Leadership from the Outdoors

I recently "Googled" high school leadership and received back over 17 million hits, youth leadership opportunities returned over 2 million hits, and organizational leadership found almost 3 million hits. There were Web sites for schools, leadership workshops, job opportunities, and organizations. The number of leadership opportunities available to children, high school students, and even adults is astonishing. Leadership skills are essential to one's success, especially in times of economic uncertainty.

There are different ways a person can further develop his or her own leadership skills. Options include reading books and articles, attending classes and workshops, and through practice. While the first two options will help people learn new techniques and skills, I don't think anyone can truly improve his or her leadership abilities without practice. The greatest leaders do not attribute their success to anyone or anything. To them, being an effective leader is just something they do.

Spending time in the outdoors is one way to practice these skills. This might be a confusing connection, but here is my logic. When a child (or anyone really) spends time exploring in the outdoors s/he becomes more independent. S/he doesn't need a screen to be entertained, s/he doesn't need to go to a parent complaining of being bored, and s/he can use her/his imagination to stay active. When you are independent, you tend to have more self-confidence. With confidence, the child feels s/he can accomplish anything. When confronted with an obstacle, s/he doesn't give up, but rather conquers it without question. Independence and confidence are two characteristics of great leaders. S/he isn't worried about what other people think, s/he does not second-guess her/himself, and s/he is willing to go the extra mile to achieve success.

How do you try to improve upon your leadership skills?

Nature Activities

I have got to say the beautiful weather of the past few weeks has started to make it harder to sit indoors and work, especially when the days are full of sunshine and warmth.  I can think of a thousand things to do outside on a spring afternoon, even raking pine needles to get some fresh air sounds therapeutic.  For those of us who live in the outdoors it seems natural to step outside, but I know when the city streets seem to fill your backyard instead of the mountain's forests, it can be hard to talk kids into getting out there.

Sanborn staff recently presented a session at the National American Camp Association Conference titled "101 Nature Activities."  Our goal was to help demonstrate how accessible the outdoors can be and that you don't need a lot of "stuff" to have fun outside.  Like Jane mentioned in her post,  April is Children and Nature Month, why not get out there and take advantage of what Mother Nature has to offer?  Here are a couple of quick activities to enjoy that will help to create a sense of wonder no matter how old you are.  They have been written to be used in a camp setting, but part of the beauty is taking them and adapting them to work anywhere: your backyard, a city park, or an open space nearby. 

Special Spots:  When out on a hike look for an area where children can spread out and find a Special Spot.  Explain to them that they will be "a giant" (think Horton Hears a Who) in their Special Spot, so they will need to inspect it closely to discover what is going on there.  When they enter their Special Spot, they will be entering a little community that already existed before they arrived, so it is important not to do anything which would disturb or damage their spot.  Look carefully at rocks and sticks.  What shapes are they?  Where do you think they came from?  what living things do you find? How do they depend on the non-living things in your spot?  What sounds or smells do you experience?  Take time to just be, to sit and take in the view.

FBI Hike: This fun activity can take place anywhere.  The FBI (Forest Bureau of Investigation) can also become the CIA (City Investigation Agency).  Kids are challenged to explore their environment to find evidence of criminal activity within the natural world.  Examples might include trees which are "littering" by carelessly scattering needles or leaves, birds "murdering" insects or worms, or squirrels kidnapping the "children" (seeds) of trees.  The possibilities are endless and can lead to discussions about food chains, interrelationships within the natural world and many other natural principles.  Investigators can use digital cameras to document the crime scene and make notes about the evidence they find.  At the end of the hike, the detectives make "Wanted" posters describing each criminal they uncovered.

Paint Chip Hike: Give each child a paint chip sample from a hardware store.  They can be all colors pinks, reds, greens, blues; they don't even have to seem like natural colors.  As you are hiking have the kids try to match their color with natural things they see like a purple flower or neon yellow lichen.

We would love to learn about any other great activities that help children gain an appreciation of the natural world around them, so let us hear what you have done and ideas you have.