Touch a Butterfly, by April Pulley Sayre, is a delightful read. Its goal is to get families—kids included—outside and in touch with the natural world through gardening. But it is so much more than a guide. It’s a learning process, and the author shares her years of learning to give you a head start. Her pretense may be to teach you how to share the joys of nature with your children. But you, too, will be bitten by the bug!

Like any good garden—indeed, like nature itself—this book has many tangents. But they never lead the reader far astray, because each section is short and to the point. For example, a section about hummingbird flowers zips off to a description of bat flowers—and how a bat can be as great an addition to a garden as a hummingbird—and then zips right back to hummers.

Just when you think you’re getting a step-by-step how-to about a particular aspect of your garden, you’re presented with an activity idea. Each one sounds so fun and easy, you want to drop the book and go right outside and try it—or at least mark the place so you can go back to it when the kids are home and the time is right.

In the most unassuming and non-invasive way, the author freely credits other authors and resources and also references many wonderful, previously published books of her own. There’s no need to worry about losing track of such recommendations: Those and more can easily be found in a helpful, categorized list at the end of the book.

Splendid, colorful photos of backyard friends (animals, plants, and children) accent many of the pages and help bring the idea of a garden to life—even before getting your hands dirty. Seeing sunlight shining on small hands and expectant faces throughout the book constantly reminds you that kids and nature make a perfect pair. The photos also entice you with limitless ideas of what you might anticipate in your own garden.

And who wouldn’t be delighted by a story about a “pocket bird”—a tiny wren that built her nest and raised her chicks in a pair of overalls hanging on a clothesline? There may be more traditional ways of welcoming and nurturing wildlife in your backyard, but some—such as this one—are just more memorable. April shares numerous such personal asides in her book. They make you wonder what memories might be made in your own landscape.

April’s writing style is at once soothing and stimulating. For example, listen to her describe a garden as art: “It is a living kinetic sculpture,” she says. “Wind plays with trees, grasses, branches. Rain moves leaves and makes rocks shine. Thunder shakes it. Sun bakes it.” She sums up by saying, “Butterflies and birds are waiting for you. All you have to do is invite them.”

So, what are you waiting for?

Family Fun: Get Growing!

National Wildlife Federation is hosting a “Gardening as Family Time” webinar on Wednesday, May 29, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern. We’ll have lots of ideas for adding kid-friendly and fun elements to your garden. Register today.

You can also check out our 16 tips for wildlife gardening with kids>>

Older explorers aged 7–12 can subscribe to Ranger Rick’s Tree House, an app that invites kids to explore Ranger Rick’s tree house home, a place filled with intriguing rooms and all kinds of wildlife fun.

Still not convinced? Here are five great reasons to get your paws on these apps:

Left: Ranger Rick Jr. Appventures; Right: Ranger Rick’s Tree House

1. They’re on sale right now for Earth Day

This one’s a no brainer. Since Ranger Rick is Earth’s best friend, we’re celebrating his favorite holiday with a sale on his apps. Both Tree House and Appventures are 60% off all week long, from April 22–29. That means they’re $1.99 instead of $4.99! See, I told you, no brainer.

2. They teach kids about animals and nature

If your kids are fascinated by the animals on the pages of the magazines, they’ll love all the ways that animals come alive in our apps.

In Appventures: Lions, kids discover videos, photos, animation, and illustrated factoids as they wind their way through a tale about lions told by their friendly guides, Lars and Ricky. It’s impossible to get bored when there’s so much to explore. In the Tree House, the experience of reading a fascinating Ranger Rick adventure story gets even richer. Wildlife articles spring to life with eye-popping photos, clickable facts, funny animations, wildlife sounds, and more.

A scene from the interactive photo story in Appventures: Lions

3. They encourage kids to get outside

Kids can open the back door of the Tree House to find ideas for nature crafts and outdoor activities. They can even log the time they spend outside in their own backyards. And Appventures will get kids so excited about wildlife that they’ll want to embark on a safari in their own backyard!

The backyard in Ranger Rick’s Tree House app

4. They’re winning raves

Appventures was named one of the top 10 kids’ apps of 2012 by Entertainment Weekly and earned a silver medal from the Parents’ Choice Foundation. Bloggers like Geeks with Juniors love the fun and innovative way that Appventures presents educational content and teaches kids about nature.

