1,000 HOURS OUTSIDE
“Nature is a tool to get children to experience not just the wider world but themselves.” - Stephen Moss
Kail exploring the boundaries of what his then toddler body was capable of. We went hiking a few days ago and he tells me, “Mama, I’m a mountain goat.” He sure climbs like one!
There is a movement that a lot of homeschoolers are part of that I absolutely love! It is called 1,000 Hours Outside. The facebook group has 175K+ members. If you’re interested, there is an app to help you keep track.
Kail being in nature has always been super important to us. Tim and I grew up with lots of outdoor time. Nature is our greatest teacher. It holds the lessons for life’s deepest questions. We can study the metamorphosis of a butterfly. We can discover the lifecycle of a frog or a bird. We can plant a tiny seed, water it, and watch it grow into food we can put into our bodies.
We can observe the trees as they along with the moon illustrate the concept of cyclical change. We can learn about diverse ecosystems by immersing ourselves in a tide pool or a forest. We can look to the animals and their features to understand their habitats and food chains. We can take action to help protect them and their preserve their homes.
Nature engages every sense that is accessible to us. We can hear the songs of the birds and whispers of the wind. We can touch a 1,000 different textures in one day. We can witness the tallest redwood tree or the smallest roly-poly. We can taste the fruits, herbs, fungi, rain, and snow. We can smell the wild flowers, weather, and many of the textures that we lay our hands on. We can test our balance, take in views from heights most people only dream about, and watch stars shoot across the endless sky.
Star sweep photo I took on a camping trip in Joshua Tree many moons ago
Nature is full of mathematical concepts. It is rich with patterns and sequences. We can observe the Fibonacci sequence by examining pinecone scales, the composition of rose pedals, the seed spirals of a sunflower, or the arrangement of leaves on a stem. We can grasp fractal geometry as we examine a romensca or the symmetry or a snowflake.
Some really cool pinecone roses? That’s what we call them. We found them in Sonoma, CA. Anyone know what they are?
Being in nature improves focus. It reduces stress. Studies show it can increase sleep and immune function. Nature can actually make us happier and enhance our well being.
All that being said, I’m a wuss. I don’t like to be cold. I’m one of those people that is always cold. The heat can be set to 69 and I’m still sitting on a cushion so close to the fireplace that my back turns red through three layers of clothes.
I love being outside when it is nice. I love jumping in muddy puddles. The cold plus the rain like we get in the Bay Area (we moved here in April so it’ll be our first official winter) has me shivering just thinking about it. Going out in January like that will most certainly put my will power to the test.
Kail on his Woom 3 (I’ll blog about these bikes) on a ride with a view of the Golden Gate Bridge.
This 1,000 hours outside group has me feeling inspired. I intend for Kail to spend 1,000 hours outside in 2025. 500 of which I aim to spend with him. If you’ve been following my blog, you know I work 7 days on and 7 off. I know Kail and his Dad will get those hours in when I’m working. They are often out on eight mile bike rides, hiking trails, or fishing for hours at a time.
Sunset fishing
The 1000 hours outdoors group have a cute little argument going about whether time spent sleeping in a tent counts for hours or not. I think my rule of thumb will be that we will count any time where nature pees are a necessity. I’m hoping we do a lot of camping in 2025 to help rack up some of those hours.
I love the saying, “there is no bad weather only inappropriate clothing” now if I can just let that ring true. Here’s to 2025 outside! What are your favorite ways to keep extra warm? Drop a comment if you’ll join us in 2025 for 1,000 hours outside!
It’s all learning!