June 2014 - Parks & Recreation - 39

C O N S E R VAT I O N

Connecting to Nature through
Watchable Wildlife
By Richard J. Dolesh

N

RPA members from more than 700 park and recreation agencies have
been engaged in an outstanding effort during the past year and half to
connect 10 million kids to nature (10 Million Kids Outdoors, www.
nrpa.org/10MillionKidsOutdoors). Collectively, in partnership with the National Wildlife Federation, we have made remarkable progress in reaching our
goal to meaningfully connect 10 million kids to nature and the outdoors in
three years. So, in the spirit of preaching a bit of the good news to the choir,
here are a few tips for all of us on how to effectively connect kids to nature
through wildlife - whether the kids are participants in your programs or afterschool activities or your own children and grandchildren. Wildlife watching is
one of the surefire ways to ignite a lifetime passion for nature in kids.
Kids find wildlife endlessly fascinating, but both program leaders
and parents may have a hard time
breaking through the daily barrage
of stimuli bombarding kids, whether
from TV, video games, text messages
or other distractions. If you can find
a few minutes to spend together just

taking a walk outside and observing
wildlife, you can cut through all the
clutter and provide a surprising and
rewarding bond with kids that you
might otherwise not ever establish.
If you are not an experienced outdoors person or have little training or
knowledge on how to find wildlife,

you might be hesitant to give this
a try - it can be daunting to think
you can take a group of kids out and
find wildlife on your own. But the rewards are well worth the effort. Kids
have an inherent fascination for wildlife if they are able to observe it on
their own terms and without undue
distractions. They find it endlessly
fascinating and will be willing to give
their time and attention to this pursuit, but you have to find it to make
the initial connection. Not to fear -
it is a whole lot easier and simpler
than you might think to find interesting wildlife in " nearby nature " if you
follow some simple tips:
Pick a park or natural setting that
has a diversified habitat. You certainly know your own parks, but you

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Parks & Recreation

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June 2014 - Parks & Recreation

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