Nature and Children

Looks like the latest fad is bringing children back to nature. I happened to catch Brat Camp on tee vee tonight. Not sure if that program is the solution for those kids, but it probably can't hurt for them to get dirty and breathe some cold air. I'm also reading Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder.

Although I've not read all of it, the essential and common sense idea is that kids need to get outside and get away from the tee vee and video games. The book laments the fact that we may have been the last generation to have a significant first hand experience with nature. We used to be able to play in the woods or even a vacant lot without supervision. Kids today require constant supervision. If they are not watching tee vee, we organize them into soccer leagues. The spontaneity is gone. And that's a shame.

I wouldn't think that you'd need a whole book to make such a common sense point, but most parents today seem not to have that common sense. Therfore, stuff like brat camp.