Parents’ Choice named Tree House a recommended mobile app, and the bloggers at Dandelion Moms said “no other digital children’s magazine is more innovative, interactive, or just plain fun!”

5. They’re FUN!

Do you want to compose a tune with the soothing sounds of a lion roaring and an elephant trumpeting? Or create an animal with a cheetah’s tail, zebra’s body, and giraffe’s neck and head? The answer is yes, of course, and with Appventures you can do that and have a lot of other silly animal fun. You can even go on a photo safari: pick up the iPad and move it all around to snap shots of all the lions in the pride.

For more of a challenge, stop into the Tree House and play games like Ribbit Rodeo, where you lasso up a tasty meal of bugs for a hungry frog, or Manta Mission, where you help Manta Ray race through underwater roadblocks to get to the Manta Party on time. You can also venture into the “bFunny” room to laugh at comic gems like, “What do kangaroos eat for breakfast?” (Pouched eggs.)

Left: The “Make an Animal” game from Appventures; Right: “Ribbit Rodeo” game from Tree House

We’ve also teamed up with some great bloggers who are giving away download codes for the apps. Head over for your chance to win:

• Mommy Maestra
• Wee Share
• Babies Gotta Have It

Thanks to all the bloggers who have already reviewed our apps and hosted awesome giveaways!

• Momma D Jane
• Inspired by Savannah
• The IE Mommy
• 5 Minutes for Books
• Special Needs Orange County
• For Kids Entertainment
• Dandelion Moms
• iGameMom
• the iPhone mom
• Crafty Garden Mama
• Raising Them Green
• Curriculum Choice
• iHeartThisApp
• Geeks with Juniors
• BabyCenter
• NBC Latino

Visit a Local Park

Springtime is the perfect time to take your kids to the park for a little bit of fun in the sun. This Earth Day, visit a local park and use it as an opportunity to explore the outdoors and teach your kids about the wonderful world all around us. Take time during your visit to point out cool looking plants, flowers and birds. If you see something and don’t know what it is, snap a picture or jot down a description. When you get home, ask your kids to help you identify it.

Not sure where to go? Use National Wildlife Federation’s NatureFind tool to find parks, trails and other nature sites near you.

Plan an Outdoor Photo Scavenger Hunt

Whether you have an hour or an entire weekend, a scavenger hunt is an easy activity that doesn’t require a lot of planning. Simply put together a list of plants, animals other natural things in your backyard (or print this one), grab your camera or smartphone, and head outside. When you find the items on the list, snap a photo and check it off. This activity is a great way to explore your backyard, neighborhood, or any green space with your children. Here is a great guide to get you started.

When you finish, look through the photos with your kids, pick the best one, and enter it into our National Wildlife magazine photo contest! There is a special Youth category for ages 13-17. Younger kids can enter Ranger Rick’s Photo contest.

Find a Puddle. Jump in It.

Does your local Earth Day forecast call for rain? Don’t let wet weather keep you indoors. Grab your raincoats and boots and take your kids outside for some good old fashioned puddle jumping! Maybe even do a little singin’ in the rain to make the experience even more memorable. Take a moment to explain to your kids the importance of spring showers, both for growing flowers and giving birds in the backyard a puddle of their own to play in.

It’s good to remember that kids can have fun in any weather. In our latest parent guide, we show you how getting outside, no matter the weather, is beneficial to your family.

Teach Your Kids to Fish

Some of my fondest childhood memories are of days spent fishing at the local lake with my family. Catching fish was never really the point – we rarely caught anything and if we did, we tossed them back in. Instead, fishing trips were our escape from the craziness of everyday life. Nothing is more relaxing than tossing out a fishing line and reeling it in!

This Earth Day, grab a pole and head out to your local fishing hole with the kids in tow. New to fishing? It is easier than you think to get started. Check out this article for helpful tips to get your kids hooked on fishing.

Pledge to Be Out There

Earth Day is the perfect opportunity to take the pledge to Be Out There and help NWF reach our goal of getting 10 million American kids out of their indoor habitat and into the great outdoors.

Taking the pledge is a great first step toward improving your child’s overall health and happiness. Once you take the pledge, Be Out There will show you how easy it is to incorporate more outdoor play into your child’s life with helpful tips and ideas.

Finally, don’t forget to share the pledge with the other people in your life who you would like to Be Out There with!

