As the weather gets colder, it’s very easy to just curl up indoors and put together movie days, duvet days, and reading books in the bedroom. With the school holidays approaching, it’s also very easy to make sure that you spend your entire holidays making ‘smores and hot chocolates just to be able to keep warm.
Indoor play centres are about to be heaving with very busy children because children still need to be as active as possible even when it’s raining outside. It’s very easy to say no to playing outdoors because of the cold or the worry about them getting sick but outdoor play matters no matter what the weather is. There really isn’t any such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing because you can get the kids outside in a boys waterproof jacket or a girls set of galoshes, and still have fun and keep them warm and dry. When you have little kids, getting outside is important and so do you. So here are the reasons why they need outdoor play regardless of what the weather may be.
It’s a mood booster
There is research to show from Cambridge Health Alliance that getting outside can help to reduce stress and anxiety. Being outside no matter the weather also has memory enhancing effects and this isn’t just great for your kids but for you too.
You get to help them to engage in imaginative play.
When it’s snowing, kids can make igloos and snowballs and snowmen. When it’s raining, they get to spot earthworms in the soil and make mud pies. When it’s sunny, they pretend to fry an egg in the front yard. Kids have an unending amount of independent play options with the natural world right at their fingertips. Without the distractions of screen time and TV, it’s much easier to make up games to play rather than wait around and see what happens.
It helps to get rid of that excess energy.
Getting outside is a great circuit breaker when kids are going nuts. If you’re tired of the kids jumping off the couch and running around indoors, it means that they need somewhere to dispel all of their energy. Indoor play centres are great, but when they’re running, jumping and playing, they’re going to be able to get rid of all of that energy and warm up at the same time.
It keeps the kids healthy.
Young children don’t necessarily have to engage in an after school club to keep fit and healthy, not when there are plenty of places to run and play outside like parks and trails. You’re going to be able to reduce their illnesses even in the winter because of the fact that they’re going to be in nature having outdoor time.
It’s good for the brain.
It’s nice of them to spend their time doing school work or writing stories or playing with arts and crafts sets. But they need to spend some time outdoors exercising and playing to help the brain form connections. It might sound unbelievable, but 3/4 of kids will spend less time outside in the rain and snow than even prison inmates!
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