Vitamin N Deficiency?
Why have a garden at NVS? Why continue to write grants seeking funds for an Outdoor Classroom and greenhouse? Why encourage every teacher in every discipline to use the garden for instruction?
Most busy parents don’t have the time to study the research on nature deprivation/nature enrichment, but let me say that over 300 studies have found, over and over, that daily contact with the natural world eases stress and hyperactivity, feeds focus, and offers children stimulation for curiosity that is too often deadened in today’s classrooms.
If you haven’t read Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods, read it, and you’ll understand. Then read The Nature Principle by Louv, providing ways families can share nature more even within the constraints of today’s techno/stress-heavy environment. And most recently he has published Vitamin N: The Essential Guide to a Nature-Rich Life, which includes 500 ideas for “connecting with the power and joy of the natural world right now.” His recent interview on NPR was riveting.
Let me borrow from Louv’s website to provide his “Ten Reasons Why Children and Adults Need Vitamin N:
1. The more high-tech our lives become, the more nature we need.
2. Humans are hard-wired to love and need exposure to the natural word.
3. We suffer when we withdraw from nature.
4. Nature brings our senses alive.
5. Individuals and businesses can become nature smart.
6. Nature heals.
7. Nature can reduce depressions and improve psychological well-being.
8. Nature builds community bonds.
9. Nature bonds families and friends.
10. The future is at stake.”
On Louv’s website you will find more explanation and resources. But here at NVS we are certain we need to promote fresh air, natural experiences, and environmental respect.
Charlotte G. Morgan, MEd, MFA
Head of School, New Vistas School
