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Below and on the left, find links to the three “phases” of Our Backyard development:
Click through and pick and choose the elements and approaches that fit your site, your budget and
your dreams!
 Tip: Keep your local, state and museum codes, regulations and guidelines in mind throughout the development of your outdoor space.
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The Value of Outdoor Play
Did you Know?…
- Play in outdoor environments stimulates all aspects of children development more readily than indoor environments.
- Exposure to natural environments improves children’s cognitive development by improving their awareness, reasoning and observational skills.
- Children who play regularly in natural environments show more advanced motor fitness, including coordination, balance and agility, and they are sick less often.
- When children play in natural environments, their play is more diverse with imaginative and creative play that fosters language and collaborative skills.
- Play in diverse natural environment reduces or eliminates bullying.
- Nature helps children develop powers of observation and creativity and instills a sense of peace and being at one with the world.
- Children who play in nature have more positive feelings about each other.
- Early experiences with the natural world have been positively linked with the development of imagination and the sense of wonder. Wonder is an important motivator for life-long learning.
- Natural environments stimulate social interaction between children.
- Outdoor environments are important to children’s development of independence and autonomy.
- Children with symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are better able to concentrate after contact with nature.
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