Why Kids Need To Discover Their Spirit Of Adventure
We are driven to seek out excitement and adventure; the buzz of experiences that enchant our souls and the captivating joy of reliving them through sharing and retelling.
In particular, children need to feel a sense of adventure as they play. Adventurous play leaves children in control, naturally making decisions based on their evaluation of the situation and the risk they want to be exposed to, socially, physically and emotionally.
By making these choices at a personal level, they become more confident and figure out how to maintain their safety by trying out their physical abilities.
However, in current times, children are growing up in risk-averse communities. We guardians can be overprotective with our children by constantly cautioning them to avoid all risks, or the absence of adventure play areas and access to outdoor venues where kids can let go and have fun. Instead, children get their thrill by participating in online games or the strapped, tightly secured, adrenaline-inducing rides in theme parks.
Encourage your children (and yourselves) to adventure more.
Reduce screen time
Linda Blair, the author of The Happy Child: Everything you need to know to raise enthusiastic, confident children, a Telegraph writer, and clinical psychologist advocates for ‘face out’ instead of ‘face down’.
She says today’s kids are always involved in two-dimensional play with their screens hence there is a need to stimulate their spatial abilities and three-dimensional play and set screen-free time when all devices are off-limits.
Meet friends in the playground (or allow them to arrange something spontaneous with their friends if they’re old enough to do it without supervision), go for a hike, set out camping, try wild swimming or visit a new place.A suggestion is to check out wild wood adventure for creativity and spontaneous exploring.
Be a good role model.
This may sound cliche, but it works. Younger kids desire to go out on adventures with you, whether it is finding bugs by turning over stones and logs, sightseeing rock pools or hiking through steep hills since, well, isn’t it enjoyable? You aim to encourage awe, excitement and the spirit of adventure.
With teenagers and older kids, narrate them stories of ordeals you got into as a kid and how you navigated them and discuss the ways they would act in certain situations if they got lost or had an accident. This isn’t scaring your kids, it is about dealing with the realities of life. Spur them to adventure on their initiative.
Engage in a unique activity today.
Linda Blair outlines that treasure hunts are a lot of fun for children. Kids like them because they test their physical capabilities accompanied by the joyous endorphin release as well as their mental skills and teamwork.
If you swim at one swimming pool always, change to an outdoor one or better still go for a swim in the wild. If you always take a stroll in the same park, visit a new play area that has better equipment.
Linda suggests that you pose this question to your kids. What new activity shall we do this time? This is referred to as a forced-choice decision – provide options, but doing nothing is not one of them. Children are under enormous pressure in learning environments that we need to provide them with avenues to do adventurous things just for the thrill, not for some set objective but to stimulate their minds.
One mum says that she places several pieces of paper with various ideas before the summer season and takes one out at the beginning of each day of the holiday. There are those ideas that will be impractical and hence cast aside, but this means that your dull routine is refreshed by doing new and different things each day.
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