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Balanced and Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children
In this important book, a pediatric occupational therapist and founder of TimberNook shows how outdoor play and unstructured freedom of movement are vital for children’s cognitive development and growth, and offers tons of fun, engaging ways to help ensure that kids grow into healthy, balanced, and resilient adults.
Today’s kids have adopted sedentary lifestyles filled with television, video games, and computer screens. But more and more, studies show that children need “rough and tumble” outdoor play in order to develop their sensory, motor, and executive functions. Disturbingly, a lack of movement has been shown to lead to a number of health and cognitive difficulties, such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), emotion regulation and sensory processing issues, and aggressiveness at school recess break. So, how can you ensure your child is fully engaging their body, mind, and all of their senses?
Using the same philosophy that lies at the heart of her popular TimberNook program—that nature is the ultimate sensory experience, and that psychological and physical health improves for children when they spend time outside on a regular basis—author Angela Hanscom offers several strategies to help your child thrive, even if you live in an urban environment.
Today it is rare to find children rolling down hills, climbing trees, or spinning in circles just for fun. We’ve taken away merry-go-rounds, shortened the length of swings, and done away with teeter-totters to keep children safe. Children have fewer opportunities for unstructured outdoor play than ever before, and recess times at school are shrinking due to demanding educational environments.
With this book, you’ll discover little things you can do anytime, anywhere to help your kids achieve the movement they need to be happy and healthy in mind, body, and spirit.
Today’s kids have adopted sedentary lifestyles filled with television, video games, and computer screens. But more and more, studies show that children need “rough and tumble” outdoor play in order to develop their sensory, motor, and executive functions. Disturbingly, a lack of movement has been shown to lead to a number of health and cognitive difficulties, such as attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), emotion regulation and sensory processing issues, and aggressiveness at school recess break. So, how can you ensure your child is fully engaging their body, mind, and all of their senses?
Using the same philosophy that lies at the heart of her popular TimberNook program—that nature is the ultimate sensory experience, and that psychological and physical health improves for children when they spend time outside on a regular basis—author Angela Hanscom offers several strategies to help your child thrive, even if you live in an urban environment.
Today it is rare to find children rolling down hills, climbing trees, or spinning in circles just for fun. We’ve taken away merry-go-rounds, shortened the length of swings, and done away with teeter-totters to keep children safe. Children have fewer opportunities for unstructured outdoor play than ever before, and recess times at school are shrinking due to demanding educational environments.
With this book, you’ll discover little things you can do anytime, anywhere to help your kids achieve the movement they need to be happy and healthy in mind, body, and spirit.
256 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2016
792 people are currently reading
12518 people want to read
About the author
Angela J. Hanscom
3 books42 followers“Balanced and Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children,” will be released April 22nd, 2016 from New Harbinger in the U.S.
I would love to meet all of you. I can be found on any of the sites listed below:
- www.timbernook.com
- https://www.facebook.com/TimberNook.C...
- https://twitter.com/Timbernook
- https://www.pinterest.com/TimberNookC...
- Linkedin.com/in/AngelaHanscom/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
ANGELA HANSCOM is the founder of TimberNook, an internationally recognized nature program that gets kids outdoors, engages their senses, and inspires independent play in the wild. She is also the author of the forthcoming book, Balanced & Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children (New Harbinger: April 22nd, 2016). She contributes regularly to the Washington Post about the importance of movement in education and her writing has appeared in the Times of India, The Jerusalem Post, NPRed, Mindshift, and many other publications. Hanscom was named a "creative genius" by the DIY Network, chosen as a Hometown Hero in Glamour Magazine’s 2015 Woman of the Year Issue, and selected to present a TED talk at Johnson and Johnson's main stage event in 2015. She lives in a small rural town in New Hampshire with her husband and three children.
I would love to meet all of you. I can be found on any of the sites listed below:
- www.timbernook.com
- https://www.facebook.com/TimberNook.C...
- https://twitter.com/Timbernook
- https://www.pinterest.com/TimberNookC...
- Linkedin.com/in/AngelaHanscom/
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
ANGELA HANSCOM is the founder of TimberNook, an internationally recognized nature program that gets kids outdoors, engages their senses, and inspires independent play in the wild. She is also the author of the forthcoming book, Balanced & Barefoot: How Unrestricted Outdoor Play Makes for Strong, Confident, and Capable Children (New Harbinger: April 22nd, 2016). She contributes regularly to the Washington Post about the importance of movement in education and her writing has appeared in the Times of India, The Jerusalem Post, NPRed, Mindshift, and many other publications. Hanscom was named a "creative genius" by the DIY Network, chosen as a Hometown Hero in Glamour Magazine’s 2015 Woman of the Year Issue, and selected to present a TED talk at Johnson and Johnson's main stage event in 2015. She lives in a small rural town in New Hampshire with her husband and three children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 716 reviews
February 7, 2023
This is a book that describes what’s happening to our children’s ability to do things that children were able to do decades ago - climbing, running, sitting, increase in sensory issues, anxiety, depression, etc...
