Why outdoor education for kids matters

I'm always surprised when I hear about how little time kids spend outside. One study found children are spending less than half the amount of time outdoors than they did just 20 years ago.Meanwhile, research found that kids spend an average of seven hours a day using electronic media.

My own childhood was filled with outdoor time. At home I helped my grandma in the garden. On my own, I rode my bike with friends,went ice skating in the winter and climbed trees and rocks. I also attended a public school in New York's Hudson Valley, and we spent almost all our gym and recess (休息) periods outside.Unless the weather was really, really bad, we were outdoors.

All that outside time isn't just about health and getting kids to exercise more. Several studies also have linked outside time to higher test scores, lower anxiety, more creativity and improved attention spans. Spending significant time outdoors before the age of 11 is linked to a higher pro-nature worldview. What's more, according to one study from Swansea University,the outside time is also good for teachers.

A public school in Quechee, Vermont, is taking these results seriously. Eliza Minnucci's kindergarten class there engages(从事) in Forest Mondays, during which the students spend the whole day in the woods. The idea behind it is to let kids learn lessons from the natural world. So what have the results been? Kids get creative when studying outside.Besides learning and moving around freely, the kids have fun while they're learning outside, which makes them excited about the next lesson.Shouldn't that be the goal of all education?

Considering all the good evidence that being outside is great for mind and body as well as test scores, it seems like this kind of education is a natural next step for teachers.

阅读检测

1. What does the author feel surprised about?

A. That kids feel interested in research.

B. That kids use electronic media outside.

C. That kids spend too much time indoors.

D. That kids tend to be active outdoors.

2. What can we conclude from the author's own story?

A. Kids tended to have a rich after-class life.

B. Kids used to spend a lot of time outdoors.

C. Kids often spent much time working out.

D. Kids were more interested in public schools.

3. What is the third paragraph mainly about?

A. Advantages of outside time.

B. Studies on outdoor activities.

C. Tips on spending outside time.

D. Effects of outside time on teachers.

4. What should be the goal of education?

A. Allowing children to study freely.

B. Developing creativity in children.

C. Making kids have fun in learning.

D. Making kids smarter and healthier.

语言学习

难句分析

Besides learning and moving around freely,the kids have fun while they're learning outside,which makes them excited about the next lesson.在户外学习时，孩子们除了能自主学习和自由活动，还玩得很开心，这让他们对下一节课充满了期待。

该句为主从复合句。句中while引导时间状语从句，which引导非限制性定语从句，指代前面句子的内容。