‘How can we bring nature in’ is a question I am asked often and one that is very relevant in ECE, primary schools and beyond. As teachers, we have the super important job of helping our young tamariki grow into awesome little beings. We’re talking about sparking their love of learning, nurturing their whole selves, and giving them the best start possible. And guess what? We’ve got a secret weapon – nature! That’s right, by adding a little bit of green to our teaching, we can help them feel happier, healthier, and more connected to the world around them. Incorporating nature into your everyda ..read more

First published in the Natural Parent Magazine. When my daughter was 10 days old she had her first experience of a winter nature play session. She was wrapped up snuggly in her merinos, a one-piece fleece suit and a multi-coloured knitted hat from my cousin. It was a crisp clear day with frost on the ground and not a breath of wind. She slept peacefully for the whole session. It was an ideal first nature play experience, for both of us! Since these early days of parenthood, I have become a passionate advocate for nature play and for the last 5 years, I have been running a Bush Kindy playgr ..read more

Originally published in Te Whakatika (EONZ) ‘Nature is the best medicine’. It’s an oldie but a goodie and seems to have stood the test of time. I would even say it’s coming back into fashion. But what does nature have to do with education? Where does it fit in? DEFINING NATURE EDUCATION Nature education is a relatively new concept compared to outdoor education. Outdoor education came about in the 1940’s and can be defined as experiential learning or organised learning that takes place in the outdoors [1]. Whereas nature education is so new it doesn’t really have an official definition so I wi ..read more

Loose parts are an essential element in any play setting creating opportunities for children’s creativity, problem-solving and cognitive development. When I think back to my childhood, I can remember some of my own play experiences and the loose parts scattered throughout that play. I didn’t know them as loose parts then, they were just things that we played with. We would find them around the house, in the shed or in a pile destined for the dump. Some people would call it junk! We used them in multiple ways. They were versatile and could change form when we needed them to be something else ..read more

Schema is the technical term for play urges. You know, those times when you ask a young child to stop jumping on the couch, they look you in the eye, but the urge to jump is so great that they keep on jumping…they just can’t help themselves. Or maybe you have gone for a walk and a child was so engrossed in posting sticks down the drain that your suggestion to keep moving feels as if it has fallen on deaf ears…for the tenth time. WHAT ARE SCHEMA? Schema or play urges are often described as repeated patterns of behaviour.  By repeating actions over and over, just like with the examples ab ..read more

Risky play is a natural element of human development and is essential for a child’s overall development and wellbeing. It is a key part in the fabric of a well-rounded childhood. Taking risks is innate, it comes from within us all. We are born with it, and children start taking risks when they are babies; when they reach for something, start to roll, crawl, walk, run, and play. Even when they start to mimic our voices and sounds around them, they are taking a risk. When we look at hunter-gather and Inuit communities the literature often talks about children’s instincts and judgment being trus ..read more

A running race has nothing to do with nature play. Nature play isn’t just about playing in nature. It is about preparing us mentally to navigate the world before us. This is a story on mindset, resilience and courage. Come join me… At the start line I was already talking myself out of it. I had an excuse ready and waiting. I had stood on a skateboard in the garage the night before and it rolled out from underneath me giving me a lovely swollen ankle. With the finish line 17km away and 500m of vertical climbing, I thought that I would know by the top of the first hill if I was going to get the ..read more

When I ask people what their fondest play memories were from their childhood, often it’s some type of play in nature. Memories of hut building, mud pies, tree climbing and dams across the stream were some of my favourites and seem to be common themes for many I speak with. As a child I didn’t realise how important that time was for my development or my wellbeing. But nature has been a place I have been able to rely on in so many ways. The benefits of nature play are well documented but what is nature play and how is it different to outdoor play?     NATURE PLAY AND OUTDOOR PLAY Natu ..read more

Nature Education: Where Do I Start?   Starting to run nature based programmes (aka bush kindy, bush school, nature kindy, explorer sessions, forest school) can feel both exciting and daunting.  There can be challenges that you didn’t anticipate, you might be the only person in your centre or school who wants to provide more nature opportunities, or there might be some fear around keeping children safe during the sessions. Equally there may be things that you were worried about that are so amazingly easy that you can’t understand why you were so worried in the first place! Ever since ..read more

Is This Your Year To Embrace Nature Play? In today’s tech-focused world, it’s easy to take our natural surroundings for granted.  Our tamariki grow up exploring virtual environments more than natural ones. And while the digital age has a lot to offer, these changes are often more detrimental than beneficial. Research shows that time spent in nature is vital for children. Outdoor nature play has a huge, undeniable range of benefits for health and wellbeing.  The nature play movement is growing in New Zealand, and this year, Little Kiwis Nature Play is proud to host the Nature Play C ..read more