Nature Explorers!

Recently our services Dominic, Illara, Ravenswood and Milpara have posted on Facebook about their outdoor adventures. Milpara, Illara and Dominic visit their Bush Camps every week, with many services utlising the natural environments in their local areas like beaches and park land regularly. There's a wonderful Norwegian saying – “Det finnes ikke dårlig vær, bare dårlig klær!” which translates to “There is no bad weather, only bad clothes!". Ravenswood showed us this just recently when their outdoor space was covered in snow and the children spent as much time as they could playing in it before it melted!

Our services have a particular emphasis on nature play. The benefits of playing in nature are almost infinite. Spending time in nature keeps children’s minds fresh, and exposes them to varying situations and challenges that develop their resilience and encourages them to adapt their approach to achieve goals. For instance, playing on uneven heights, conditions and surfaces helps children to hone their coordination and balancing skills.

Discovery services promote nature play through our extensive natural outdoor environments and excursions to local bush land, nature reserves and our local beaches. Our yards are designed to allow children to take risks, jump off rocks, roll down grassy hills, climb tress, build with sticks and play without restrictions. Nature play brings out the best in children; it allows them to become risk assessors, develop social skills such as collaboration, improve focus, concentration, self confidence and reduces their stress.

Nature play builds resilience, self-confidence, initiative, creativity and promotes healthy, happy minds. It encourages the joy of movement; it nurtures wild imaginations, experimentation, friendships, social connections and behaviour. Nature play fosters children's innate connection to and appreciation of the natural environment and significantly improves all aspects of child development – physical, cognitive, social and emotional.