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Summer Series: Getting Outdoors: Intentionality, Art, & Cues
35 Plays13 days ago
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Join the hosts of On the Ground Parenting, Sandy Inkster, Samantha Ennest-Wallis, and Kelly Armstrong, as they discuss the benefits of getting outside with your family. The hosts share research that suggests just two hours of outdoor time a week can reduce anxiety and lower blood pressure.
We talk practical strategies for getting outdoors, suggesting taking indoor activities like art outside. We share fun ideas, from watercolour painting and using natural materials for art projects to leaving "little mini kits" in a backpack for spontaneous activities. A key theme is the balance between encouraging kids to try new things and respecting their comfort level, using personal anecdotes about a ropes course and canoe dumping to illustrate this delicate dance. The episode concludes with a reminder to be open to trying things outdoors without judging the outcome and to be attentive to both your child's and your own emotional cues.
In This Episode:
[01:25] Benefits of Being Outdoors
[03:12] Research on Outdoor Time for Kids
[05:01] Taking Indoor Activities Outside
[09:40] Planning and Preparedness
[14:44] The Dance of Pushing & Backing Off
[17:51] Learning Limits: Ropes Courses & Canoes
[19:01] Final Takeaways: Noticing Cues
Red Juice Studio: redjuicestudio.com/
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Transcript
Introduction: Hosts & Topic Overview
00:00:24
Speaker
Well, hello everyone and welcome back to our podcast, On the Ground Parenting, bringing you in from your home to ours. Our house is that little blue house in the logo, Muskoka Family Focus.
00:00:36
Speaker
I'm Sandy Inkster and I'm pleased to be with you again and I'm joined by Sam Ennest- Wallis and Kelly
Summertime Schedules & Family Fun
00:00:44
Speaker
Armstrong. And we started talking about summertime.
00:00:49
Speaker
ah Those of you who have children are in school. You may have children at home. they You may have another another schedule happening right now. They might be at camps or visiting grandparents.
00:00:59
Speaker
There's a whole lot of difference happening right now. And we have some ideas about how you can make that time together maybe more fun, maybe more adventurous, and definitely appealing for everyone.
Benefits of Outdoor Activities for Kids
00:01:14
Speaker
So we were talking about getting outside, the outdoors. And before we dive into, you know, is there scientific evidence about why this is so great?
00:01:25
Speaker
Sam, what have you noticed in your family? What makes getting outdoors different or beneficial for your family? I think that when people are getting some more fresh air and sunshine, sleep patterns are better in my house.
00:01:39
Speaker
which has been an ongoing issue. We've talked a little bit before about the neurodivergence that happens here. So sleep is definitely something that is an issue here. And the more vitamin D people are soaking in and the more fresh air they're inhaling, the better we're sleeping at night.
00:01:53
Speaker
Thanks a lot. it Kelly, what's happening in your home? Well, sleep's not generally been our issue. I think partially because my kids are readers and they just go to sleep whenever they're done reading. So that doesn't fill our days as much as as it could.
00:02:07
Speaker
What I've really noticed is moods. There's a lot of personalities. There's a lots of moods. And so when we have enough outdoor time, there's an ease, there's a tolerance, there's a patience, there's a goodwill that is not always present when we have been in a small space, cooped indoors in each other's spaces for too long of a time.
00:02:31
Speaker
Yeah, I think I've noticed some of the same outcomes as both of you. When my kids were young, it was almost like it became their domain more, like the outdoors. It wasn't so much that, you know, we were inside and there were ways of being like maybe rules of you know, can't kick the soccer ball in the house type of thing.
00:02:53
Speaker
So outside, it was a lot different. And um just by being outside, I know that they did sleep differently, they slept better.
Recommended Outdoor Time for Children
00:03:01
Speaker
So all that aside, what about any sort of research that you've heard that you've read Do you have a a podcast that you follow about the importance of kids getting outdoors or have you read something?
00:03:12
Speaker
Kelly, what comes to mind for you? Well, I was just thinking about the Toronto Star article that was out. And I think the piece, you know, it cited lots of those things about being outdoors of lowering blood pressure and um reducing anxiety and making kids just feel better in general.
00:03:31
Speaker
What really struck me, though, is their recommendation was something as little as two hours a week. Like it was such a minimal recommendation, which makes me wonder and think about, are there kids that aren't getting those two hours a week?
00:03:46
Speaker
Yeah, could be. Definitely are. There definitely are, because in my house, in my very neurodivergent house, getting my youngest child outside, if it's slightly too hot, if there are a few too many bugs, if it might have been raining more than he would like, any little difference makes it very challenging to get him outside.
00:04:08
Speaker
So I think that, I mean, the research is certainly sound that we need at least that two hours outside, but There are certainly kids out there who aren't getting that time. It's a conscious effort here to get him to peek his little head out the door. So so the blood pressure, I have to say, when you mentioned that, Kelly, I thought, are we talking about kids' blood pressure or parents or?
