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:
Related Items:
- Sharing Nature With Children (20th Anniversary Edition, Revised and Expanded)
- The Web of Life: Weaving the Values That Sustain Us
- Beyond Ecophobia: Reclaiming the Heart in Nature Education (Nature Literacy Series, Vol. 1) (Nature Literacy) (Nature Literacy)
- I Love Dirt!: 52 Activities to Help You and Your Kids Discover the Wonders of Nature
- Nature in a Nutshell for Kids: Over 100 Activities You Can Do in Ten Minutes or Less
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- Books » Subjects » Health, Mind & Body » Psychology & Counseling » Adolescent Psychology
- Books » Subjects » Health, Mind & Body » Psychology & Counseling » Child Psychology » Psychology
- Books » Subjects » Outdoors & Nature » Ecology » General AAS
- Books » Subjects » Parenting & Families » Parenting » Babies & Toddlers » Child Development
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Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: 
- Microwave generation
I teach high school, and I can tell you we have raised what we call a microwave generation: they want to push a button and it happens. They call their cell phone their "baby." When I attempted to tell them about a recent trip to Africa where I did volunteer work for animal anti-poaching in the wild, they were aghast I had no access to cell phones, myspace, or a computer. Few were interested in the slide show of my trip, prefering instead to gossip about teen angst and the latest rumours.
However, ... Read More
Rating: - A MUST READ!
Parent or child, young or old, EVERYONE can benefit from this book (for parents, it should be a must read, though).We are a culture that has gone astray from nature, and are hurting as a result. The statistics are astonishing at first, but they are really not that hard to translate into our current state of emotional, physcological, and physical health.Effective at shining light on today's ills (ADD, Autism, Depression, Obesity, etc...), this book also expertly weaves in the solutions, showcasing encouraging ... Read More
Rating: - please don't let it happen!
moving urgent plea to give today's kids the healing and stimulating outdoorness we all grew up with--bought extra copies to give to others--a really important book for anyone who cares for a child or even someone like me who only worries about them in general--great thought and action provoking book which is also easy to read and full of action to help.
Rating: 
- The Importance of Nature
Richard Louv makes many great points in his book, Last Child in the Woods.I love that he discusses the fact that nature can help people to be less socially awkward and more confident.All in all, nature can just make people into healthier beings.It is also really neat that he talks about how important it is to stay in touch with nature because it brings us closer to God.If people keep ripping out the nature that God puts there, it is like we are saying that what we create is better than what God can create. ... Read More
Rating: - Important Work
Whether you're an avid outdoor parent or family, this is an important read. If active in nature and its various outlets, it will validate your commitment with your family. If not, it will serve as a primer and, certainly, important motivation to incorporate the natural world in your child's upbringing. Nature, albeit remarkably complex, can also be taken in with simplistic beauty. I would recommend, first, a read of Rachael Carson's "A Sense of Wonder." Then Louv's narrative will provide the road map. His book is destined ... Read More
- Microwave generationI teach high school, and I can tell you we have raised what we call a microwave generation: they want to push a button and it happens. They call their cell phone their "baby." When I attempted to tell them about a recent trip to Africa where I did volunteer work for animal anti-poaching in the wild, they were aghast I had no access to cell phones, myspace, or a computer. Few were interested in the slide show of my trip, prefering instead to gossip about teen angst and the latest rumours.
However, ... Read More
- A MUST READ!Parent or child, young or old, EVERYONE can benefit from this book (for parents, it should be a must read, though).We are a culture that has gone astray from nature, and are hurting as a result. The statistics are astonishing at first, but they are really not that hard to translate into our current state of emotional, physcological, and physical health.Effective at shining light on today's ills (ADD, Autism, Depression, Obesity, etc...), this book also expertly weaves in the solutions, showcasing encouraging ... Read More
- please don't let it happen!moving urgent plea to give today's kids the healing and stimulating outdoorness we all grew up with--bought extra copies to give to others--a really important book for anyone who cares for a child or even someone like me who only worries about them in general--great thought and action provoking book which is also easy to read and full of action to help.
- The Importance of NatureRichard Louv makes many great points in his book, Last Child in the Woods.I love that he discusses the fact that nature can help people to be less socially awkward and more confident.All in all, nature can just make people into healthier beings.It is also really neat that he talks about how important it is to stay in touch with nature because it brings us closer to God.If people keep ripping out the nature that God puts there, it is like we are saying that what we create is better than what God can create. ... Read More
- Important WorkWhether you're an avid outdoor parent or family, this is an important read. If active in nature and its various outlets, it will validate your commitment with your family. If not, it will serve as a primer and, certainly, important motivation to incorporate the natural world in your child's upbringing. Nature, albeit remarkably complex, can also be taken in with simplistic beauty. I would recommend, first, a read of Rachael Carson's "A Sense of Wonder." Then Louv's narrative will provide the road map. His book is destined ... Read More
