The Benefits of Encouraging Your Children to Play Outdoors

With the weather starting to heat up again and the days getting longer, it’s time to dust off the sun cream and get your children back outside.

Whether it be a game of rounders at the park, a swim at the local beach or a quick kickabout in the back garden, encouraging your children to spend more time outdoors could make a significant difference to their overall health and wellbeing – an area of particular importance in today’s day and age.

From the ongoing concerns over social media use to the mental health effects of the pandemic, keeping on top of your child’s mental and physical health has been well-documented in recent times,and is vital to ensuring their correct development.

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So, with this in mind, join us as we run through some of the key benefits that encouraging your children to play outside could offer – both mentally and physically.

1.   Outdoor Activities Improve Motor Skills

Today's children are estimated to spend an average of seven hours per day in front of electronic devices, such as TVs, tablets, smartphones and laptops.

However, studies have shown that– by reducing this average down by just a couple of hours each day – children can advance their motor skills much more quickly.

Whether it be through the act of running, walking, swinging, throwing or jumping, thanks to the act of playing outside, children have the space to move more freely, challenging their muscles and bones to move in a way that improves their level of physical endurance.

This, in turn, helps strengthen their bodies whilst also improving their motor skills for coordination, balance and agility at the same time.

2.   Outdoor Play Keeps Kids Healthier For Longer

In light of the pandemic, one in five children are now said to be obese. This, therefore,highlights the impact of the various lockdowns and the influence that spending longer inside can have on children’s health.

Because of this, children should now be actively encouraged to move away from the TV, phone and computer screens they've become so used to and spend more time burning calories outside,lowering their body mass index and playing with their friends.

This, in turn, will then drastically impact their long-term health; obese children have weaker immune systems and are significantly more likely to suffer from issues like cardiovascular disease, asthma and diabetes in the future.

3.   Outdoor Activities Aid Social Development

While the physical benefits of exercising outdoors may be well-documented, there are a number of social development benefits it can offer as well.

For example, spending more timeout doors provides children with the chance to see the world from a different perspective, allowing them to develop observational and reasoning skills in a healthy way.

This can then go on to aid their appreciation for the outside world; 87% of people who spent time outside as a child are said to retain their love of nature into adulthood, building a thirst for knowledge of the wider world.

What's more, thanks to the very nature of playing outside, building up these levels of self-awareness also helps teach children to use their imagination, work as a team and, ultimately, make better connections with other children.

In fact, according to some studies, children who spend more time outdoors are significantly less likely to bully others.

Final Thoughts

The points listed above barely scratch the surface of the many benefits that outdoor play can offer. In terms of supporting your children’s physical, emotional and societal development,there really is nothing better.

Here at Camp Beaumont, we have seen first-hand the impact that playing outside can have on children – from developing a love of a new hobby to creating a catalogue of new friends.

Our award-winning programmes are designed to bring the very best out of children, helping them bounce back from the pandemic in a constructive, tailored manner that puts their health first.

To find out more about our programmes, or to book a place on one of our activity camps, give our team a call today on 01603 851000.

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