Does your child play outside for 3 hours a day?

[StopGrowingPlease]

I’ve just seen this -
‘Pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom calls active free play outdoors, “the most beneficial gift we as parents…can bestow on our children.” Hanscom says ideally kids should be playing outside 3 hours each day, and that doesn’t include organized sports.’
Do your children play outside for 3 hours a day?
My 18 month old has just come back inside after about 40 minutes playing in the garden. He’s also had a 30 minute music class and a 45 minute Little Movers class today. He’s now having his tea and will then probably want to play with his toys inside for a couple of hours before I attempt getting him to sleep. When we go to the park he’s usually out of the pram and playing/walking around for about an hour.
Is this not enough?? What do you and your children do??

No. Spring and summer yes.

Our grass hasn't been mown yet this year and it's soggy and boggy in the garden.

We go for a walk for about an hour each day but in the cold and wet I don't want to do a lot more than that. We play in the house and go out twice a day.

We haven't been for a walk at all today as we've been ill for a week and we're just not getting over it. It's peeing with rain and the thought of 3 hours outside is horrific tbh!

What kinds of things do you all do with young toddlers (18 months ish) in the garden? We do go for walks and things but she doesn't yet have the stamina to walk for that long. In parks she doesn't enjoy the swings now that she can walk, but all the other apparatus is too big for her just now.

Yes, but we live where I can just turn them out on their own and they are home educated. Otherwise I can’t imagine how it would be possible.

Day to day definitely not. But some days certainly.
Ds (11) helped us in the garden the other day, we were wheelbarrowing logs and then he was sweeping and other random jobs just because he wanted to help us in the garden which was sweet! We were out there pretty much from 9:30-4 and went inside for lunch.
I encourage some form out outside activity every day although I wouldn’t force it when the weathers shit or whatever.
Basically I am always encouraging everyone in the house to spend more time outdoors 😂

Can I ask from what age yours enjoyed just going out in the garden? Mine are 4 and 20 months and I find the garden so, so stressful. So much getting them dressed and then what do you do once you are out there? I honestly hate it but would love to overcome this as both of mine stay home with me!

She's just saying something eye-catching to grab some attention as she's trying to sell a book

Our after school club is mainly free play outdoors. It’s one of the reasons we use it (instead of me cutting my working hours). In winter they play out with torches till 5:30. Realistically in winter if I picked up at 3:15 we might manage a short walk but then we’d be indoors at home.

In winter they play out with torches till 5:30

Oh wow this is cool!! Very envious

Ds was two at the very start of the year and he enjoys it now. He potters around filling his toy wheelbarrow with stones, he has a toy watering can (pain as I need to keep re filling it!) a Little Tykes car, a pull along toy of some description. We also live on a country road so he likes waving at any tractors that go past. In the house it’s a nightmare and he just won’t ‘play’at all!

It varies hugely from day to day. Sometimes were out all day long and they're running around for maybe 6 or 7 hours. Other days we'll pop out to the park for 40 minutes.

Definitely not. DD is 1 and some days we don't go outside at all. She can't walk yet and hates the rain cover (not sure I see much point in going for a walk with her stuck behind there anyway!) so I only use it if I have to. We also don't have a garden.
However I do anticipate once she is walking we will spend much more time outside as she has lots of energy and would like her to be an outside kid. I'm going to take her to forest school and outdoor messy play as soon as she can walk.
I do very much believe in playing out in all weathers and already have a puddle suit etc for the summer/autumn.

Mine did Nature Kindergarten so were used to being outdoors from 8am until 6pm from 3 years old. They still prefer to be outside rather than inside now at 10 and 8.

Illness this Winter has had such an impact though. They've both had some virus every single week since October.

I would like tips on this too. Mine have always loved the park but they get bored in the garden. We have so much stuff - mud kitchen, sandpit etc - they enjoy planting things but that's it.

Definitely depends on the season. I suspect March to September yes for my school-aged child and nursery one (although including sports might not that back). Once the weather is nice they’ll spend hours in the garden if given the chance. We do have a swing set, mud kitchen, paddling pools etc though so we’re well equipped.

In the winter I doubt it. I suspect they’d be closer to 1-2 on a dry sunny day and less on a very rainy day especially in mid winter when it is dark at 4pm. I’m sure there will be days when the outside play time is 0.

Yes, but only because we're fortunate enough to send our 3yo daughter to a fully outdoor forest nursery. We figured she'll spend most of her childhood in a classroom, so we may as well give her a couple of years of tree climbing and puddle jumping first!

How can this be realistic as most dc would only get a bit of outdoor play at school. In the summer they might get it after school.

On Mns posters say they would never let their dc in the garden before 8am or later.

My 10yo will have spent...
An hour at school playtime
An hour at school PE
90 minutes at Rugby practic

They do that everyday?

Yes. Almost every day. My Ds I find hard work indoors, so we spend a lot of time outside.
On nursery mornings they usually spend 2 out of the 3 hours outside, even in snowy winters. The nursery garden is huge and backs onto the woods.

Hes 2. We can spend hours in our garden also. Sandpit and mud kitchen are a hit. He likes to find bugs and collect stuff. Helps me weed or plant stuff. Digs. Has toy ride on tractor and balance bike in garden. Help sweeps up leaves, or me paint stuff.

We usually go out on the bike around the block or into the woods above most afternoons also. Sometimes just us, often neighbours kids join.

Realistically not everyday. Today was so miserable they didn't even go outside with preschool. Older DD walked home but as it was so rainy she was miserable when she arrived home(despite a decent coat and an umbrella before anyone asks). We all know being outside in the fresh air is good for us but sometimes it's just not possible

Yes but we have a pony so they spend a lot of time at the yard mucking out and we have a large garden with swing set, mud kitchen, we get gymnastics equipment out for them. The last 3-4 evenings it’s been dry and quite mild so they’ve played out after school in the garden for a couple of hours.

DD2 who is 4 spent 2+ hours outside gardening with DH today as well. But they love being outside more than inside.

No but we should be aiming for it. DC1 will come close because they are at private school. DC2 at state school won't. It will dramatically go up when the weather cheers up. In summer we easily hit the 3 hours.

In the summer my children are sometimes outside for all their waking hours.

In the winter it’s probably closer to an hour. When they’re at nursery it’s particularly difficult and they have a really tiny garden there.

Why can't we include sport? That seems ridiculous - mine has 1.5 hours 2x a week running around a rugby field, why doesn't that count?

And does only playing count? What about the walk to/ from school? Hiking and biking at the weekend? And what about indoor exercise: karate and swimming, can I count them?

Not in wet weather or winter. Why on earth would anyone enjoy this?? It sounds utterly miserable imo!

When they were home educated they were outside most of the day. Now, not so much. In winter, maybe an hour a day outside of school, or eat weekends.

Spring/Summer, outside most of the day between garden/beach/pool/park.