbook by Daryl Beyers.

Whatever activity or method you choose, don’t forget to get outside this spring! Between the vitamin D in sunlight, energizing physical activity, and opportunities for togetherness, the benefits are many and the risks are few. Any of these titles will give you a place to start, but do whatever works for you and brings you joy.

Play the Forest School Way by Jane Worroll and Peter Houghton

- Brenda Leave a comment

As I write this, many of us are at home doing our part to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Schools are not meeting in person for a few weeks, and many are going stir-crazy, wondering what to do with the extra “together” time at home.

I have an apt book to recommend: Play the Forest School Way: Woodland Games, Crafts and Skills for Adventurous Kids by Jane Worroll and Peter Houghton. (I love that the author of this book about being in the forest is named Jane. It’s so Tarzan.) Playing in the outdoors is something we can do with our families to get out an enjoy ourselves while still avoiding the spread of sickness among friends and neighbors.

This book is aimed at parents of primary school-age children but many of the activities can be enjoyed by people of all ages. Those of you who enjoy crafting will find ideas for making nature jewelry and whittling, among many other suggestions.

The idea of a “Journey Stick” is shared, where you collect items on your nature hike, affixing them to a stick (I imagine a hobo stick with a kerchief tied to the end). Use the found objects to re-tell the story of your outing or create a brand new one from your imagination!

For now, these ideas should be enjoyed in solitude or with the immediate members of your household, but you can remember and use them later while camping or with outdoor groups when it is safer to socialize again. With a little creativity, we can not only survive this quarantine but thrive if we learn to appreciate our immediate surroundings in ways we haven’t taken the time to do before.

If you like this book, you may want to check out A Year of Forest School: Outdoor Play and Skill-Building Fun for Every Season by the same authors.

 

 

Classic Hikes of North America by Peter Potterfield

- Ann Leave a comment

Classic Hikes of North America is a beautifully photographed and eminently practical account of the best back country journeys in the United States and Canada.

Peter Potterfield, an experienced hiker and photographer, has analyzed and graded these spectacular wilderness experiences with both beginners and avid hikers in mind. Included in the book is helpful information, such as: level of difficulty, trail conditions, recommended seasons, potential hazards and difficulties, resource information, and detailed maps of hiking routes.

Illustrated with more than 200 color photographs and hiking directions, here is inspiration and information in a single volume. There are routes in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Big Beaver–Little Beaver Loop in the North Cascades National Park of Washington State, and the Slate Range in the Canadian Rockies, Alberta and British Columbia, and many more. These are journeys to dream on, and Potterfield puts them within reach of any aspiring hiker. (description from publisher)