While our civilisation is affected by a serious case of "alwayswantingmoritis" (producing more, buying more, amassing more wealth,) our home, our own living planet, the one which sustains all life, is being abused and neglected, people seem to forget that our life depends 100% on a very delicate balance which is jeopardized every single day. We all need to teach our children the importance of caring for our home, our planet, so the mistakes of our generation will hopefully be fixed and our planet will be on the road to recovery by next generation. It is easy to forget about the environment in our everyday life: working, going to school, shopping, homework....we don't even have time to stop and appreciate a sunrise, a sunset, a bird's song. Our dear little ones need to learn where they came from, how Nature allowed our survival since the dawn of times, how it provides us with essential supplies like air, water, food, how all species on earth are interconnected. 

How can you teach them to love Nature?

1. - Bring them to a spot where they can see animals in their natural environments, it can be as close as yur own backyard (squirrels, birds, ducks, fish)

2. - Take guided tours hosted by park rangers or other nature lovers, most of the time it is free and very educative.

3. - Show them the impact of man, the trash laying around, the rainbows of oil in the water, make a point to bring a bag to pick up trash, before it harms animal life.

4. _Show them the beauty of Nature you encounter in everyday life, the funny shapes of clouds, the pretty flowers,

5. - Start a collection of tree leaves, pretty stones, dried flowers, feathers, pictures of animals or insects.

6. - Get them a camera or binoculars to see and take pictures of the animals they encounter.

7. -Teach them how to respect Nature, to stay away from animals, not to try to capture, touch or own them, explain to them how privileged they are to be able to observe wildlife, undisturbed,  within its own habitat.

8. -Teach them to take only pictures and leave only footsteps.

9.  -Organize outdoors activities on a regular basis, camping, hicking...by spending time outdoors they will spontaneously learn how to enjoy Nature and how to resource themself with Nature's energy. They will learn that they can be entertained for entire days without needing technology or manufactured goods.

10. -At last you can resort to documentaries about Nature or the environment to get your children educated, even thought it will not replace the actual outdoor experience, it will allow them to learn and hopefully also make them feel like exploring Nature on their own.

 

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