Anyone else have kids who dislike outside?

[Sctigermom]

You would think I put my kids in an absolute awful place when I tell them to go play outside. It's always too hot or too cold or too windy or too wet or too whatever. They will sit on the porch and stare at each other, beat on the door, stare at me through the windows. When I was a kid I lived outside. I am an only child and ALWAYS found something to do outside. They have each other to play with outside so I don't understand why they feel like it's torture. I know that they would rather be glued to some electronic, but I don't like them stuck in front of a tv or video game (they get limited daily use). So does anyone else have kids they have to force outside (and sometimes lock the back door to keep them out there!)?

[rwjx2khsmj]

I force two of my children outside daily. They aren't glued to anything electronic. Usually they carry their books outside and read there. My ds will tell you he's just not an outside kid.

[Catwoman]

I don't force my ds to play outside. It doesn't matter whether or not I liked to play outside when I was a kid. It's not about me and what I liked or didn't like. It's about him and how he feels about it.

 

If he wants to play outside, he plays outside. If he'd rather stay in the house, he stays in the house.

[Amy in NH]

I don't force my ds to play outside. It doesn't matter whether or not I liked to play outside when I was a kid. It's not about me and what I liked or didn't like. It's about him and how he feels about it.

 

If he wants to play outside, he plays outside. If he'd rather stay in the house, he stays in the house.

 

Perhaps it's about his health and well-being. Playing outside is GOOD for kids. Fresh air and exercise and all that. The world doesn't always revolve around my child's uninformed whims. Sometimes a parent needs to guide a child to do what's best for them.

 

To the OP: I often meet with some resistance when I send my kids outdoors to play. It is more a matter of being happy with what they are doing or planned to do indoors, and once they actually get outside they are happy out there. I would shoo them off the porch, though. They can sit around anywhere off the porch if they choose, but they always find something to do.

[Pawz4me]

My kids never liked to play outside. And as teenagers they still don't.

 

I never forced them, that makes zero sense to me.

 

But thankfully both are quite willing to go outside if there's a meaningful purpose to it. Ask them to mow, help weed, do any kind of yard work, walk the dogs, wash the car, etc. and they'll cheerfully pitch in.

[AimeeM]

Well, I *was* that kid (I have the opposite as children - both of my able kiddos, ages 11 and 3, love being outside).

I can tell you that my mom forcing me to play outdoors did nothing to excite me about the outdoors. I still firmly dislike being outdoors to this day and, as an adult, avoid it if at all possible. I take the kiddos to the park, the zoo, and do things outdoors with them, but I would much prefer a good board game, read aloud, to crochet, or even play ball/chase each other/etc INSIDE the house. Lol.

Edited October 1, 2012 by AimeeM

[AimeeM]

Perhaps it's about his health and well-being. Playing outside is GOOD for kids. Fresh air and exercise and all that. The world doesn't always revolve around my child's uninformed whims. Sometimes a parent needs to guide a child to do what's best for them.

 

To the OP: I often meet with some resistance when I send my kids outdoors to play. It is more a matter of being happy with what they are doing or planned to do indoors, and once they actually get outside they are happy out there. I would shoo them off the porch, though. They can sit around anywhere off the porch if they choose, but they always find something to do.

Sure, but really (short of walking behind them and physically forcing them to move on some level) you can't *make* a child enjoy it or *play* outside. Not really.

My mom used to shoo me outside for a couple hours a day and I would just lay around somewhere and read (even if it meant hiding a book somewhere outside). It just wasn't on my scope of things I enjoyed doing (playing). We lived in an area ripe with possibilities - for a child who enjoys that sort of thing; there were ponds, creeks, woods, farmland, and over 3 acres of easy-to-navigate land to play on. It just wasn't *me*.

Edited October 1, 2012 by AimeeM

[2squared]

Enjoying nature and being outdoors is valued highly in our family. As a result, my kids have been trained to find things to enjoy outside. I don't enjoy it, but I spent many, many hours outside while my oldest two were little. Their training worked, and now the others follow along with the big kids. Dh spends a ton of time outside, so they see his example as well.

 

At the stage where the OP is, I wouldn't have been able to kick the kids out without going with them. Well, the kids would have gone but not willing or with joy.

[Mom-ninja.]

Well, it is really hot where I live. I don't like being outside, and I normally love being outside.

 

That's why we love the winter here. We can go outside.