The photographer’s grandson exploring the woods behind their North Carolina home. Photo by Em Sartor.

Did You Know?

• Trees provide a comfortable home for all sorts of animals and birds
• Trees offer us shade and protection from the elements
• Trees give us fruit and nuts to eat
• Trees are natural monkey bars for kids to climb on
• Trees help keep our air safe and clean

Now that you know a little more about trees, here are some Activi-trees to do in your own backyard or local park!

Poe-tree

Some wonderful words have been written about trees. Use your creativity to dream up the perfect ode.

What you need:

• Paper
• Pencil
• “The Giving Tree,” by Shel Silverstein, “Trees,” by Joyce Kilmer, “The Lorax,” by Dr. Seuss

 Steps:

1. Read a book with tree verse like the ones listed above.
2. Go outside and look at a tree for inspiration.
3. Brainstorm about what you think and feel about trees.
4. Write your ideas down in a poem—it doesn’t have to rhyme!
5. Ask mom or dad to type it for you, if you want.
6. Invite your friends to a Poe-tree Reading!

Adopt-a-Tree

Make nature your own by getting up close and personal with one special tree!

Susan Koomar

What you need:

• A small notebook
• Pencil
• A tree in your backyard or local park

 Steps:

1. Ask your mom or dad for a small notebook.
2. Find a favorite tree.
3. Visit the tree in each season to watch its progress.
4. On each visit note how the tree changes, and sketch a picture.
5. Introduce friends to “your” tree and see what they observe!

Tree-rific Picnic

Trees give us so many delicious foods. Create a tree-theme picnic and you’ll have it made in the shade.

What you need:

• A tree in your backyard or a local park
• A picnic blanket
• A picnic basket, backpack or tote bag
• Tree foods such as apples, pears, almonds, and olives

 Steps:

1. Research what kinds of foods grow on trees.
2. Ask mom or dad to help you pack a tree-theme picnic.
3. Bring your picnic to a shady spot under a tree and enjoy your snack!

Plant a Tree

Spring and Fall are the best times to plant a tree. NWF wants to plant 75,000 trees this year and you can help. Visit Trees for Wildlife and order tree kits or get step by step instructions on how to plant and care for a tree. It’s as easy as one, two, tree!

Trees are pretty special, so why not find one to play with today? Whether you swing from a tree tire swing, watch birds make a nest, climb up a tree or just give one a hug, it’s good for you to Be Out There and tree-mendously entertaining!

Celebrating trees are just a few of the ways to help NWF get 10 million kids outside by 2015. Learn more about why you should Be Out There at nwf.org/beoutthere. Learn more about trees and download an awesome tree poster at nwf.org/wildlifeweek.

Five decades of Ranger Rick covers. From left: Jan. 1967, April 1975, April 1986, Sept. 1995 and July 2000. See more Ranger Rick covers on Facebook.

Ranger Rick Today

The beloved print version of Ranger Rick magazine continues to provide kids ages 7–12 with a fascinating read and page after page of world-class wildlife photos! The magazine was recently awarded the Parents’ Choice Foundation gold medal for the eighth time.

Ranger Rick is published 10 times a year for an annual subscription price of $15.

In 2012, the Ranger Rick brand introduced two more great magazines, enabling us to inspire many more children with a lifelong appreciation for wildlife, nature, and the joy of spending time outside!

Ranger Rick Jr. Magazine

Joining the Ranger Rick family was Ranger Rick Jr., a print magazine specially designed for 4- to 7-year-olds. The magazine uses dazzling wildlife photos and simple, easy-to-follow text to introduce young children to the amazing world of animals. A brand new character, Ricky Raccoon, guides children through the pages of Ranger Rick Jr., helping them to think further about what they learn and observe. Ricky also has his own app called Ranger Rick Jr.’s Appventures—Lions.

Ranger Rick Jr. is published 10 times a year for an annual subscription price of $15. And Appventures—Lions sells for $4.99 in the App Store.

Ranger Rick’s Tree House

The Ranger Rick’s Tree House app

Picture an electronic version of Ranger Rick’s tree-house home. Inside are rooms packed with animal videos, comic adventures, multi-level games, and goofy jokes—as well as awesome wildlife articles, photos, and animations.