We learn through this book that being in nature is important for our children. It’s important for their core, mobility, strength, dexterity, self worth, mood regulation and vestibular response among many other things.
I was surprised to read how many children have developmental delays due to being inside more than outside or having more screen time. This is an excellent read if you have issues with your littles or are thinking about having children so you start off on the right foot, literally!
We learn through this book that being in nature is important for our children. It’s important for their core, mobility, strength, dexterity, self worth, mood regulation and vestibular response among many other things.
I was surprised to read how many children have developmental delays due to being inside more than outside or having more screen time. This is an excellent read if you have issues with your littles or are thinking about having children so you start off on the right foot, literally!
June 3, 2016
I'll be honest here and say that I skimmed a lot of this book, not because it wasn't informative but because they were preaching to the choir. I agree, children should move more. I am not surprised by all the supporting evidence laid out in this book. I think I was looking for more information on how to make it happen.
June 25, 2022
This is the book I want to give all parents no matter how old their children are. This is the book I want all teachers and grandparents and anyone who has influence in a child to add to their nightstand.
A pediatric occupational therapist, the author argues for and explains the benefits of unstructured, child-directed outdoor play for children. Why are merry-go-rounds essential playground equipment and night games unstructured by adults the best for children with sensory issues? And steep slides? And swings with long chains? She details the physiology of it all.
Why are children struggling to sit still or stay in their chairs or maintain attention? What about coping with setbacks or falls or social hierarchies? Where are these skills best developed? Why are kids sick so often? How has childhood changed in the last 20 years?
How much time should children be spending outdoors each day? What are useful activities for toddlers, infants, elementary and older ages? It's here.
I borrowed a copy from the library but find myself continually thinking about what I read in a hurry to absorb it all, and now want to read it again slowly making notes as I go.
Find a copy. Your playground, outdoor and after-school hours will be the influenced for the better - even if they are already wonderful.
A pediatric occupational therapist, the author argues for and explains the benefits of unstructured, child-directed outdoor play for children. Why are merry-go-rounds essential playground equipment and night games unstructured by adults the best for children with sensory issues? And steep slides? And swings with long chains? She details the physiology of it all.
Why are children struggling to sit still or stay in their chairs or maintain attention? What about coping with setbacks or falls or social hierarchies? Where are these skills best developed? Why are kids sick so often? How has childhood changed in the last 20 years?
How much time should children be spending outdoors each day? What are useful activities for toddlers, infants, elementary and older ages? It's here.
I borrowed a copy from the library but find myself continually thinking about what I read in a hurry to absorb it all, and now want to read it again slowly making notes as I go.
Find a copy. Your playground, outdoor and after-school hours will be the influenced for the better - even if they are already wonderful.
March 27, 2017
You can agree with the author of a non-fiction book and still be bored. The content was fine, but seemed padded out to make it book length. I'll try to cull out some interesting items:
* The author has an interesting approach to sun screen. Let's just say, she's not huge for it.
* Modern playground equipment is boring as all heck, and hardly worth playing on. Yes, I agree.
* But, modern playground equipment tries to compensate for its colossal boringness with brash loud colors. This is terrible, as it stresses people out and overstimulates your brain while still boring you with a swing that only has 4 feet of chain instead of the 8 we had back in the 70s. No-one can do a proper "underdog" anymore, and kids are worse for it.
* The author seems overly found of mud. Hey, I like mud, but it really isn't for my kid with cystic fibrosis as standing water is lousy with pseudomona, not good. But otherwise I'm all for playing outside unstructured.
* American overly litigious society is stupid. Yes, I agree. Suing schools for having playgrounds is dumb. Suing municipalities for having playgrounds = also stupid. Everyone is trying to win the injury lottery.
* This advice isn't particularly helpful for parents of special needs kids. Oh well, such is life.
There, I saved you a couple of hours.
* The author has an interesting approach to sun screen. Let's just say, she's not huge for it.
* Modern playground equipment is boring as all heck, and hardly worth playing on. Yes, I agree.
* But, modern playground equipment tries to compensate for its colossal boringness with brash loud colors. This is terrible, as it stresses people out and overstimulates your brain while still boring you with a swing that only has 4 feet of chain instead of the 8 we had back in the 70s. No-one can do a proper "underdog" anymore, and kids are worse for it.