[Karen in CO]

My ds always hated being outside unless he was playing sports, snowboarding or hanging out with friends. He now lives in Tokyo, and when he comes home, he will sit outside for hours just looking at the sky and breathing fresh air.

[Mommyof4ks]

I have one child that does not like being outside, but he is allergic to everything out there, so I can't blame him lol. He is required to go out daily for vit D and fresh air. It is a battle some days though, but then so is reading and math, so he clearly does not understand what is best for himself yet.

[Sharon37127]

We have that issue here, but I think it's because we live in He!!, I mean Florida. :) It is too hot out most of the time. When we lived in the Midwest it was never a problem getting them to go outside.

 

This is us. We live in the Tampa Bay area and it is just too hot most of the time. I am not going to force my kids in that heat. I wouldn't do it. I wount ask them to do it, because I wount do it. I hated being outside as a kid- still do. We get physical activity other ways. As far as fresh air- well it maybe healthier for you, but here- you can't hardly breathe since it is so humid.

 

I've read the whole "fresh air and exercise in the sunshine" deal, but if they just go out there to read- they get more exercise inside playing tag or walking on my treadmill.

 

But that's just us.

[Wheres Toto]

My son hates to be outside, my youngest daughter loves it. It makes life interesting when neither can really be left alone.

 

We have bears, and various other wildlife, a steep hill leading to a river, and my dd doesn't always have common sense (like when she threw a rock up in the air and hit herself in the head), so dd can't be left outside alone.

 

Ds can only be left alone in the house if he is on the computer so I try to force him outside as well. He is very very sensitive to heat (gets flushed and nauseous) so summer was bad. It's better now - we actually spent about 4 hours outside the other day at a local petting farm and he didn't complain at all.

 

We have a large play structure with swings (and soon a sandbox), a small trampoline, bubbles, chalk. They will both play outside quite a bit if we get snow.

[Sctigermom]

Do they have something to do aside from examine the grass for ants and avoid bees etc?

 

It's no trouble to play out when there's a vehicle to drive, dump trucks to fill & empty, material to make forts, hiding spots, sandbox, chalk, slide etc. I did have to show some kids in the neighborhood how to play kickball and alley over.

 

We have a garden they can weed ANYTIME, a playhouse with a sandbox under it (cars,trucks, old pans, ect), slide, swings, a giant rock, balls, nerf guns, chalk,ect. So I would say they have PLENTY of things to keep them occupied.

[NotSoObvious]

My son hates to be outside, my youngest daughter loves it. It makes life interesting when neither can really be left alone.

 

We have bears, and various other wildlife, a steep hill leading to a river, and my dd doesn't always have common sense (like when she threw a rock up in the air and hit herself in the head), so dd can't be left outside alone.

 

Ds can only be left alone in the house if he is on the computer so I try to force him outside as well. He is very very sensitive to heat (gets flushed and nauseous) so summer was bad. It's better now - we actually spent about 4 hours outside the other day at a local petting farm and he didn't complain at all.

 

We have a large play structure with swings (and soon a sandbox), a small trampoline, bubbles, chalk. They will both play outside quite a bit if we get snow.

:lol::lol::lol:

Our dds would get along well!

The other day she came in and said, "I fell out of a tree, but I'm ok. I'm not bleeding." She falls, trips, and drops things multiple times a day. And sometimes her decisions make no sense at all!

[Seeker of Schole]

We have a garden they can weed ANYTIME, a playhouse with a sandbox under it (cars,trucks, old pans, ect), slide, swings, a giant rock, balls, nerf guns, chalk,ect. So I would say they have PLENTY of things to keep them occupied.

 

Your children are 5, 4, and 1 - correct? Have you gone out to play with them? Like someone up thread said, you might need to train them. With my dd(4) I had to invest the time outside with her, play with her on the playground, in the sandbox, play pretend games with her for a while. Now when I send her outside she always has a game to play.

[mommy5]

One of my children that has some sensory problems (not my child with autism who also has sensory integration disorder) and some anxiety issues does not like being out for long. He will go out now on his bike or scooter for short period of time ... only if it is not too hot out. He has gotten better about it recently but still doesn't want to go out everyday (I encourage this). My other kids love being outside.

