In a recent blog post for Child and Nature Alliance of Canada, Petra Eperjesi, manager of National Programs at Forest School Canada, outdoor teacher and parent, describes her rediscovery of play as the language of children and as a therapeutic outlet, as she participates in her son's make-belief game involving a troll, the powerful FLASH,...
In a recent piece published in The Conversation, Dr. Lauren McNamara, Research Scientist with the Diversity Institute at Ryerson University, and Dr. Pasi Sahlberg, Professor of Education Policy at the University of New South Wales discuss the importance of preserving recess when schools reopen after the COVID-19 shut downs. Their piece in The Conversation follows from...
In a piece for the Centre for Active Living, Kassi Boyd, the Community Impact Coordinator at The Steadward Centre for Personal & Physical Achievement, and a 3rd year PhD student in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport and Recreation at the University of Alberta, and Dr. Jennifer Leo, Director of The Steadward Centre for Personal &...
On May 22nd, 2020, the Outdoor Council of Canada published a document for those leading outdoor activities entitled 'COVID-19 Principles and Practices for Led Outdoor Activity', to provide guidance on how to minimize the spread of COVID-19 while providing high quality Canadian Led Outdoor Activities. The aim of this document is to share experience, wisdom, leads...
On May 7th, 2020, Dr. Mariana Brussoni, on behalf of Outdoor Play Canada, presented on Play & Resiliency During COVID-19 as part of the World Urban Parks webinar. Check out her slides here: Play and Resiliency During COVID-19 Slide Deck and the full webinar here: https://vimeo.com/416066640 ...
Thank you to Alexander Wray, H.BES, MA-Candidate (Western University, Canada) for providing this post and photo. Canadian children and youth over the past decade have reported lower levels of physical activity than previous generations and are reporting a worrying decline in their overall mental wellbeing. These populations report spending less time outside than ever before, which...
Thank you to Michelle E.E. Bauer, PhD Candidate (Interdisciplinary Health Science, University of Ottawa), for providing this post. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect the physical and emotional wellbeing of Canadians across the country, conversations abound on how best to help families cope. Outdoor play, if done safely (only with household members and while adhering...
The 2020 Basecamp Conversations, hosted by the Canadian Outdoor Summit Leadership team, was a series of weekly conversations leading to the writing and publication of the ‘COVID-19 Principles and Emerging Practices for Led Outdoor Activities in Canada’ document. This document aimed to bring together those involved in outdoor led activities to share experience, wisdom, leads,...
Last week, Dr. Mariana Brussoni from the University of British Columbia spoke with Dr. Katherine Frohlich (University of Montreal) and Kate St-Arneault (PhD student, University of Montreal) about outdoor play during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the bilingual webcast, Dr. Brussoni, Dr. Frohlich, and Ms. St-Arneault discuss the consequences of physical distancing on their families' ability to...
The Child and Nature Alliance has published their first podcast in partnership with Evergreen Brickworks and the Trillium Foundation. This is the first of a series of podcasts that will focus on highlighting the Forest and Nature School pedagogy. In the podcast, host Stephanie Smith speaks with Gemma and Natalia, two youth play animators on their...