* The author seems overly found of mud. Hey, I like mud, but it really isn't for my kid with cystic fibrosis as standing water is lousy with pseudomona, not good. But otherwise I'm all for playing outside unstructured.
* American overly litigious society is stupid. Yes, I agree. Suing schools for having playgrounds is dumb. Suing municipalities for having playgrounds = also stupid. Everyone is trying to win the injury lottery.
* This advice isn't particularly helpful for parents of special needs kids. Oh well, such is life.
There, I saved you a couple of hours.
December 10, 2019
I found some of Hanscom's arguments more compelling than others, there were a few sources that I didn't find particularly credible or were subject to a lot of interpretation (newspaper articles, blogs, etc.) I find her overall argument(s) plausible, but I also tend to be skeptical of the "this one weird trick can fix your kids" advice, so this book was in a weird middle ground where I wanted to listen but I didn't find the book persuasive.
Also, I wanted like 20% more practical advice (like spinning on swings, or how to encourage kids to try to carry heavy stuff). We're a family with two working parents; the idea that we have hours a day to let our kid play outside felt pretty out-of-touch.
Also, I wanted like 20% more practical advice (like spinning on swings, or how to encourage kids to try to carry heavy stuff). We're a family with two working parents; the idea that we have hours a day to let our kid play outside felt pretty out-of-touch.
July 1, 2017
I got a lot more out of this book than I thought I would. When I started reading it there was a lot about problems in the classroom, studies that showed kids needed to move more, input from seasoned teachers, the authors experiences running a camp, and all of that is great. This book is well researched and well reasoned, the author makes her point clearly and concisely, but I didn’t feel like it pertained to me and my child. The Toddler has never been in a classroom, so the problems of school age kids, even preschool, seem very far off to me right now. It wasn’t until I got to chapter 8, When Is My Baby Ready For The Outdoors?, that this book really got my attention. Because up till now I’ve never really made outdoor play a priority in our day.
I never even really thought about letting her play outside, let alone play outside unsupervised. She’s my baby, why would she ever need to play without me? But after reading Barefoot and Balanced I’m thinking playing outside might be exactly what she needs. I’ve noticed a lot of things since we began packing for our move and one of them is that she depends on me, or whatever adult happens to be at our house, for play, independent play doesn’t really happen, and creative play doesn’t really happen either; a tea set is just a tea set, the play kitchen is just for storage, empty containers are just empty containers. I’m not giving her space to explore and be creative. She is my baby and she does still need me, but she needs to be able to explore the world and her own limits too. At first, I was sitting on the couch reading, going ‘that's not about my parenting, I don’t need to do that’ and I got a little defensive and wanted to quit reading, but I quickly realized that it is about my parenting, and that reading books like this one, accepting the new knowledge and doing better going forward was exactly why books like this are important to read. It’s not about criticizing parents, it’s about learning to be better parents who are better able to meet our kids needs and let them learn skills that will serve them for their whole lives.
Personal tangent aside; After getting past the school age kids part at the beginning, Barefoot and Balanced has chapters about what ages kids should be outside at, how to involve kids in outdoor time, how to overcome fears about letting kids play outside (I needed that part!), how to slowly transition to and encourage independent play, and how to get younger kids to be comfortable with less parental involvement. The author also makes a point of saying that it’s still important to play with your kids, play is bonding and will always be important, which made me feel better because I hated the idea of not playing with The Toddler. There is also a large list of recommended reading at the back of the book, and I can’t say I’ll read all of them but it’s something I would like to take a closer look at.
There’s a lot of great information in this book, and I found it a great opportunity to grow as a parent, and I’ve decided to make outdoor play more of a priority for both The Toddler and myself. Since being outside is recommended to help manage anxiety I feel like we can both benefit from it. I gave this book 4 out 5 stars, just because the beginning is a bit preachy, when it comes to schools and recess, and things like that. This was a very informative read, and it’s encouraged me to look more into my parenting and things I could be doing differently. I’ve got a couple of books that are about the Charlotte Mason method that I bought a few months ago but never read, so those will be coming up soon!
Okay, it’s been a couple of months since I wrote this review and I wanted to come in a update it. Since reading Barefoot and Balanced I have made an intentional effort to make outside time a regular part of our day. Nearly everyday we go outside after naptime. The Toddler plays in the yard while I read a book on the porch, and I have to say it’s probably the favorite part of our day for both of us. It’s relaxing for me and an energy burner for The Toddler. She sleeps better, she plays better, and she’s more independent. If you have children of any age I strongly recommend this book. It’s been a good thing for both me and The Toddler.
