Setting nature connectedness goals in early childhood education curricula

Numerous studies have shown that spending time in nature can have positive impacts on health and wellbeing. Nature experiences in early childhood can be particularly powerful and impactful because children are impressionable and begin to form their environmental identities during this developmental stage. Studies indicate that early participation in nature experiences can facilitate human-nature connectedness and build the foundation for lifelong pro-environmental behaviors. This paper focused on the importance of connecting children to nature and used empirical evidence to make a case for establishing nature connectedness goals in early childhood education curricula. These goals may take many forms, ranging from having children spend time outside to measuring connection to nature. In this study, the authors examined whether and how countries have integrated nature connectedness goals into their education policies in order to make recommendations to policymakers, researchers, and practitioners.

The authors investigated early childhood education policies of United Nations agencies and English-speaking countries around the world. They reviewed curriculum documents, UN and other international organization publications, Department of Education publications from several countries, and peer reviewed research papers. They found that global organizations, such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund), promoted education policies that emphasized the importance of enhancing students' emotional and social wellbeing. While evidence suggests that nature connectedness builds emotional and social wellbeing, these organizations had not set nature connectedness goals and outcomes. Other global organizations, such as UNESCO (the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), promoted Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), which incorporates nature connectedness. However, education systems have been slow to adopt curricular changes that include ESD.

At the national scale, the authors found that while many English-speaking countries emphasized the importance of educational curricula that facilitate human-human interactions and relationships, these countries placed less emphasis on the development of human-nature relationships. However, the Australian, Scottish, and Canadian governments have established explicit goals promoting ESD and stewardship of the natural world, both of which may foster nature connectedness.

In reviewing early education research and educational practices in different countries, the authors identified many ways to promote nature connectedness in early childhood education. They found that, as children spend less time outdoors, it is becoming especially important that educators integrate outdoor learning into their curricula. Many education systems across the world—including Australia, Canada, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland—have prioritized opportunities for children to spend time and learn in nature. They also found that forest and nature preschools have been growing in popularity across Europe and the United States, which offer nature-centric learning experiences.

From their review of the research, the authors also found that facilitating nature connectedness requires more than simply spending time in nature. It requires strategy and intentionality, thoughtful EE lessons, and a focus on affective/emotional experiences with nature. This affective component is particularly important in terms of building long-term connectedness to nature. Other ways to build nature connectedness through early childhood educational experiences include: (1) giving children independence to explore their natural environment; (2) offering activities that encourage children to develop feelings of freedom and comfort while in nature; and (3) encouraging children to cultivate emotional connections to nature, such as seeing beauty in the environment, developing an affinity toward the natural world, and caring for the environment.

The findings of this paper was limited because the authors did not provide information about the effectiveness of specific nature connectedness goals or curricular designs. This review focused on policies and practices of English-speaking countries in a specific period of time; these may vary in other locations and time frames.

Given the benefits of nature connectedness, the authors recommend that curricular frameworks include nature connectedness goals and outcomes. They also emphasize that several reliable and valid scales—such as the Connection to Nature Index (CNI), the Short Form Nature Relatedness Scale (NR-6), and the single item Nature in Self Scale (INS)—exist for measuring nature connectedness in children, and they recommend that these scales be used to evaluate how programs may effectively facilitate nature connectedness.