Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder
by: Richard Louv
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Product Description:
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.
Book Description:
“I like to play indoors better ’cause that’s where all the electrical outlets are,” reports a fourth grader. But it’s not only computers, television, and video games that are keeping kids inside. It’s also their parents’ fears of traffic, strangers, Lyme disease, and West Nile virus; their schools’ emphasis on more and more homework; their structured schedules; and their lack of access to natural areas. Local governments, neighborhood associations, and even organizations devoted to the outdoors are placing legal and regulatory constraints on many wild spaces, sometimes making natural play a crime.
As children’s connections to nature diminish and the social, psychological, and spiritual implications become apparent, new research shows that nature can offer powerful therapy for such maladies as depression, obesity, and attentiondeficit disorder. Environment-based education dramatically improves standardized test scores and grade-point averages and develops skills in problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making. Anecdotal evidence strongly suggests that childhood experiences in nature stimulate creativity.
In Last Child in the Woods, Louv talks with parents, children, teachers, scientists, religious leaders, child-development researchers, and environmentalists who recognize the threat and offer solutions. Louv shows us an alternative future, one in which parents help their kids experience the natural world more deeply—and find the joy of family connectedness in the process.
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.
Book Description:
“I like to play indoors better ’cause that’s where all the electrical outlets are,” reports a fourth grader. But it’s not only computers, television, and video games that are keeping kids inside. It’s also their parents’ fears of traffic, strangers, Lyme disease, and West Nile virus; their schools’ emphasis on more and more homework; their structured schedules; and their lack of access to natural areas. Local governments, neighborhood associations, and even organizations devoted to the outdoors are placing legal and regulatory constraints on many wild spaces, sometimes making natural play a crime.
As children’s connections to nature diminish and the social, psychological, and spiritual implications become apparent, new research shows that nature can offer powerful therapy for such maladies as depression, obesity, and attentiondeficit disorder. Environment-based education dramatically improves standardized test scores and grade-point averages and develops skills in problem solving, critical thinking, and decision making. Anecdotal evidence strongly suggests that childhood experiences in nature stimulate creativity.
In Last Child in the Woods, Louv talks with parents, children, teachers, scientists, religious leaders, child-development researchers, and environmentalists who recognize the threat and offer solutions. Louv shows us an alternative future, one in which parents help their kids experience the natural world more deeply—and find the joy of family connectedness in the process.
Alternate Versions:
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Browse for similar items by category:
- Books » Subjects » Health, Mind & Body » Psychology & Counseling » Adolescent Psychology
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- Strange Times We Live In
I think it's so weird that I rarely (if ever) see kids playing outside anymore. The research says they're all tucked safely inside, playing computer games, watching DVDs and TV. How safe is this, really? Louv addresses that question as he talks about what the lack of connection to nature, unstructured free play, and the damage this imbalance is creating, is doing to our kids today. This is such a good book you'll be sharing it, talking about it, writing the author, and making some changes in how ... Read More
Rating: - Last Child in the Woods
Awesome!A must read for the "Green Revolution" and as importantly for your "heart & soul"!!!
Rating: 
- Good book, good ideas
The book has excellent information and a an better message that I agree with wholeheartedly.The only problem is that it is written with fairly complex psychological information which is hard to follow at times.Otherwise, I liked the book.
Rating: 
- No One Knows How to Play Kick the Can Anymore....
Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv is a timely book that needed to be written.
The author's point is that kids today are facing a nature deficit and that affects childhood obesity and even the potential for the next generation to appreciate the breadth of nature enough to want to preserve it.After all, if the local mall has an arboretum and that's all you know as nature, that's all you'll expect.
The culprit is not news to anyone, nor to any parent with enough income ... Read More
Rating: - Exhausting but Interesting
While this book produced great topics of discussion among my book club, the author's pedantic tone made me want to whack my head against a wall. He is clearly dedicated to his mission, and the book shows an impressive amount of research, but gets bogged down with anecdotes. Plus, if you are a parent,chances are good you'll walk away feeling like you've failed your child in new and creative ways by not exposing them to nature.
The good news is it produced a lot of nostalgia for days spent playing ... Read More
- Strange Times We Live InI think it's so weird that I rarely (if ever) see kids playing outside anymore. The research says they're all tucked safely inside, playing computer games, watching DVDs and TV. How safe is this, really? Louv addresses that question as he talks about what the lack of connection to nature, unstructured free play, and the damage this imbalance is creating, is doing to our kids today. This is such a good book you'll be sharing it, talking about it, writing the author, and making some changes in how ... Read More
- Last Child in the WoodsAwesome!A must read for the "Green Revolution" and as importantly for your "heart & soul"!!!
- Good book, good ideasThe book has excellent information and a an better message that I agree with wholeheartedly.The only problem is that it is written with fairly complex psychological information which is hard to follow at times.Otherwise, I liked the book.
- No One Knows How to Play Kick the Can Anymore....Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv is a timely book that needed to be written.
The author's point is that kids today are facing a nature deficit and that affects childhood obesity and even the potential for the next generation to appreciate the breadth of nature enough to want to preserve it.After all, if the local mall has an arboretum and that's all you know as nature, that's all you'll expect.
The culprit is not news to anyone, nor to any parent with enough income ... Read More
- Exhausting but InterestingWhile this book produced great topics of discussion among my book club, the author's pedantic tone made me want to whack my head against a wall. He is clearly dedicated to his mission, and the book shows an impressive amount of research, but gets bogged down with anecdotes. Plus, if you are a parent,chances are good you'll walk away feeling like you've failed your child in new and creative ways by not exposing them to nature.
The good news is it produced a lot of nostalgia for days spent playing ... Read More
