WV Summer Vacation Directive: Go Outside and Play
Monday, June 2, 2008
Charleston, WV - With the final day of school just around the corner in West Virginia, there's a new push to send kids into the great outdoors for summer vacation. Kevin Coyle with the National Wildlife Federation says it's no coincidence that while playing outside all summer has become rare, childhood obesity has become common.
He blames technology and parental fear of "stranger danger" for keeping kids behind closed doors, adding that children are much more likely to encounter risky situations when on the Internet.
"The child who's online has a one-in-five chance of communicating directly with a sexual predator. In our opinion, it's actually more dangerous for a kid online than it is outdoors."
The National Wildlife Federation has come up with a list of ideas to encourage more outside time for children. They include a dedicated daily "green hour" set aside to be outdoors, working with neighborhood associations to encourage more kid-friendly green spaces, and encouraging local "no child left inside" days.
Recent research shows that kids who spend time outdoors often do better academically, Coyle explains. Children with concentration challenges especially have improved.
"Kids who have attention deficit problems do a lot better in class when they spend a significant amount of time outdoors in green spaces."
More information is available online at www.greenhour.org.
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