I received this book free through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
I never even really thought about letting her play outside, let alone play outside unsupervised. She’s my baby, why would she ever need to play without me? But after reading Barefoot and Balanced I’m thinking playing outside might be exactly what she needs. I’ve noticed a lot of things since we began packing for our move and one of them is that she depends on me, or whatever adult happens to be at our house, for play, independent play doesn’t really happen, and creative play doesn’t really happen either; a tea set is just a tea set, the play kitchen is just for storage, empty containers are just empty containers. I’m not giving her space to explore and be creative. She is my baby and she does still need me, but she needs to be able to explore the world and her own limits too. At first, I was sitting on the couch reading, going ‘that's not about my parenting, I don’t need to do that’ and I got a little defensive and wanted to quit reading, but I quickly realized that it is about my parenting, and that reading books like this one, accepting the new knowledge and doing better going forward was exactly why books like this are important to read. It’s not about criticizing parents, it’s about learning to be better parents who are better able to meet our kids needs and let them learn skills that will serve them for their whole lives.
Personal tangent aside; After getting past the school age kids part at the beginning, Barefoot and Balanced has chapters about what ages kids should be outside at, how to involve kids in outdoor time, how to overcome fears about letting kids play outside (I needed that part!), how to slowly transition to and encourage independent play, and how to get younger kids to be comfortable with less parental involvement. The author also makes a point of saying that it’s still important to play with your kids, play is bonding and will always be important, which made me feel better because I hated the idea of not playing with The Toddler. There is also a large list of recommended reading at the back of the book, and I can’t say I’ll read all of them but it’s something I would like to take a closer look at.
There’s a lot of great information in this book, and I found it a great opportunity to grow as a parent, and I’ve decided to make outdoor play more of a priority for both The Toddler and myself. Since being outside is recommended to help manage anxiety I feel like we can both benefit from it. I gave this book 4 out 5 stars, just because the beginning is a bit preachy, when it comes to schools and recess, and things like that. This was a very informative read, and it’s encouraged me to look more into my parenting and things I could be doing differently. I’ve got a couple of books that are about the Charlotte Mason method that I bought a few months ago but never read, so those will be coming up soon!
Okay, it’s been a couple of months since I wrote this review and I wanted to come in a update it. Since reading Barefoot and Balanced I have made an intentional effort to make outside time a regular part of our day. Nearly everyday we go outside after naptime. The Toddler plays in the yard while I read a book on the porch, and I have to say it’s probably the favorite part of our day for both of us. It’s relaxing for me and an energy burner for The Toddler. She sleeps better, she plays better, and she’s more independent. If you have children of any age I strongly recommend this book. It’s been a good thing for both me and The Toddler.
I received this book free through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
June 18, 2016
The overall premise of this book is essentially throwing out every possible reason why children should play outside, in nature. I'm certainly a proponent of outdoor nature play and my own child gets plenty of it, but this book does contain some flaws.
The author, a pediatric occupational therapist, shares numerous reasons why a lack of outdoor play is essentially causing all sorts of problems in children. I have no doubt this is true to some extent, but she seems to conveniently leave out other potential factors for some of these issues, which cover everything from vision problems to sensory issues to poor gross and fine motor skills—even social-emotional skills. While she has research to validate many of these assertions, many also lack anything other than anecdotal evidence, if anything. For example, under vision problems she talks about tracking issues and depth perception troubles, which are things we are addressing with my daughter (strabismus/exotropia), but NO research is referenced to show a link between these types of vision issues and lack of outdoor play (the causes of strabismus, anyway, are as of yet unknown).
So while I can get behind many of the ideas, I would read this book with that caveat in mind—fact check first.
The author, a pediatric occupational therapist, shares numerous reasons why a lack of outdoor play is essentially causing all sorts of problems in children. I have no doubt this is true to some extent, but she seems to conveniently leave out other potential factors for some of these issues, which cover everything from vision problems to sensory issues to poor gross and fine motor skills—even social-emotional skills. While she has research to validate many of these assertions, many also lack anything other than anecdotal evidence, if anything. For example, under vision problems she talks about tracking issues and depth perception troubles, which are things we are addressing with my daughter (strabismus/exotropia), but NO research is referenced to show a link between these types of vision issues and lack of outdoor play (the causes of strabismus, anyway, are as of yet unknown).
So while I can get behind many of the ideas, I would read this book with that caveat in mind—fact check first.
September 26, 2020
Let your kids have as much unstructured play time outside as possible. (Now you don't have to read the book)
February 19, 2023
Maybe she has read CM. She agrees with her that children should have plenty of time to play outside free of adult intervention. Children just need time to play and to play deep. As most children do not get to play like this now days as they are inside sitting in school and don't get enough recess or on screens-we have seen this has impacted them in many ways. While I agree they need more play she only briefly mentions nutrition, emotional, support that children also need. Insightful reading.
February 16, 2021
I agree very much with her assertion that kids need as much outside free play as possible, but I feel like she spent way too much time trying to convince me. I would guess that most people who pick up this book are already convinced. I was hoping for practical advice for city and apartment dwellers and there wasn't much. I did come away with a couple ideas so it wasn't a waste to read.
May 28, 2020
The premise of the book is great, but the execution is less than. If I could choose, this book would have maybe 1/5 about the benefit of outdoor play and the rest would be tangible ideas that a typical family can implement: lots of material about how to foster creative outdoor play with simple materials in your own yard for different ages (this would comprise several chapters and the bulk of the book), plus how to use the green spaces & playgrounds around you, how to evaluate camps/schools/child care options with outdoor nature play in mind, etc.
Instead, this book felt really preachy at times and while I agree that there are far-reaching benefits to unstructured outdoor play, I felt like rolling my eyes at times when it went through a long laundry list of everything that will be magically fixed if you just let you kids play outside. The chapter(s) about how schools should have more recess and the kids should be freer to choose how they play were too long considering most people can't control this. (I listened to this as an audiobook so sections/chapters aren't really clear in my mind.) It felt like almost every chapter repeated all of the horrible things that happen to kids when they don't get to play outside and how playing outside will solve practically every problem known to modern families. I'm sounding a little to flippant about this considering I really do agree with the basic premise, the presentation just irked me. But props to the author nonetheless for making it happen. I'm sure if I were to write a book it would be far from perfect.
If you're interested in this topic, there's a concise 30-min podcast episode on the podcast 3-in-30 Takeaways for Moms with this author as the guest: Episode 128: How to get your kids to play outside & why it matters.
Instead, this book felt really preachy at times and while I agree that there are far-reaching benefits to unstructured outdoor play, I felt like rolling my eyes at times when it went through a long laundry list of everything that will be magically fixed if you just let you kids play outside. The chapter(s) about how schools should have more recess and the kids should be freer to choose how they play were too long considering most people can't control this. (I listened to this as an audiobook so sections/chapters aren't really clear in my mind.) It felt like almost every chapter repeated all of the horrible things that happen to kids when they don't get to play outside and how playing outside will solve practically every problem known to modern families. I'm sounding a little to flippant about this considering I really do agree with the basic premise, the presentation just irked me. But props to the author nonetheless for making it happen. I'm sure if I were to write a book it would be far from perfect.
If you're interested in this topic, there's a concise 30-min podcast episode on the podcast 3-in-30 Takeaways for Moms with this author as the guest: Episode 128: How to get your kids to play outside & why it matters.
April 7, 2017
Richard Louv's book "Last Child in the Woods" made the case that the outdoors is good for you. Angela Hanson, an occupational therapist, makes the case that we injure and maybe even disable children when we have them spend so much time indoors, on "safe" play equipment, and in supervised pay.
We even need new terminology to describe this. Container Baby Syndrome (CBS) describes the problems caused by spending too much time in "baby containers", like child seats, walkers, strollers, and so on. These "safe" containers cause flat spots on heads, poor visual/body coordination, low strength, poor vestibular development, poor balance, and more.
She tested three classrooms of fifth-graders who had trouble paying attention. They fidgeted, even fell out of their chairs. She tested core strength and balance skills, simple things like spinning in a circle ten times with eyes open, then closed. Compared to the average for children from 1984, only one out of twelve children could meet the expected level! [pages 47 and 48]
We even need new terminology to describe this. Container Baby Syndrome (CBS) describes the problems caused by spending too much time in "baby containers", like child seats, walkers, strollers, and so on. These "safe" containers cause flat spots on heads, poor visual/body coordination, low strength, poor vestibular development, poor balance, and more.
