Persuasive and impassioned, though with some evidentiary gaps | Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our...

Excellent Book. . . Now Go Outside! | Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder | Richard Louv

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	• Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder Richard Louv Algonquin Books, 2008 - 390 pages average customer review:based on 76 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

it works

My wife and I played in the woods; we taught our kids to play in the woods; one is an environmental educator; one is an environmental biologist.

Persuasive and impassioned, though with some evidentiary gaps

Richard Louv, Last Child in the Woods
This book makes a convincing case that many of our children are suffering from a deficit of nature in their lives. He connects this nature deficit to a variety of modern plagues, including attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, stress, depression, anxiety disorders, and childhood obesity. The evidence tends to be more anecdotal than systematic or experimental, but the cumulation of such evidence becomes persuasive.

He attributes this deficit to many causes, including a loss of public spaces, the testing climate in public schools reducing recesses, the growth of organized youth activities at the expense of just messing around in vacant lots, parents' fears for safety, fears of litigation making cities reduce parks and playgrounds, electronic games and television, and various other ills. The causal links here are even more speculative but again, the story coheres well from an accumulation of circumstantial evidence.

Louv's solutions seem to address symptoms, not underlying causes. Many are wishful thinking - - with so many social and economic pressures taking our kids away from nature, we need a significant restructuring to get them back. I'm not sure how to do this, but this important book certainly does a good job raising the issues.

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Excellent Book. . . Now Go Outside!

Louv claims that children spend less and less time outdoors because of parental fears, electronic toys and a variety of other reasons. He explains what the implications are for children and adults: attention problems, disconnectedness with the world, lower productivity. Louv makes the case for why and how parents, teachers and others should help children connect with nature. I really liked the book overall, although I felt like some of the chapters could have been more concise. The second addition has an appendix with a concise practical list of things parents can do.

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Insightful, important book

I whole-heartedly recommend this important book. Richard Louv's book sparked a movement that had been simmering under the surface for some time -- with the rapid growth of technology in recent years, our children are spending less and less time outside.

I work with Green Hour, a campaign of the National Wildlife Federation, that aims to inspire parents to encourage their kids to turn off the computer, IPod and TV and GET OUTSIDE! Check out www.greenhour.org to find the tools you need as a parent to help fight nature deficit disorder.

Childhood obesity, ADHD, and basic developmental problems have been associated to this broken link with the outdoors.

The new edition is great -- there are ideas in the back for getting kids outdoors...

Anne Keisman
Green Hour

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Inspiring and enlightening

From the first chapter, this book has had a tangible impact on my life. I grew up in a rural area but now live in NYC and had sensed, but did not fully realize how important being in nature is for my physical, spiritual and mental health. This book has re-opened my senses to the truth that I am a part of nature and even though I live in a city, I have the obligation to care for the nature around me. I also work with children and am newly inspired to incorporate nature into all aspects of education.

The only critique I have is that at times it feels like Louv is repetitive, and the directives about what can be done are sometimes broad, but the overall effect has been to inspire me to get out and DO something about the problem.

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Richard Louv was the first to identify a phenomenon we all knew existed but couldn't quite articulate: nature-deficit disorder. His book Last Child in the Woods created a national conversation about the disconnection between children and nature, and his message has galvanized an international movement. Now, three years after its initial publication, we have reached a tipping point, with Leave No Child Inside initiatives adopted in at least 30 regions within 21 states, and in Canada, Holland, Australia, and Great Britain.

This new edition reflects the enormous changes that have taken place since the book?and this grassroots movement? were launched. It includes:
? 101 Things you can do to create change in your community, school, and family.
? Discussion points to inspire people of all ages to talk about the importance of nature in their lives.
? A new afterword by the author about the growing Leave No Child Inside movement.
? New and updated research confirming that direct exposure to nature is essential for the physical and emotional health of children and adults.

This is a book that will change the way you think about your future and the future of your children.

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