1,000 Hours Outside.

I came across the 1,000 Hours Outside Challenge yesterday, and I'm intrigued! Essentially, this is a challenge to get our kids (and ourselves) outside for 1,000 hours over the course of a year--beginning October 6, 2013. My first thought was, "Yeah, we love to play outside; let's do it!" My next thought was, "Whoa, wait....1,000 hours in only 365 days?"
So why 1,000 hours? It might seem like a lot, but take into consideration that the average American kid watches 12,000 hours of television in year! The 1,000 hours outside challenge is meant to be just that: a challenge. The site suggests not only getting outside as often as possible, but to consciously replace other activities with time outside. One suggested activity to replace is preschool. I'm a firm believer that children should spend more time outside of classrooms--particularly at such young ages. A bit of math for you: The average time that a three or four year old child is in preschool is 6 hours/day for 3 days/week (18 hours/week). 18 hours/week times 52 weeks/year equals 936 hours/year. Add in a few extra hours for weekends, vacations, etc--and there you've easily got 1,000 hours in a year's time!
If you're interested in reading more about the 1,000 Hours Outside Challenge, you can check out their website at http://1000hoursoutside.com. Are you up for doing the 1,000 Hours Outside challenge with us?


"Whatever shape nature takes, it offers each child an older, larger world separate from parents. Unlike television, nature does not steal time; it amplifies it."
- The Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv