605 - Tips for Parents to Get Their Kids Outdoors this Summer

**SPEAKER_1** (0:01)
Welcome to Modern Mindset, the show that picks the brains of the world's leading minds to help you unlock yours. Decoding the beliefs and strategies of global experts to give you an updated mindset to make the most of modern life.

**Rory McGowan** (0:21)
This is Modern Mindset, the show that picks the brains of the world's leading minds to help you unlock yours. My name is Rory McGowan, and as the summer holidays continue on, how often are your children getting outdoors? Well, I'm sitting down with an expert on children's play today to talk about how some parents even feel ashamed at how little their children go outside, and how do we encourage our children to kind of balance their time on screens with their time outdoors with their friends.
To talk more about this, I'm joined by Frederike Berens from the child outdoor play company, Wiki, who has done some brand new research on this. Frederike, it's lovely to have you on.

**Frederike Berens** (1:00)
Thanks for having me.

**Rory McGowan** (1:02)
No problem.
You are an expert in children's play and the kind of infrastructure that that requires. Can you talk a little bit about the research that you guys have done around children's play and how parents are feeling about the balance between screens and getting outdoors?

**Frederike Berens** (1:19)
Yes. So at Wiki, we have conducted the research to learn more about parents' view on the play behavior of their children and what kids nowadays are capable of. For example, more people think that a five-year-old can easily use a tablet or a smartphone than tie their shoelaces that came out of the research. Or you already mentioned it in your intro that 50% of the parents say their children don't play as much outside as they wished, while even 28% would state that they are ashamed of how the kids play outside. But also to mention, there's absolutely no need to be ashamed of that, because times have changed. I think this feeling can also come because of their own memories, because from other surveys we learned, or we asked parents about their favorite childhood memories, and every single one was connected to playing outdoors. Many parents remember being told to come home when the streetlights went on, or when dinner is ready, after running the whole day through the neighborhood.
And today, those times have changed. Children simply don't have always the opportunities to play outdoors, like their parents' generation did. There are so much more things, especially related to screens, entertainment, available nowadays than it was earlier. So, yeah, those times definitely changed, and this is also where our mission starts.

**Rory McGowan** (2:45)
I think it's a really good point that you raised there. I think it's important for parents not to feel ashamed. You mentioned around half of them do, and I think that is a lot of them being very hard on themselves, because there's no manual for parenting. No matter how many books they write about being a mom or being a dad, it's something that you learn as you go. And as you say, there is a lot more entertainment out there for kids these days compared to parents when they were growing up.
How do parents then get over that feeling? How can we make sure that parents who may feel ashamed or who want their kids to potentially spend more time outdoors don't end up feeling like that's a shame or regret that you mentioned?

**Frederike Berens** (3:27)
I think important is also to accept a period of boredom, because I think today's kids grow up in a world where entertainment is always available on a touch of a button. And this makes it easy to consume experience instead of creating it.
As a result, the boredom is seen as something to avoid. But also research shows that moments of boredom are actually valuable. Because when children aren't entertained, the more likely they are to invent games, create stories or solve problems. So for example, a climbing frame or playhouse in the garden doesn't provide entertainment, but can be the center of their childhood, a place where kids learn to be brave, creative and independent.
Parents can also think of their own childhood. Like what did they love to do outside when you were young? Show your kids around the garden, maybe show them your favorite childhood spot when you still live close by, or even when the kids are bored. Let them explore. There are so many things to learn and find out in the garden or in the nature in general. New materials or smells, spot animals, let them create little challenges or games. There's so much out there that they can learn.