00:04:30
Speaker
ah it's both. It's everyone's, right? It affects all of us. So, okay. So there' there's lots of evidence out there. You can dive into that and find that research, but let's talk about how we're going to get them outside.
Engaging Kids with Outdoor Art
00:04:45
Speaker
And when Kelly and Sam and I were talking earlier, we thought,
00:04:49
Speaker
You know, realistically, what we're talking about is getting outdoors and to get over that ah hurdle or that wondering of what are we going to do? What should we do?
00:05:01
Speaker
We came up with this idea that whatever you do inside, Take it outdoors. Take it outside. So what were some of the things that we explored, Kelly?
00:05:13
Speaker
Well, we talked a little bit about art. I think that's one of my favorites, a simple set of watercolors, ah not expensive, some watercolor paper. And it's funny how kids will spend time like painting those leaves or painting this when you're just away from the house.
00:05:32
Speaker
And part of our setup sometimes is I don't ask, do you want to go outside and paint watercolors? We sort of start with, do you want to go on a little adventure? And a little adventure can be,
00:05:43
Speaker
you know, 200 meters into the backyard. Oh, look, I happen to have some watercolors in my bag. Who wants to see if they can paint a leaf or what can you paint and look at? And it's, I'm always amazed at how long they will kind of sink into that space.
00:06:01
Speaker
And the invitation is always to like, look and observe and pay attention and whatever they create they create. On one particular occasion that my niece still talks about, they had a really lovely time painting on paper, and then they moved on to painting on their bodies.
00:06:19
Speaker
So they painted watercolor up their arms, on their legs, on their feet, made footprints on the rocks. It was one of those days where the folks I were with were willing to let things unfold.
00:06:32
Speaker
um And we're pretty flexible. So we still think about that day and laugh about it. And now that's the question. Can I paint on my bodies? And sometimes I say no. Yeah, we had those days here too. And it was a big cardboard refrigerator box that was opened up and my grandsons ended up being, yeah, bare naked with paint all over them.
00:06:54
Speaker
ah So that was our fun adventure. um And I was thinking too about how it doesn't always have to be paint. So with my kids, um it would just be maybe spray bottles with water when they're really young. And you just noticing the change from, ah dry, not wet, to being wet.
00:07:15
Speaker
And then you know what? It's warm, it dries, and they can start all over again. So it was like a continuous activity that was a ton of fun. And I think it's also important to remember that it's time, it's ageless, really.
00:07:28
Speaker
So we were in the car today driving my oldest son, who is 21, and he was talking about pottery. and clay and things you could do with that. And one of the things that he was talking about was the imprint that a different leaf would make on the clay. So I think it's important to remember when you're going outside to do these activities, it doesn't have to be just with littles. If you have bigger people in your life, invite the adults in your household to go outside and ah go on a little adventure with you as well. so And you can find clay in your environment too. If you're at the beach, there might be clay if you dig down there. So I think there's just some great ways to draw in that artistic...
00:08:03
Speaker
um ability in lots of different ways. I love that. And you're reminding me of, I went on a hike on the East Coast and thinking about um natural materials that you can find anywhere. We found a heart that was all made out of red maple leaves that had turned with the color And it was a rainy day, so the deck that they were sitting on was rainy.
00:08:26
Speaker
The leaves were rainy, which just made them super bright and shiny. And it's made me think about how even plain old materials, you don't even necessarily have to take them home. Kids can arrange them in an art project or when we're at Lake Superior, we're going have a lot provincial park, you'll often see people arrange the rocks. They might make a word in it.
00:08:46
Speaker
They might make a design with it. And then folks just take a photo. So everything stays there. Nothing comes home, but you have these little art vignettes. and And even, you know, diving into things like the age of everyone. And so then it's sort of like if someone is four years old, for example, you'd find four leaves or someone is six years old, they would find six stones. And so kind of a variation of a scavenger hunt that can happen outside.
00:09:16
Speaker
And sometimes when we're talking about this, it might be that, you know, you, the listener, you're thinking, oh yeah, right. Sandy, right. Kelly. Okay, Sam, how about you come and organize it for me and my kids?
00:09:28
Speaker
Some people just aren't that spontaneous or or in the moment thinking about it. So we'd also talked about this too, about being intentional and planning.
00:09:40
Speaker
So Sam, how have you planned when something's coming up for you
Planning Outdoor Activities for Kids
00:09:45
Speaker
and your kids? But I think that thinking ahead to what might pique people's interest, one of the main things is I try to have a variety of ideas in my back pocket to pull out if the opportunity presents itself. So, um you know, it's pretty easy to, you can also paint with water and a stick, or you can draw it in the sand and create rivers or things like that. So just having some some ideas of
00:10:11
Speaker
A, what people in my life might like to do and B, how we can make that happen with very few supplies on hand. So just that little bit of awareness and um just thinking it through a little.