Ranger Rick’s Tree House is sold through the App Store. Subscribers receive 5 issues per year, plus monthly Bonus Updates for an annual price of $19.95.

Were You a Ranger Rick Kid?

If so, we’d like to hear about how Ranger Rick influenced you! Tell us your story in the comments below!

Guest post by Kimblerly Burger Capozzi

As kids spend more time with their electronic gadgets and less time playing outside, the gadgets themselves may seem like the problem. But did you know that those blinking screens can actually help get children excited about being outside? Just about any device offers capabilities that can be used to enjoy outside adventures in new and fun ways.

Plan an outing

Kids already know how to find fighting-bird game apps and silly photos online. But digital media can also bring them engaging learning tools–like map-making programs used by professional biologists, easy-to-use video editing, and digital field guides. “Children need adults to guide them toward those uses,” says Kara Dawson, professor of educational technology at the University of Florida.

“We have kids that are growing up with technology, but not growing up learning how to learn with technology,” Dawson says. “Just like you teach them to do anything else, you have to reach them how to learn with the technology.”

Why not combine this with teaching your family to appreciate the outdoors? Plan a camping trip using apps for campground listings, or go online to NWF’s NatureFind to reasearch parks and outdoor facilities. Interested in caving? Type it into a search engine and together pick out credible websites and blogs. Ahead of your trip, search out ideas for campsite activities and games at NWF’s Activity Finder and go “app shopping” for knot tying videos, a compass app, or digital field guides to help identify animal tracks.

Take along your screen

Parents have to decide how to limit their family’s screen time. But the outdoors doesn’t always have to be a “no electronics” place. At the Fern Hollow Nature Center in Sewickley, PA, a naturalist leading winter evening “owl prowl” takes along an iPad connected to small speakers. It plays recordings of owl calls from the Audobon Owls app (caution: avoid calling birds during nesting and mating. Learn more about responsible birding here).

Tech-savvy children are at first drawn to the iPad. But soon they are scanning the night woods and listening for the owls to reply. And once they hear a screech owl’s whinny, not even a screen can get kids to peel their eyes away from the sky.

April Claus, Director of Environmental Education at Fern Hollow, said tools like video clips and user friendly map-making applications can help children engage more deeply with nature. “You can talk about something like the Emerald Ash Borer,” (an invasive insect causing extensive ash tree damage in many states) “but you show them a quick 30-second video, and it makes nature come alive,” Clause says. “They see for themselves.”

Digital media offers plenty of opportunities to keep kids moving outdoors, too, like navigation apps and digital trail maps. Download a heart monitor app to a smart phone and measure how a game of tag gets the heart pumping.

Record your adventure

Among the best digital choices for children are applications that allow them to be creative and produce their own multi-media projects, says Dawson. She suggests children take pictures of what they find interesting in nature. The cameras on phones and hand-help games can be used in this way. With online programs or movie-making software, they can set their pictures to music as a slideshow or video.

Try documenting your family’s wildlife observations on WildObs. It’s an app that allows you to create your own database and also contribute data to NWF’s Wildlife Watch project. An ongoing nature journal project can help keep your family looking forward to the next day outside. One thing about mobile technology, you can use it to record nature wherever you find it.

Kimberly Burger Capozzi is a mom and freelance writer based outside Pittsburgh, PA. She has written about parenting issues, wind power and military spending programs, and chronicles her family’s efforts to cook wholesome meals at www.chefzi.blogspot.com. 

The Parents’ Choice Awards is the nation’s oldest nonprofit program created to recognize quality children’s media. In addition to magazines, Parents’ Choice honors the best children’s books, toys, music, apps, TV shows and more. We’re thrilled that our publications have won the top honor from this internationally respected program.

Rave Reviews for Our Magazines

This is the eighth gold medal for Ranger Rick. In their review, Parents’ Choice said that “with its beautiful photography, interesting animal facts, and appropriate stories, this quality magazine could make any child a fan of the great outdoors.” Our primary goal in producing Ranger Rick is to get kids interested in wildlife and nature, so it’s great to hear that we’re doing just that.

Ranger Rick Jr. (formerly Big Backyard) just launched in December/January 2013 and has already been honored with a Parents’ Choice gold medal. The reviewer praised the magazine’s “incredible photography and complementary graphic layout” and noted that children often read an issue multiple times, absorbing more and more details every time they pick it up.

