Bring Out Your Inner Kid with Kids to Parks Day!

Join a national day of outdoor play on May 18th! Organized by the National Park Trust, Kids to Parks Day is a celebration of the connections to parks and the outdoors that can impact a childhood and inspire a lifelong love of nature. Are you ready to play?

This year, the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area is joining parks across the country in this great event. Join the rangers at Davidson-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve on the morning of Saturday the 18thto partake in a variety of outdoor activities. From field day fun – including cornhole, hula hoops and tug-of-war – to science games to a nature scavenger hunt, Rangers will guide kids through the excitement of the outdoors and nature.

There are a variety of reasons why it’s good for kids to be outside. Aside from the many benefits of learning about the natural world and gaining an early respect and sense of wonder for nature, kids gain concrete health and developmental benefits as well. We get Vitamin D, for example, from exposure to the sun. Vitamin D impacts everything from good sleep to bone growth and development. It even impacts our mood. 

Exercise is another key part of playing outside. Kids don’t have to be involved in organized sports – being outside (walking around at the nature center, for example) involves moving. Movement is important both cognitively and physically – in short, we think better, feel better and are all around healthier when we’re not sitting all the time. These activities (exploring outdoors, playing with other kids) also help build confidence and creativity. The benefits of playing in nature are endless. You can read more about the health benefits of nature at this Harvard Medical School Blog.

So come on out for Kids toParks Day and have an outdoor blast! We’ll see you there.