Kids In Nature: A North Carolina Early Childhood Strategy
Do you remember playing with mud, building forts, climbing trees and splashing in puddles as a kid? Today, many young children who attend childcare centers miss out on these treasured moments because the centers lack appropriate outdoor surroundings. As a result, kids lose not only some good fun but also the exercise and health benefits that come with playing outdoors.
North Carolina State University’s Natural Learning Initiative, in association with the NC Partnership for Children (Smart Start), has designed a new program—“Kids in Nature”—to help licensed childcare centers statewide “naturalize” their grounds and train early childhood educators to use them every day with young children.
According to the Kids In Nature design, demonstration centers would host train-the-trainer programs in which childcare center teachers, parents, university extension staff and design professionals would learn strategies to design high-quality natural environments and program activities for reconnecting kids and nature. Each trainer could then expand the program to additional centers with well-established, successful state partners. Potential partners include the NC Outdoor Learning Alliance and the NC Cooperative Extension, which could promote the program to a statewide network of childcare referral centers and community organizations. University and community college staff and students will be invited to participate.
Kids In Nature could become a model for other states, ultimately inspiring roughly 150,000 licensed childcare centers nationwide to get greener—offering a foundation of outdoor experience to more than 7 million children. Every child has the right to be connected to the natural world. With the proper environment and training, childcare centers can turn that right into reality. Please help us make it happen.
To Learn More
The Natural Learning Initiative
Nilda Cosco, Education Specialist and Robin Moore, Director
nilda_cosco@ncsu.edu or robin_moore@ncsu.edu
Campus Box 7701,
Raleigh, NC, 27695-7701
919.515.8345
www.naturalearning.org