Commitment to Quality

We recently took a big leap into the digital realm with two new products: Ranger Rick Jr. Appventures, an innovative wildlife app for ages 4–7, and Ranger Rick’s Tree House, an interactive digital magazine for ages 7–12. But we are still committed to creating high-quality print magazines that encourage curiosity and learning, and according to Parents’ Choice, we are accomplishing that goal. With their seal of approval, parents can feel even better about sharing these magazines with their children — and they might even learn something, too!

Subscribe to our award-winning magazines for $19.95/year.

Learn more about our new apps for kids.

I want apps with the following qualities:

• Appealing to my kids – They want to interact with it.
• Appropriate reading – The reading level works for a six-year-old and a nine-year-old.
• Good wildlife content – After they play, they have new information about wildlife.
• Inspirational – After they play, this app comes up in conversation. They build on the concepts they learned either in their art or creative play.

We tested apps on an iPad2.

Meet Nora and Russell

Their profiles might help you know which games would appeal to your kids.

Nora is nine. Nora enjoys playing outside. She knows every inch of the stream behind our house. She wants to be a marine biologist when she grows up. She has phone calls with her cousin where they exchange interesting fish facts. In Ranger Rick and Ranger Rick Jr. magazines, she wants to read the animal articles and jokes. Nora prefers apps where she learns about animals and creates a world for them to live in.

Russell is six. He does not go outside to play on his own steam, although once he is outside, he loves to climb trees and act out dramas with his sister and friends. In Ranger Rick and Ranger Rick Jr. magazines, he goes for the games and jokes.  Russell prefers apps that test his skill with the device, such as how fast can he move through a virtual world. He is a good reader for his age, but would rather explore a game through trial and error than by reading. He likes learning the rules and explaining them in detail to the rest of the family.

Even though they have different interests, they often like to look at apps together. So the best apps make sense to both their learning styles and reading levels.

Our Favorite Kid-Friendly Nature and Wildlife Apps

I searched for “best kids nature apps” and most apps I found did not teach about wildlife or nature. Most had a cute animal as the main character teaching how to read, do math or make art. While those are great goals, I was looking specifically for apps that increased my kids’ knowledge of wildlife and nature.

These apps reward you for learning facts about animals or nature. They usually require the ability to read.

These apps are listed in alphabetical order.

Click the Birdie – This is a National Wildlife Federation app where you take photos of birds in various habitats to fill out your scrapbook. I don’t feel I can rate this app because it was made by my family! I say my family because my husband coded the app, and kids tested it every step of the way. Of course we love this app, but check it out for yourself! The little girl in the Southwest habitat is named Nora in honor of our Nora. This app costs $0.99.

Click the Birdie app – “Nora” in the Southwest

Creatures of Light: Nature’s Bioluminescence – I thought my fish-loving daughter might enjoy this app, even though it is not particularly designed for children. It is about a exhibition that was at the American Museum of Natural History. My guess was correct. The subject matter caught her attention, and while slideshows or video of typical animals would not interest her, we are talking about species that glow in the dark! She also liked the video about how they made the models for the museum exhibit. This app is free.

Meet the Insects: Forest Edition – Did I mention how much my daughter loves bugs? This app looks quite formal and a bit like a text book, but I have a daughter whose favorite books are field guides, so she loved it. We joked that most of the videos show males fighting over females because hey, what else could you videotape about an insect’s life and keep audiences interested? We loved the style which is a mix of cartoon and realistic art. Nora commented more than once, “These are really nice pictures.” She made the insect videos more exciting by adding her own dialogue. Russell was not interested in this one. This app cost $3.99.

A sample screen from the app “Meet the Insects”

Nature Tap – You are shown four species. Then you hear a bird call and you guess which bird is making the sound. With the insect module, you are shown the name of an insect, and you have to guess which insect matches the name. My daughter loved this app and wanted me to buy a lot more modules. The bird module is free and the insect module is free if you register. Other modules cost $1.99 or $2.99 each.

