3 minutes read | Written by Tink Things

Of course, we all know on some level that nature is beneficial, but it's easy to underestimate just how pivotal the great outdoors is for nurturing kids' senses. Observing our children as they freely explore and interact with the natural environment, we see them in their most natural state. This isn't just about playtime; the outdoors offers invaluable opportunities for sensory development, helping children's understanding of the world to blossom.

However, in urban areas, with busy schedules and limited access to natural spaces, how do we ensure our children still benefit from these essential experiences? Let's delve into some practical ideas.

How the outdoors stimulates sensory development

Nature has its own built-in sensory curriculum designed to develop children's perceptions of the world. As kids interact with natural elements, neural pathways are strengthened, processing networks expand, and sensory acuity improves. There are seven key systems uniquely activated by the great outdoors:

Visual: Processes visual stimuli from the environment to form images, enabling perception of shape, color and movement. In nature, this is experienced when observing the diverse colors of a rainbow or the movement of animals across a landscape.
Auditory: Interprets sound waves captured by the ears, crucial for hearing and understanding auditory cues. In a natural setting, this system is engaged when listening to the melodious singing of birds or the soothing rustling of leaves in the wind.
Tactile: Relates to touch, providing information about texture, temperature, and pain through skin receptors. This sense is stimulated in nature through experiences like feeling the rough texture of tree bark or the refreshing coolness of water in a stream.
Olfactory: Responsible for the sense of smell, detecting and identifying different odors through the nose. In the outdoors, this sense is delighted by the fragrance of blooming flowers or the earthy scent of wet soil after rain.
Gustatory: Enables taste perception through taste buds on the tongue, distinguishing flavors like sweet, salty, sour, and bitter. Nature offers tastes such as the sweetness of ripe berries picked directly from a bush or the tanginess of a lemon freshly plucked from a tree.
Vestibular: Regulates balance and spatial orientation, located in the inner ear and connected to the brain. This system is challenged and developed in natural environments, such as maintaining balance while navigating a rocky trail or climbing a steep hill.
Proprioceptive: Provides information about body position and movement through receptors in muscles and joints. In nature, this system is engaged when a child senses the effort needed to climb a tree or feels the resistance of pushing through dense underbrush.

Enriching sensory nature play in urban areas

While vast wilderness offers the richest sensory landscape, children reap benefits from all types of nature. Even city parks and backyard play spur sensory and emotional growth. Of course, untouched natural environments require no parental direction – simply let children roam freely, explore instinctively and tap into ancient wisdom deep in their genes.

But when playing in cultivated city greenspaces, we can guide activities to harness sensory rewards. Though we may instinctively warn “be careful!”, let’s try to curb those protective impulses and instead, underscore their capability and model confident exploring.

Textured paths – Rather than pavement, opt for meandering trails with diverse textures underfoot. Feeling this ground variation enhances sensory acuity.
Natural loose parts play – Provide stacks of sticks, pinecones, seed pods and other natural items for younger kids’ open-ended creation. Fidgeting with these unpredictable textures sparks cognitive connections.
Urban safari – Lead a wildlife hunt, examining holes, nests, tracks and other animal signs. Spotting city creatures like squirrels and birds promotes environmental observation.
Rainy day stomping – When showers strike, head out in galoshes and take pleasure in the sights, sensations and sounds of wet weather play. Splashing in puddles excites multiple senses!
Sensory play using everyday nature
- Challenge younger kids to discover smooth pebbles, crunchy leaves, feather soft grass blades and all kinds of different textures in the park
- Pour water on sidewalks and mud patches for instant puddle splashing and squelching
- Cloud gaze and notice random shapes with older kids
- Guide barefoot walking on diverse surfaces - comparing textures
Instill an empowering mindset
- Ditch constant warnings to "be careful" for positive reinforcement of children's capabilities
- Encourage appropriate risk assessment by supporting kids' own judgement on challenges
- Use precise language to build confidence instead of inducing anxiety during physical play - "Make sure this step is not wobbly" instead of “Watch out!”
- Reinforce that stumbles and mistakes are fun (and creatively flex mental muscles)

The key is to strip away our adult inclination to hover anxiously and to create space for our kids to freely explore, get messy, have adventures and tune into their senses without excessive warnings hampering the experience.

Where the wild things play

Outdoor play in nature is not just beneficial; it’s essential. It provides multisensory enrichment that lays the cognitive and physical developmental foundation for how kids understand the world.

As they cover themselves in mud splashing the rain and examine spider webs with wonder, children build crucial skills ranging from creative problem-solving to muscular coordination. They flex independence and self-confidence muscles along with sensory capabilities. We know it’s messy, but we can almost visualise thriving neural networks strengthening with each outdoor adventure.

Whether surrounded by towering redwoods or potted pansies in a window box, nature offers a multisensory environment that engages young minds. Its inherent ability to stimulate all senses simultaneously makes nature the ideal teacher – patiently guiding children’s discovery through sights, sounds, tastes, smells and textures carefully orchestrated to captivate their minds.

By creating opportunities for immersive natural play – ideally unstructured exploration with fewer “be carefuls” hampering the experience – we can provide developmental enrichment that goes beyond enjoyment. Let nature take the lead through its masterfully designed sensory curriculum that evolved over millennia alongside youngest learners’ abilities and needs. Wherever possible, let’s step back and let our little ones go a little wild, as nature intended.

Written by

Tink Things

Tink Things is an independent future-oriented startup rethinking the principles of children’s design. With the belief that kids' surroundings should serve as food for their brains, our first award-winning line of EU made & certified sensory furniture is paving the way for a more inclusive and holistic approach to designing for children. We are on a mission to make the emotional intelligence design methodology a mainstream.