A study of the experiences of children aged 7-11 taking part in mindful approaches in local nature reserves

Abstract

Evidence suggests that children are having fewer opportunities to visit ‘green spaces’ because of parental fears, restricted access to natural areas, and time spent on electronic devices (Bergen, 2017; Gleave & Cole-Hamilton, 2012; Hougie, 2010; Rivkin, 2015; Waller et al., 2017). Bergen (2017) emphasises how the the virtual world is replacing the natural world for play purposes, describing the situation as ‘technology-play-creep’ (p.55). It is argued that play is increasingly becoming pervasively home-based and sedentary (Bergen, 2017). Louv (2011) describes this situation as ‘protective house arrest’ (Louv, 2011, p. 269). The educational landscape in the UK reflects these concerns as each country has a statutory requirement for children to learn outdoors (Adams and Beauchamp, 2018). In the proposed new (national) curriculum for Wales, where this research took place, Health and Wellbeing are as one of the six compulsory ‘Areas of Learning and Experience’ (Donaldson, 2015) which all children will experience.