Foster Outdoor Exploration is a young person’s experience with an adult who encourages them to explore natural environments and develop a personal interest in the outdoors.
Fostering outdoor exploration involves promoting young people’s interest in the natural environment and exploring the relationship with other living and nonliving things. This is a Focused Experience for young people, one that specifically bolsters Outdoors SEL.
WHY IS FOSTER OUTDOOR EXPLORATION IMPORTANT?
When young people are involved in outdoor exploration, they strengthen their ability to express emotions, think about others' feelings, develop stronger bonds with their peers, and create positive narratives about their self-worth (Ernst & Theimer, 2013). Outdoor exploration promotes these outcomes when adults provide young people with opportunities to engage with their environment, from community spaces to state parks and zoos. These experiences tend to be less structured and more novel than what young people experience at school everyday, which creates unique opportunities to learn about their peers and themselves.
DISCOVERIES FROM HELLO INSIGHT
Young people are dynamic and full of promise, with many different pathways to success. We continually mine our growing HI Outdoors dataset, made up of thousands of young people. This lets us continue to learn what works for every young person. In 2022, we looked at our dataset of more than 6,000 young people, participating in more than 70 programs across more than 20 states. We found that Foster Outdoor Exploration is highly predictive of Outdoors SEL development, especially for young women and young people of color (those identifying themselves as Black or African American, Latinx, Asian, Indian, or two or more races).
Download the Reflection GuideRESOURCES
Youth Programming ToolKit: Youth Development & Nature
Children & Nature Network
This toolkit provides resources and research that connect positive youth development (PYD) approaches with nature-based programming.It shows you how you might help young people reach their full potential as people and as nature advocates.
Guiding Questions:
- How will my program utilize the research from the toolkit and the Reaching Youth Full Potential Through Nature framework to describe our program models and impact on young people?
- How will my program promote young people’s interest, connection, and support for the outdoors and nature?
- How will my program help young people explore their relationships with other living and nonliving things?
- How will my outdoor program increase our diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices?
Children and Nature Network Youth Resources
Children & Nature Network
This curated collection provides strategies, activities, and resources to help you support young people in outdoor settings. It organizes content into three categories: engagement, leadership, and programming.
Guiding Questions:
- How will my program promote young people’s interest, connection, and support for the outdoors?
- How will my program use nature to foster young people’s sense of well-being?
- How will my program help young people explore their relationships with other living and nonliving things?
- How will my program help young people think about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)?
The American Camp Association’s Resources For Cultivating Nature and The Environment
The American Camp Association
This curated list of resources has a broad range of activities for integrating nature and the environment into camp settings.
Guiding Questions:
- How will my camp or program promote young people’s interest, connection, and support for the outdoors and nature?
- How will my camp or program use nature to foster young people’s sense of well-being?
- How will my camp or program help young people explore their relationships with other living and nonliving things?
- How will my camp or program help young people think about diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)?