She tested three classrooms of fifth-graders who had trouble paying attention. They fidgeted, even fell out of their chairs. She tested core strength and balance skills, simple things like spinning in a circle ten times with eyes open, then closed. Compared to the average for children from 1984, only one out of twelve children could meet the expected level! [pages 47 and 48]
June 29, 2021
Parts of this book I really liked. I liked and agreed with what she said about risky play/messy play, and enjoyed the tips in the last chapter. But for a majority of the book it felt like one of those stereotypical "when I was young we did it this way and it's better" type things. It felt a little condescending? Maybe it would've felt different if I didn't listen to the audio book, who knows. I also really hated when she said parents need to get over stranger danger and that you should let your little kids wander off by themselves. That really irked me. Also I will still tell my child not to eat dirt, sorry 🤷🏼♀️ My other issue was that there was no talk of children with disabilities. idk if it's a me thing, but I think it would've been nice to at least have a small part dedicated to that.
Overall I felt like I didn't learn very much new info that I liked, and what I did learn and like could've been summed up in an Instagram post.
Overall I felt like I didn't learn very much new info that I liked, and what I did learn and like could've been summed up in an Instagram post.
July 4, 2017
This was a fascinating and educational read.
I agree that children spend far too much time indoors doing various things such as playing video games, playing on their phones or watching T.V. and that it has had an effect on how the brain now learns and deciphers information.
I also agree that children need to spend more time outside doing physical activity to stimulate muscles, to work on developing their fine motor and gross motor skills, get cardiovascular exercise, and release endorphins into their bodies. And I do also agree that being outside and "getting fresh air" is extremely important in developing a healthy mind, spirit and body.
But, there has to be a balance with everything.
I don't think that being outside will eliminate or cure a child who has behaviour issues, but it will certainly help.
This was an interesting perspective and philosophy to read.
I learned a lot.
February 4, 2023
This is a very practical book that would make a great baby shower or new baby gift. She presents a very convincing argument for outdoor time/free play for children of all ages and gives plenty of examples of things you can do to encourage growth in different areas of coordination and experience.
The 4 stars is because I think she was pretty repetitive and it could have been presented more succinctly.
The 4 stars is because I think she was pretty repetitive and it could have been presented more succinctly.
October 9, 2025
Would recommend to anyone with kids age 0-5, especially if they’re considering putting their kids in therapy or are concerned about their child’s development.
A lot of what it recommends is stuff that is already happening in our home, but it was encouraging to hear more about how those ordinary daily activities positively impact kids.
Lots of overlap with Until the Streetlights Come On, Anxious Generation, and No Such Thing as Bad Weather.
A lot of what it recommends is stuff that is already happening in our home, but it was encouraging to hear more about how those ordinary daily activities positively impact kids.
Lots of overlap with Until the Streetlights Come On, Anxious Generation, and No Such Thing as Bad Weather.
May 10, 2023
I wanted to enjoy this book. But I quickly discovered how out of touch the author is from today’s parents and children. Her sources were lacking (neighborhood chiropractor, teacher friend, etc.) Neighborhood chiropractors and teacher friends are great, but one single opinion based on their individual experience is not enough evidence to make the kind of claims she was making. My jaw dropped when she said that today’s children lack the ability to regulate emotions like the previous generations (paraphrase). Ask most mental health professionals their opinion on this statement and I think they would beg to differ.
All in all, we know there are endless benefits for everyone, especially children to immerse themselves in nature and unrestricted play. And the lack of this is one piece of the puzzle to why we are seeing rising rate of all the things she listed. The thoughts mentioned in this book aren’t accessible to most. And let’s be real, as parents we don’t need one more thing claiming that we are failing our kids while the world crumbles around us.
All in all, we know there are endless benefits for everyone, especially children to immerse themselves in nature and unrestricted play. And the lack of this is one piece of the puzzle to why we are seeing rising rate of all the things she listed. The thoughts mentioned in this book aren’t accessible to most. And let’s be real, as parents we don’t need one more thing claiming that we are failing our kids while the world crumbles around us.
February 4, 2019
I read this book because it was recommended to me by a family remember, and I've also been on a quest recently to read lots of books about parenting. I was fascinated to hear more of this author's ideas on children's play, sadly I did not end up liking the book.
While I agreed with the author on her basic premise, overall I found her ideas on many other things to be problematic and very critical of things that she had no actual evidence to be critical of. She seemed to suggest that any sort of disability in a child can be cured by just playing outside. And I'm sure that some children's ADHD could be helped by outside play, but the way the author talked about disabilities was ignorant and annoying.
I didn't really finish the book, I skimmed some of it but in the end I couldn't stand it. I gave it 1 star on Goodreads.
While I agreed with the author on her basic premise, overall I found her ideas on many other things to be problematic and very critical of things that she had no actual evidence to be critical of. She seemed to suggest that any sort of disability in a child can be cured by just playing outside. And I'm sure that some children's ADHD could be helped by outside play, but the way the author talked about disabilities was ignorant and annoying.
