Want happier, healthier kids? Let them play outside with some supervision but mostly on their own
It’s gratifying to see kids playing ball this summer.
Empty diamonds just don’t glitter like the ones with batters taking their cuts, infielders snapping off throws to first and outfielders chasing fly balls. Otherwise, it’s just a patch of grass, dirt and sand encircled by a fence.
I often drive past fields in Sioux Falls, pausing to watch a pitch or two. Lately, the fields have been full some nights, with kids in colorful jerseys running, competing and shouting encouragement to each other and parents and fans seated on the sideline, watching and cheering.
I do wish the fields were used for more than just games. While Little League and other organizations do a wonderful job (as illustrated by the public domain photo above, posted on wikimedia commons) of getting young ballplayers started and instructing them in the finer points of baseball and softball, I’d like to see more kids just playing.
Swinging the bat.
Running the bases.
Making an accurate throw.
Snagging a crisply struck line drive with a diving catch.
They do not need to be in uniform, with coaches setting a lineup and someone keeping a scorebook. I think they’d be better off if it was just kids dividing up sides and playing as long as they wanted.
No need to count the innings or wait for official rulings. Just play.
When I was a kid — back when dinosaurs roamed the outfield — we played ball constantly. When I was very young in Brookings, our neighborhood was packed with kids, including cousins, friends and neighbors.
A local man, Johnny Johnson, set aside a grassy field for us to play ball, and he put out equipment as well. Johnson worked at the SDSU Athletics Department and had access to bats and balls, which he provided to a scruffy bunch of kids.
He did not supervise, officiate or even watch games from the sideline. He may have caught a few innings from his living room window, but for the most part, adults let kids play back then.
The games were far from official. The field was loaded with defenders — I was very young and small, and recall being one of numerous outfielders hoping for a ball. Don’t think I ever caught one.
But we had fun. We raced to that field all summer long and played for hours.
When we moved to the family farm, we played Wiffle ball constantly. Usually it was Anita and me vs. Vern and Julie, and Mom kept us well-supplied with plastic bats and balls.
The games were highly competitive, and I still look back at them fondly, even though Vern, the oldest and biggest, usually led his team to victory with a homer over the granary.
We also staged games with cousins and friends when they came over. After summer passed, we played football, basketball, volleyball, soccer and several other games. We competed by rolling on barrels in the backyard, and played intense games of lawn darts.
Amazingly, none of us were spiked by the flying projectiles. Came close a few times!
Having kids outside has numerous advantages, according to a 2020 Harvard Medical School report from Dr. Claire McCarthy.
“There are many ways in which this generation’s childhood is different from that of the last generation, but one of the most abrupt contrasts is the degree to which it is being spent indoors,” Dr. McCarthy wrote. “There are lots of reasons, including the marked increase in time spent interacting with electronic devices, the emphasis on scheduled activities and achievements, concerns about sun exposure — and, for many families, the lack of safe outdoor places to play. It’s not just children; adults are spending less time outdoors as well.”
The benefits of playing outside include exposure to sunshine, which is key in the production of Vitamin D.
“Sun exposure also plays a role in our immune system in other ways, as well as in healthy sleep — and in our mood,” she wrote. “Our bodies work best when they get some sunshine every day.”
Obviously, exercise is vitally important. Just look at the high percentage of Americans of all ages — including me — who are overweight. We all need to move and play more.
Dr. McCarthy also said we gain executive function, which guides planning, prioritizing learning to negotiate — Out! Safe! — troubleshooting and multitasking. Just try balancing yourself on a barrel while competing with a sibling determined to knock you off!
That’s actually a good thing, she wrote. Kids need to take risks. Of course, parents want to protect their children.
“But if we keep them in bubbles and never let them take any risks, they won’t know what they can do — and they may not have the confidence and bravery to face life’s inevitable risks,” Dr. McCarthy wrote. “Yes, you can break an arm from climbing a tree — and yes, you can be humiliated when you try to make a friend and get rejected. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try; the lessons we learn from failure are just as important as those we learn from success.”
Other benefits include learning how to socialize with peers. It’s vitally important to learn how to make friends, how to treat people and how to share and cooperate. Those lessons can be learned while playing — and doing so in an unstructured setting, without hard-and-fast rules, adults hovering over them and only being involved during certain hours on a schedule.
Let the kids play! It’s good for parents to be outside too, she said, but not for them to control what their children are doing. Just watch and enjoy.
Lastly, Dr. McCarthy said being outside gives kids an appreciation for nature. That could be the most critical thing for all of us.
“If a child grows up never walking in the woods, digging in soil, seeing animals in their habitat, climbing a mountain, playing in a stream, or staring at the endless horizon of an ocean, they may never really understand what there is to be lost,” she wrote. “The future of our planet depends on our children; they need to learn to appreciate it.”
Fourth-generation South Dakotan Tom Lawrence has written for several newspapers and websites in South Dakota and other states for four decades. He has contributed to The New York Times, NPR, The London Telegraph, The Daily Beast and other media outlets. Do not republish without permission.
Photo: public domain, wikimedia commons
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