Happy National Get Outdoors Day!

Saturday, June 9^th is National Get Outdoors Day, the cherry atop Great Outdoors Month and another great opportunity to move toward getting millions of new kids outdoors on a regular basis and connected to nature.

Why is this important? As you probably know if you’ve browsed this blog before, more and more kids are giving up on regular outdoor play, favoring TV or video games instead. In fact, American kids now spend less time outdoors than any generation in modern history. Not only does this affect kids’ physical, mental and emotional wellbeing, but it greatly reduces appreciation of nature, and therefore thins the ranks of future conservationists.

Get Outdoors Day helps fight this trend by offering kids the opportunity to try activities like fishing, geocaching and camping, and learn about subjects like sustainability, health and nutrition (the event supports First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move Outside campaign to eliminate childhood obesity within one generation).

To see all 130 locations hosting National Get Outdoors Day activities and find out whether there is a site near you, click here. You can also get involved by volunteering or hosting a National Get Outdoors Day event.

Every Day Can Be ‘Get Outdoors Day’

NWF has developed a few handy tools to help families fit nature into their lives and make any day ‘Get Outdoors Day’:

• The Great American Backyard Campout on June 23^rd brings together thousands of families for a night of exploration and fun at sites across the country. Sign up today! When you participate, you can support NWF’s programs to get kids outdoors as part of our Be Out There campaign.
• NatureFind helps you find local nature sites and events by zip code, city or state, including directions and visitor ratings.  It offers immediate information on 10,000 beautiful outdoor locales, and 50,000 events and organized activities.

• Our free parent guide to outdoor play, everyday provides information, tips and activities to help busy parents, kids and families overcome many top obstacles to outdoor play.
• Find a new outdoor activity in our Activity Finder database. Crafts, games, recipes and more. You can search by keyword, your child’s age, or level of difficulty. Every activity is designed for the outdoors or has a wildlife twist.

If you would like to learn more about NWF’s programs that help parents provide outdoor opportunities for children, visit our Be Out There ™ website.

Enjoy National Get Outdoors Day!