I didn't really finish the book, I skimmed some of it but in the end I couldn't stand it. I gave it 1 star on Goodreads.
March 19, 2022
In Balanced and Barefoot, Hanscom (a pediatric occupational therapist) makes the case that our children desperately need more time outdoors in free play. When compared with children from previous generations, this generation is weaker, has a harder time sitting still and paying attention, is more anxious and emotional, and struggles with gross and fine motor skills, among other things. Hanson believes that all of this is directly tied to our over-scheduled, screen-focused, indoor lifestyle. In her practice, she has seen the difference in children who are given the chance to spend free time in nature, allowed to explore and play.
I didn't need any convincing to buy Hanscom's premise. I have long been concerned about the disconnection from nature for my children and their peers. None of the information in the book was new to me, but it gave me an increased resolve to protect and prioritize my children's time outdoors. (As I type this, they are currently running around the front yard with their faces upturned yelling delightedly, "It's HAILING! It's HAILING!")
I didn't need any convincing to buy Hanscom's premise. I have long been concerned about the disconnection from nature for my children and their peers. None of the information in the book was new to me, but it gave me an increased resolve to protect and prioritize my children's time outdoors. (As I type this, they are currently running around the front yard with their faces upturned yelling delightedly, "It's HAILING! It's HAILING!")
January 12, 2023
3.5
Very repetitive, but a nice reminder of the importance of outside and independent play.
Very repetitive, but a nice reminder of the importance of outside and independent play.
June 16, 2024
Loved this book!! Incorporated so much of my own parenting philosophy and gave such good advice and ideas. Will definitely re-read once my kids are older too.
June 17, 2025
Such a good book. Informative and easy to read and understand. Provided many helpful examples for getting our kids outside everyday
October 13, 2021
It’s two stars for two reasons: one, this could have been a blog post. I don’t know how many times she repeated herself (seemingly) just to fill pages and two, I was sorely mistaken in thinking I would get research or even a strong anecdotal-backed case for why children are healthiest being outside often. The annoying thing is I agree with her conclusions, I just don’t agree with her opinion based premises.
February 6, 2017
Ugh. Presented as scientific research where the author cites an n=1 over and over. "I have a friend, I have a chiropractor, so and so said ... ". Take your kids outside. It will fix everything wrong with them and with you. The end. I can't believe this book was published.
December 28, 2022
A bit repetitive, but worth the read. Wish I could have read it when my kids were younger, as I think it would have motivated me to establish better habits. It did make me even more grateful for the childhood I enjoyed.
December 12, 2019
Good information for every parent to know about how playtime outdoors is beneficial for kids!
May 7, 2024
Every person who cares for a child should read this inspiring and practical book.
September 29, 2023
If I could give this book six stars I would! This was an incredibly powerful and transformative read.
I began reading this as the private school that I lead just launched a forest school program for 4-year-olds to 1st graders. I was excited to read this book as it was a popular and well-reviewed resource on the topic of the advantages of outdoor free play for children. This book blew my mind.
The author is the founder of TimberNook and a pediatric occupational therapist. Drawing from her own experience in working with kids with a variety of challenges, the academic studies on child development, and the countless testimonies of educators, she makes a compelling case for outdoor free play as a magic key that is missing for our kids in our modern world.
The author demonstrates through scientific and social study, as well as loads of anecdotal testimony, that outdoor free play with reasonable risk is absolutely necessary for the physical, emotional, social, and academic development of our kids. It demonstrates that kids now are far less adjusted, physically capable, resilient, and prepared than kids in the 70's, 80's, and 90's. That much of what is causing it can be traced back to the shrinking (to almost non-existent today) time for outdoor free play. The dramatic rise in sensory challenges and other diagnoses (ADHD etc) can be traced back to a lack of outdoor free play that stimulates proper development.
After that demonstration, she goes on to show how many simple play activities are necessary biologically, socially, and emotionally and how modern life is taking those away from our kids. This book is a call for parents and educators to change everything about how we think about play, safety, the outdoors, screen time, rigid school schedules, and more for the sake of our children.
This book is well-written and extremely readable. It is organized and structured naturally and a great resource to teach from. It is packed with references and support.
Truly one of the most transformative books I have ever read. It will forever change how I look at my school's schedule, our goals for our students, the amount of recess and play we offer, and more. Everyone should read this book and that is not an overstatement.
I began reading this as the private school that I lead just launched a forest school program for 4-year-olds to 1st graders. I was excited to read this book as it was a popular and well-reviewed resource on the topic of the advantages of outdoor free play for children. This book blew my mind.
