National Wildlife Week Set for March 15-21
National Wildlife Week (March 15-21), sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation, encourages kids to learn, explore, discover and imagine the world of green. The 2010 theme, Be Out There At Home, School and Play, will bring children and their families together in nature, get schools involved in going green, and will show kids how the outdoors can be a favorite play space.
The first National Wildlife Week observance took place more than 70 years ago when kids spent time climbing trees, skipping stones, and running barefoot in the grass. Today's average child spends only 4-7 minutes outside each day. Compare that to the astounding 7 hours and 38 minutes per day the average kid spends engaged with electronic media, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.
"We're raising a generation of indoor children who are missing out on the simple joys found in nature," said Rebecca Garland, executive director of NWF's Be Out There movement. "Our kids need to know why they call it the great outdoors."