00:10:23
Speaker
Yeah, thinking it through, I think is great prep work for us parents. And it helps us in the moment to not panic or, you know, to lose it because kids need something to do And I, if I pull that something out of my back pocket, then that usually changes or helps the mood to shift.
00:10:45
Speaker
Absolutely. And I just think about, um like, I just have this vision when I'm thinking about this of being stuck with in a motel outside of Corner Brook, Newfoundland.
00:10:56
Speaker
The transmission went in the van. It was the rainiest week on the face of the rainiest of weeks. And all I can think was me playing under the little covered area with my kids because we were done being wet at that point.
00:11:09
Speaker
And I was bringing up all of the old games I used to play when I was a kid. So Red light, green light. What time is it, Mr. Wolf? Like, I'm sure people thought we were off our rocker cuckoo banana, but it was a wonderful little brief respite in a very stressful situation. So just call on those things that were fun for you when you were a child as well.
00:11:30
Speaker
Yeah. how How about you, Callie? What is your planning or your intentional practice look like being prepared? So I'm both good at being prepared and I really don't like to work really hard at being prepared. So I tend to do, i try to collect things in bags like a little squirrel.
00:11:48
Speaker
So I have my watercolors and some paper in a bag that I might tuck in my backpack and sometimes I use it and sometimes I don't. Sometimes depending on the age of the kids, I have a fire lighting kit that has both matches and I have a set of family members that like to just learn how to light matches. So that might be something we do for a half an hour with lots of water and we talk about safety, but they're so ah intent on getting it right and then holding it for just that second in order to be able to light a fire.
00:12:20
Speaker
i have almost like little mini kits that I leave in an old backpack that hangs by my door that when I'm going outside with kids, I can pick a few of those. I don't let the kids see it.
00:12:31
Speaker
And not that it's activity based. I also have like treats in that bag. For my canoe trip days, I used to always pack one giant chocolate bar that nobody else knew about.
00:12:43
Speaker
And on a day like Sam was having where it was raining and it's miserable and you're soaked to the bone and you wish you had never come outside, when somebody brings out chocolate, the day is just a little bit sunnier.
00:12:56
Speaker
Yeah, I remember i was a cub leader and we were at a cubbery and it was a big thunderstorm. and And so that's when I brought out the crackers that they would chew and then try and whistle, you know, mouthful of dry crackers and...
00:13:12
Speaker
And also the bubblegum blowing time, but these little things that, yeah, you just, you, you pack, you don't know if you're going to use it or if you're going to need it for anything, but it's there just in case.
00:13:24
Speaker
Sometimes that idea comes from, you know, something that has cropped up in my mind or something that I heard from someone else, or maybe I saw it online or, you know, somebody's social media um site that it was ah exciting and intriguing for me. So I wanted to make sure that I had it available.
00:13:41
Speaker
As a grandma now, i am with my grandson every week ah for a day. And I have two bags of stuff that come with me. And I change out the stuff, but there's some stuff that's regular.
00:13:56
Speaker
And so then he sometimes dives into the bag and... discovers what's interesting to him, or maybe I have an, I have a plan of something. And I think you mentioned the word invitation to earlier, Kelly, and I think that's key as well, how the invitation is to someone else. It's, it's not about telling them to do it. It's not making them do it. It's,
00:14:19
Speaker
You know, maybe you're just going to put out the items and not say too much about it. And then they'll discover it. Or, you know, maybe they will have their own kit, like you mentioned in the past, Kelly, that that they get to unwrap themselves and um or open or they pack it themselves and they get to dive into it whenever they want. So more autonomy with that as well, too.
00:14:44
Speaker
So we talk about being prepared and being intentional um and planning what we're going to do and having those things tucked away.
Encouraging Kids vs Respecting Limits
00:14:51
Speaker
And then there's also that part too is about being realistic. And so as a parent, it's almost like a dance, knowing when we're going to push them a little, knowing when we're going to back off a little bit.
00:15:03
Speaker
When has that happened for you? i mean, I think that is the dance of parenting is where's their learning edge? Where do we help them do stuff? I think, think as we get to know our own kids, it'll be different for different kids. And when you have more than one, as many of us do, or there's more you bring your nieces or nephews, so there's more personalities, it's always a little bit about balancing. I have nephews right now who love catching frogs and other folks that aren't so keen on frogs.
00:15:35
Speaker
And so it's this piece of maybe we take turns, this person gets to pick what we're going to go do for our the next half an hour, the next 15 minutes, hour morning. So sometimes there's choices around that. So one kid's in their element and the other kid is more being pulled in a direction that they might not have chosen.