The author is the founder of TimberNook and a pediatric occupational therapist. Drawing from her own experience in working with kids with a variety of challenges, the academic studies on child development, and the countless testimonies of educators, she makes a compelling case for outdoor free play as a magic key that is missing for our kids in our modern world.
The author demonstrates through scientific and social study, as well as loads of anecdotal testimony, that outdoor free play with reasonable risk is absolutely necessary for the physical, emotional, social, and academic development of our kids. It demonstrates that kids now are far less adjusted, physically capable, resilient, and prepared than kids in the 70's, 80's, and 90's. That much of what is causing it can be traced back to the shrinking (to almost non-existent today) time for outdoor free play. The dramatic rise in sensory challenges and other diagnoses (ADHD etc) can be traced back to a lack of outdoor free play that stimulates proper development.
After that demonstration, she goes on to show how many simple play activities are necessary biologically, socially, and emotionally and how modern life is taking those away from our kids. This book is a call for parents and educators to change everything about how we think about play, safety, the outdoors, screen time, rigid school schedules, and more for the sake of our children.
This book is well-written and extremely readable. It is organized and structured naturally and a great resource to teach from. It is packed with references and support.
Truly one of the most transformative books I have ever read. It will forever change how I look at my school's schedule, our goals for our students, the amount of recess and play we offer, and more. Everyone should read this book and that is not an overstatement.
November 29, 2023
I think I first saw this book on 1000hrs outside, and then around at my daughters preschool. The material wasn't a stretch for me in that we already do a lot of outdoors, but a good encourager to keep doing what we're already doing. If you're finding yourself inside a little more these days with kiddos this book might be the little boost to get outside more. I most enjoyed the chapters, "The Therapeutic Value of Outdoor Play" (chapter 4) and chapter 6 on playgrounds. Chapter 4 was a good reminder of the sensory benefits of outside (think sensory bin x 10), the calming effect of natural sounds and landscapes, potential benefit for eyesight development, and more. Chapter 6 on playgrounds was interesting to think about playgrounds of the early 1900s, reflect on playgrounds of my childhood and what you may find at most playgrounds today. She also had a helpful section on what to look for in a playground (natural components, space to move, easy on the colors, simple but challenging equipment). There was also a chapter just for help with getting babies outside. And a page in the back with some recommended reading.
All in all I liked it, but it wasn't much new information to me. I did like when she talked about her program TimberNook. Sounds like a great occupational therapy program that gets kids in nature who otherwise wouldn't and can really benefit from it. I liked the two rules they have for the TimberNook program: respect others, and stay where an adult can see you. That's it. Simple but with a lot of room for kiddos to explore.
It was a quick and easy read.
The best benefit was after finishing the book we went on a nice walk to the playground and because of all the things I had been reading we walked a little slower, listened and looked for birds, picked up more acorns than we could carry, but I may have been too inspired and spun too many times on the spiny thing once we got there!
All in all I liked it, but it wasn't much new information to me. I did like when she talked about her program TimberNook. Sounds like a great occupational therapy program that gets kids in nature who otherwise wouldn't and can really benefit from it. I liked the two rules they have for the TimberNook program: respect others, and stay where an adult can see you. That's it. Simple but with a lot of room for kiddos to explore.
It was a quick and easy read.
The best benefit was after finishing the book we went on a nice walk to the playground and because of all the things I had been reading we walked a little slower, listened and looked for birds, picked up more acorns than we could carry, but I may have been too inspired and spun too many times on the spiny thing once we got there!
February 12, 2023
Part of me wishes I had this when the girls were little. Another part of me is grateful I didn't have even more guilt about not getting us all outside. I keep reminding myself the boys are young so I still have time to learn and make course corrections.
I read this book slowly with Scholé Sisters at the pace of about a chapter a week over several months. I don't think I would have enjoyed reading it straight through because the chapters are repetitive. That actually worked to my advantage with slow reading though, and I benefited from coming back to the same ideas from slightly different angles. I feel like I knew about 90% of the content, but it was good for me to learn that last 10% and have constant reminders to figure out how to apply what I was learning.
Application ideas: Go to the nature park about once a week. Figure out how to build a set of real monkey bars.
I read this book slowly with Scholé Sisters at the pace of about a chapter a week over several months. I don't think I would have enjoyed reading it straight through because the chapters are repetitive. That actually worked to my advantage with slow reading though, and I benefited from coming back to the same ideas from slightly different angles. I feel like I knew about 90% of the content, but it was good for me to learn that last 10% and have constant reminders to figure out how to apply what I was learning.
Application ideas: Go to the nature park about once a week. Figure out how to build a set of real monkey bars.
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