How to Spend More Time in Nature As a Family

Planning Fun Activities

Go to a park. Do an online search to find local parks. Whether it's a smaller local park or a larger national park, a day-trip is an excellent way to spend a couple of hours outdoors with your family. If you have young kids, consider taking them to a place that has activities, such as a playground, to maintain their attention. If there are no parks near you, you can plan a camping trip in your own backyard. Look for county, state, and national parks you can visit as a family. Some of the most popular national parks in the United States include Yosemite, Zion, Yellowstone, and Acadia. Other national parks around the globe include Corcovado National Park in Costa Rica, Göreme National Park in Turkey, Pacific Rim National Park in Canada, Nairobi National Park in Kenya, Skaftafell National Park in Iceland, the Brecon Beacons in the UK, Wilsons Promontory National Park in Australia and Abel Tasman national park in New Zealand.

Plan a nature-oriented vacation. Instead of going to a theme park or partaking in entertainment that's digitally based, consider going fishing, hiking or camping instead. Try to keep the use of electronic devices to a minimum and enjoy the natural beauty with your family instead. Some great nature-oriented vacations in the United States include the Grand Canyon, Kauai, Jackson Hole, and Lake Tahoe. Other vacation destinations include Pulpit Rock in Norway, Ngorongoro Crater in Tanzania, and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path National Trail in Wales. Search for camping, hiking, canoeing, birdwatching or fishing opportunities near you. Both National Geographic and Discovery have nature-oriented travel packages for families.

Play a game or sport outdoors. Discover which games that your children like to play the most, and make it a habit of playing them outside. Talk to your kids about what sports they like and make sure to get the proper equipment so that your family can all play together. Outdoor sports and games include basketball, baseball, football, soccer, and lacrosse.

Take walks with the family. Determine a time when the family will be together and schedule a time to take a walk with your family. Plan a 20-minute walk and have everyone in the family turn off their cell phones. The more you walk together, the more natural it will feel and it will encourage everyone in the family to spend more time outdoors. A great time to schedule a walk is right after dinner or before you take your children to school.

Try geocaching with your family. Geocaching is a fun electronic scavenger hunt you and your family can participate in. Using a smartphone or GPS, you and your family can follow the clues of a local scavenger hunt as they lead you to various outdoor locations. To get started geocaching, visit https://www.geocaching.com/play?utm_expid=.2qceLt_ZR8at3eV-3pWRTQ.0&utm_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F.

Doing Everyday Activities Outside

Set up tables and chairs outside. If there are places to sit and relax, your family is more likely to spend their time outdoors. If you have a yard or garden, put out chairs and places where people can sit and relax. Take advantage of any outdoor space that you have access to. If you have enough space, you can host outdoor parties in your front or backyard. Hanging hammocks will also encourage people to be outside. You can also set up a firepit outside that your family can sit around and relax.

Cook outside on the grill. You can get your whole family involved by assigning everyone a job, like prepping the food, starting the grill, and tending to the food while it's cooking. You can experiment cooking your family's favorite meats, vegetables, and desserts on the grill.

Set up a backyard movie night. If your children aren't into nature, you can try to bring some technology to your backyard instead. Purchase a projector online and hang up a large white sheet in between two trees. Plug your projector into your laptop and play a DVD or streaming movie. This is a great way to get electronic-oriented children playing outdoors.

Start gardening with your family. Gardening is a great way to spend time outdoors with your whole family. Pick a day of the week where you all spend time together outside tending to the garden. Try growing your own herbs in your family garden!

Make time to spend with each other. If your family has a busy schedule, it may make it harder to go on all day outings in nature. If this is the case, make sure that you coordinate your schedule with your family members and figure out a time and date that is open for everyone. Even if you don't have a lot of time throughout the week, you can still allocate a couple of hours spending more time in nature as a family. Instead of using the time to watch TV as a family, your family can have a conversation outside.

Try to move other regular activities outdoors. Simple activities like reading, shopping, studying, or eating can all be moved to an outdoor setting. Move some of these things outdoors to set the tone for your family. If you insist on being outdoors more often for regular tasks, it will rub off on other people.

Convincing Reluctant Family Members

Talk to your family. Talk to your family and figure out what everyone likes to do. If they already like to do outdoor activities such as hiking or canoeing, then you can partake in those activities as a family. If they don't like the outdoors, think of things that can link to their interests, such as looking for exotic insects, taking photos of wildlife, picking flowers, or growing plants in a garden. If your kids like animals, you can take them to an outdoor zoo or safari park. If your family has an interest in growing fruits and vegetables, you can start an outdoor garden. You can say something like "Hey everyone, I'm going to try to make an effort for us to spend more time in nature. What do you think and what are the things that you'd want to do?"

Encourage fun. Don't try to force a harsh regime on children because they are likely to rebel. Instead of concentrating on what your family should be doing, live in the moment and allow your entire family to enjoy the experience. For example, if you want to finish a long hike, but your kids would rather play in the giant field, encourage the fun rather than obsessing over your pre-defined plans. Encourage your kids to do some parkour on your walks and hikes so they're even more fun for them.

Talk about the benefits of being outdoors. Try to impress the benefits, especially on child development. For children, being outdoors helps build confidence, promotes creativity and exploration, and teaches the child responsibility. For adults, being out in nature can make someone more physically and mentally fit and reduces stress. If your child doesn't want to go outside you can say something like, "Being inside all the time is bad for your health and can make you feel more stressed out. Take a two-hour break and spend some time in the backyard." If your spouse is reluctant you can say something like "Bill, if the kids see you doing it, then they are more likely to go outside. Also, it's better for your health and can reduce your stress. Why not give it a try?"

Consider the age and temperament of your child or children. Engage toddlers in their interests and explore nature with them. When your children get into grade school, try to keep the activities exciting and make sure to include a physical challenge. Teens are old enough to do more complicated things like canoeing, hunting, hiking, and hiking complex trails. Think of the age of your children and do something that correlates to their age. Toddlers are fascinated with discovering new things like bugs, plants, and flowers. Toddlers also love digging holes, so purchase a shovel and pail. You can also teach grade age children how to catch exotic bugs and amphibians, build forts, camp at night, and climb trees. You can go backpacking or do community service work with your teenager.