00:15:58
Speaker
And then another time a different kid picks those things. There's a balance between two pushing them to be a little bit uncomfortable. And I think part of raising kids is it's okay for them to be uncomfortable, but also knowing when that uncomfortable is too much, when they're overwhelmed, when it's a lot.
00:16:18
Speaker
One of my kids' favorite activities with their ni with my nieces and nephews and their cousins on our camping trip is to practice dumping the canoe. And I'm happy with that because it means if it dumps by accident, they'll know what to do.
00:16:31
Speaker
Three of them are really keen. Two of them are right on their edge. And so we leave that activity totally up to the smaller one's choice. Do you want to participate? Do you want us to go slow? Do you want us to just watch?
00:16:45
Speaker
Because forcing them to dump would be too much, I think, at this point. And I think that's important to follow up on that. For me as a parent, recognizing that what I may want that I might be forcing out of someone else that isn't within their comfort zone.
00:17:06
Speaker
So I really need to be attentive to the cues that are arising from, ah My children, the other children around me, even the other adults, this is social awareness really in action, is that we're we're noticing the cues of their comfort level. And even though as a parent, I may really, really, really want them to, you know, gain comfort at, you know, dumping a canoe in this moment, it might not be wisest for us to push it.
00:17:36
Speaker
I think that's such a ah keen observation about all relationships. Absolutely. ah And really, when you think about it, our children are are counting on us to support them and help them learn and grow. So we have to know where that edge is, definitely.
00:17:51
Speaker
And it brings to mind, this isnt ah this is just ah another, it actually, the story popped up in my social media feed as a memory. um and It was of doing a ropes course at Santa's Village. So my youngest, one year, he got, we waited in line. He waited in line the whole time and he talked to the people and then we left.
00:18:12
Speaker
And the next year, we waited in line the whole time. He let them put the harness on him. He walked up the stairs And then he bailed and he had to walk right back down the stairs. But then the third time he went to do it, he actually did the whole thing.
00:18:26
Speaker
And it was just this big, exciting adventure. Like it was such a huge celebration for us for so many reasons, because of his neurodivergence, having somebody touch him, wearing the uncomfortable harness, being up in the air, the different feeling of all the platforms. Like it just was this huge, huge win.
00:18:43
Speaker
But it was only because I didn't push him too hard the first or second time. I let him go to what his limit was and then back away when he needed to so that he could regroup and try again another time. So um it really is, it's so important to be aware of people's cues and what their limits are.
00:19:01
Speaker
I think that's a great way for us to sum up this um chat right now that we have when we're talking about getting our families outdoors, doing the activities, um whether it's art, science, or something like dumping a canoe or a ropes course, throughout all of that, we're going to be noticing what their comfort level is.
Nurturing Skills Without Pushing Limits
00:19:24
Speaker
So during this session, what sprouted out for you? For me, I think the last point is really the most poignant one, the helping people to, um increase their skill level without pushing them so far that they then retreat from the opportunity is something that really popped up for me. So providing opportunities for that to happen in a safe and as comfortable as possible environment.
00:19:49
Speaker
And I think for me, it's this truism that this permeates all relationships. And when I heard the word cue, I also remember saying to my kids, like, you need to watch my cues.
00:20:03
Speaker
I'm getting frustrated. You need to watch my cues. Do you want me to use my really grumpy voice? Like, I am tired too, and I am hot, and And learning to be in relationship, that although I have to be the responsible one and regulate my ah own emotions, it's also okay to tell my kids, we're in relationship together and I need a little bit of space or I need a little bit of respect for a second and let's work on this together. That cue piece really brought that back.
00:20:33
Speaker
Thank you so much. And what sprouted up for me is the idea that we're going to be so open to try something outdoors. that we're not going to um summarize or judge or determine the success that or the lack of success. that Just keep on. Keep on trying things outdoors.
00:20:56
Speaker
Same way with everything else. I didn't like to eat onions when I was a kid, and I grew to like onions as an adult, only because they kept being offered to me. So keep on offering to your family.
00:21:08
Speaker
Well, that's it for our chat this week on On the Ground Parenting.
Podcast Conclusion & Contact Info
00:21:12
Speaker
We look forward to seeing you every Wednesday. but I'm Sandy. I'm Sam. And I'm Kelly. See you next Wednesday.
00:21:21
Speaker
the Ground Parenting is a product of Muskoka Family Focus Parent Education Program.
00:21:37
Speaker
To ask a question of one of the hosts, make a suggestion, or learn how you can become an episode sponsor or just a donate, visit us at linktr.ee forward slash onthegroundparenting.
00:21:48
Speaker
This episode was produced, engineered, and published by Red Juice Studio. To learn more, visit redjuicestudio.com forward slash non-profits.