A girl playing the app “Nature Tap” on her iPad

Ranger Rick’s Appventures – What I find with most kid-oriented apps is that they contain one game or one concept, and so the kids “get it” quickly. What’s different about Appventures (and Tree House, below) is that they are multi-layered apps. It takes time to find all the parts. So the first time they each visited these apps, they looked around quickly, played one game and left. But what I found was each time they opened this app, they discovered a new thing. My son’s favorite parts were the puzzle utility, where you can put together simple or complex puzzles made from animal photos. He also liked the game which was like Photo Safari where you look through a habitat for animals and take photos of them. You hold your iPad with two hands and tilt it to see all sorts of nooks and crannies in the lion’s habitat. I won’t spill the beans, but make sure you look up in the sky when playing this game. Nora’s experience was different because really this app is designed for children younger than her. But what I found was that she enjoyed this app when playing with her brother. She would make him laugh by acting out dramas on the Sticker page or adding color commentary to the music area (where the keyboard keys sound like a lion, elephant or baboon.) This app brought my kids together. This app costs $4.99. This app is made by National Wildlife Federation.

Ranger Rick’s Appventures app

Ranger Rick’s Treehouse - Nora liked the dolphin book where she could learn facts and get more wildlife jokes. She also liked the outdoor time journal in the backyard area, recording all her outdoor time with the goal of earning a badge. She liked that at the end of the leopard game, the leopard finds its kitten. My son liked the dolphin flip game, especially when it got up to the two and three dolphins at one time. For some reason, my son found the video of the “dancing wallabies” to be completely hilarious and proceeded to watch it about twenty times. There is a free version of the app as an intro. Then this app costs $4.99 for one issue or $19.99 for an annual subscription that sends new content quarterly.

Ranger Rick Treehouse app

Survival - There are a lot of apps called Survival, so when you are searching, look for the one with the icon of the orange frog. You answer quiz questions about animals in rapid succession. The longer you “survive,” i.e. answer correctly, the more photos of an endangered species you get to see at the end. It takes practice because the method of answering the questions changes from one question to the next. At first, it was too difficult for my son, but he liked the bright colors and competing against his dad to survive longer. My daughter struggled with the “pinch” feature which is one way of answering questions, but figured it out. You really learn a lot about wildlife facts with this app, and you learn to answer fast! This app is free.

Survival app – sample screen

Tick Bait’s Universe – I would not have guessed that my kids would enjoy this app because it seems like too simple of a concept. However, it was recommended by Warren Buckleitner who reviews children’s apps, so I downloaded the free version. The app starts with a dog named “Tick Bait” and you can zoom in on his skin or out to outerspace. In the free version, you get to zoom about 13 levels, and with the paid version, you get more levels. The graphics are all hand drawn, not photographs. My kids got really excited about this app, even though it required lots of reading. This app is free and the paid version costs $4.99.

Tick Bait’s Universe App

Weird But True – Not all the facts in this app are about wildlife or nature, but many are. You are shown one interesting fact after another, and you rate how weird you find the fact. One bummer about this app is that every time you start it, it shows you the same facts. It is free and made by National Geographic.

Weird But True app

Which Wildlife and Nature Apps Does Your Family Enjoy?

We’d love to hear about your experiences with these apps or others. Of course nothing connects children with nature and wildlife more than time outside, so be sure to balance your screen time and green time today.

Update on March 7:

Check out our next app review blog – Apps where you get to pretend to be animals or naturalists – LIVE like wildlife in these apps!

Gifford Photographic Collection (Courtesy of Oregon State University Archives)

Recess is Time to Decompress

I have distinct memories of two recess activities in particular, tether ball and playing/trading marbles. I was the tallest girl in my class, taller even than most of the boys, so I had a distinct advantage at tether ball and was proclaimed class champ. While marbles was traditionally a “boy thing” I collected with gusto, and could hardly wait to win more cat’s eyes in our raucous recess matches. My lucky steely shooter was a force to be reckoned with.

During those times on the playground, my mind was cleared of all academic thoughts and focused solely on the escape of free play. This meant when I returned to the classroom, hopefully with some new aggies in my pocket, I was ready to jump back into my lessons. I was mentally refreshed with a renewed perspective on the subject at hand. I was also physically rejuvenated, my body exercised and ready to sit quietly to learn.

Pediatricians Know Best

The AAP statement concluded that “recess is a crucial and necessary component of a child’s development.” This is consistent with research by neuroscientists who recommend “brain breaks” every 90 minutes in order to increase productivity. And yet almost 30 percent of elementary age children across the county are denied recess and forced to endure long stretches of academic drills without much-needed breaks.

Since the passage of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, more focus has been placed on test results and less on the well-being of students. Schools have adopted the concept of ‘drill and repeat” instead of recognizing that free time and recharging can enhance cognition and memory.

The assumption is that more time focused on test prep will help performance, but in fact, the opposite may be true. Today’s children are less physically fit, less able to concentrate, and less able to relate to others than previous generations. The effects are seen in the rise of childhood obesity, poor test scores, and negative classroom behavior.

Recess More Than Just Play

Recess provides children with free unstructured time to engage in physical activity that helps them develop healthy bodies and the enjoyment of movement. It also provides children the opportunity to practice life skills such as cooperation, taking turns, being a good sport, following rules, sharing, communications, negotiation, problem solving and conflict resolution. And along the way, they might win a few marbles.

Parents Can Help Bring Back Recess

Parents can play a particularly important role in helping their children to have more productive school time by allocating home time for outdoor activities in natural settings and by being strong advocates for schools to offer more safe outdoor time and experiences for their children, including recess time.

How You Can Help

• Do the Homework. Join NWF’s Eco-Schools USA program and use our recess policy audit tool to evaluate your school’s current policy.
• Talk in School. Bring together parents, teachers, and administrators to restore recess at your school and school district.
• Build on Models. Work with the school, district or state to adopt a model recess policy.
• Share with Others. Connect with other campaign leaders to exchange learning and tips.

Preserving America’s Wild Places for Our Children

By Donna Miller, Senior Design Director

In January of 1967 Trudy and Bob Farrand, former Curtis Publishing company executives, were asked by the National Wildlife Federation to start a new magazine for children. I was just finishing a degree in illustration at the Moore College of Art and was asked to interview for an art assistant position for the magazine, known then as Ranger Rick Nature Magazine. Three of us interviewed and I got the job.

I moved from my childhood home in the countryside outside Doylestown, Pennsylvania, to Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia and began my career in publishing. It is appropriate that I work on a nature magazine as my childhood home was on Swamp Road. There were no computers in those days, and the production of a magazine was a tedious process. My job was to hand-render, with felt markers, all the photographs and illustrations for each issue. I also helped cut and paste the type in place and aligned it with a T-square and angle. Believe it or not, I loved my job.

The environment movement was hot, and the magazine was well-established with 300,000 subscribers by the first Earth Day in 1970. It was about then that my employers moved me to what they felt was a more suitable job – working on a magazine for the Campfire Girls. That publication folded after two years, and I picked up a job designing a series of nature books for the National Wildlife Federation. After freelancing for a few years, including writing a children’s craft book entitled Egg Carton Critters, I was offered the position of Art Director of Ranger Rick.

I moved to the Nation’s Capitol and Dupont Circle and joined my old friend Ranger Rick once again at the headquarters of the National Wildlife Federation. For the past thirty years, a good portion of my life has been devoted to teaching children about wildlife and the environmental problems we face today. Through the use of beautiful photography and top quality design and illustration, I have tried to inspire and to give our young readers an appreciation of the natural world. It has been a very satisfying journey. Along the way I’ve learned so much that, to many people, I’m known as the raccoon, Ranger Rick. I’ve met and worked with many talented people, all of whom have helped make the magazine what it is today.

The production of the magazine is much easier today with the help of computers and digital presses, but our message and mission remain the same. The demands for open land and environmental problems caused by man continue to be a problem for wildlife and for all of us. We take our job of educating and inspiring generations to come quite seriously. They will inherit the remaining wild places in America and their values and actions will determine their future.

Whenever my husband and I travel to national parks and nature centers, we ask the young people working there if they read Ranger Rick as a child. Almost every answer is a warm, enthusiastic “YES!” It is very satisfying to know that in some way my years of work have helped inspire others to care about wildlife and the affect man has on our world. I hope Ranger Rick will continue for many more years and will be successful in getting America’s children out-of-doors again, away from TV and computers. Only then will they discover the peaceful, quiet gift only nature can bring.

Help us say “Thanks”

Do you have fond memories of Ranger Rick magazine, or do your kids love their subscriptions today? Join us in thanking Donna for her tireless efforts to spread the conservation message to America’s children by commenting below.

And of course, we know Donna would love for you to continue spreading the magic of Ranger Rick by sharing it with a special young person today. Learn more about subscribing to Ranger Rick and Ranger Rick Jr. >>