[reign]

What do they play when they are inside? My kids often bring the inside toys outside. We have a small house 650sq and tv/computer time isn't a option for them most of the time. We are outside right now. Oldest is playing with dolls and making cakes out of dirt and flowers. Middle is sweeping up the dirt. My youngest is mixing water into dirt to make soup. Before this the were playing on the scooters. I also have a blanket with some toy arrows/bow, hopping balls, and Bilibos. That being said if they wanted to be inside playing nicely or reading I'm all for it. Asking as they are being nice I don't really care what they doing. We do watch tv daily as a family at night. And abit of computer after homework. They are now washing the car lol

[elegantlion]

My kids never liked to play outside. And as teenagers they still don't.

 

I never forced them, that makes zero sense to me.

 

But thankfully both are quite willing to go outside if there's a meaningful purpose to it. Ask them to mow, help weed, do any kind of yard work, walk the dogs, wash the car, etc. and they'll cheerfully pitch in.

 

Unless there is a purpose, ds doesn't like to be outdoors. Where we used to live we spent a lot of time outside doing stuff and when he was little we did.

[Incognito]

I haven't read all the replies, but in my experience with my youngish children, the issue might be the limited daily screen time. When my kids thought/think they will get screen time every day they somehow lose the ability to entertain themselves with anything fun and just lay around complaining.

 

TV only happens a couple of times a week around here, and never after complaints of boredom. That seems to help a lot with that type of attitude and my kids are much happier to play outside. FWIW, they also tend to complain about it if they are interrupted in their play/story to go outside, but I try to either give them a 5-10 minute warning or do it between their little stories.

 

HTH

[Dinsfamily]

Buying a play structure was great for getting my dc outside. We able to find one very cheap on Craig's List. They love play and eating in the fort, swinging, and sliding. My older ones will now ride bikes and play sports too, but that didn't happen until they were about 5-6. ETA: We did put them in soccer at 3-4yo so they got a lot of outside time and exercise each week.

 

We also swim, hike, and geocache as a family. I also take them to the park to play with other kids, but that takes more time than just sending them outside.

 

FWIW: I do think being outside is important for many reasons. Vitamin D exposure is one of the main reasons I get them outside everyday I can.

Edited October 1, 2012 by Dinsfamily

[Dinsfamily]

Does anyone have preschoolers that choose to weed the garden as play time? I had one that wanted to do pest control, but have yet to meet one that wanted to weed. Of course they would play landscape dude..dig up a plant and truck it to its new home.

 

Sounds like they need some training on how to play pretend and invent games. Maybe an older neighborhood child?

 

I wish I had preschoolers like that! Ds8 loves plants and flowers so he will weed and water to make them happy. He learned quickly to take things into his own hands since his mom has a black thumb.

[Julie Smith]

Perhaps it's about his health and well-being. Playing outside is GOOD for kids. Fresh air and exercise and all that. The world doesn't always revolve around my child's uninformed whims. Sometimes a parent needs to guide a child to do what's best for them.

 

If I am going to make my kids do something they don't want to do I think of why I'm making them do it.

 

In the case of outside time, my kids are usually happy to go in and out. (They just told me they will need my help in a bit building a fort outside. )

 

But when they are not willing then I decide what I need accomplished with the forced task.

 

For example some days I feel they need the exercise. Since they don't want to go out I tell them they can go out to play for 90 minutes, or run around the block 4 times. Both of those things give the same amount of exercise. But one takes 90 minutes, the other maybe only 15.

 

If I think some fresh air is needed and opening the windows wouldn't cut it. Then I might say, "I need fresh air, I think you do to. You have a choice you can go outside for 15 minutes and do whatever or we can walk down to the grocery store (and back) and get a free kid cookie. Your choice, but either way we are all getting fresh air."

 

If I want them to play outside because I need a quiet house and they aren't being quite. I explain my need for quiet and then let them choose how to give me that. Either play a quiet game in the attic or go outside. If they don't succeed in giving me a quiet house because they get to loud I will kick them out.

 

When my kids were younger we would go on lots of long adventures and be gone most of the day. Long bike rides to many different play structures, 3 hour walk/plays in the woods.... They know they are welcome to ask for either of those things and I will work them into our day. But right now for the most part they prefer to just play in the back or front yard.

[SpecialClassical]

I agree that you probably need to teach them how to play out there. You could start out with an activity everyday for 30 minutes. Then after you have shown them how fun it is to play various things, you could go out for 10 minutes to get them started And show them one new activity a week. You don't want them to get dependent on you, but playing with me or my husband is a big motivator around here. I used to moan about my middle two not loving the outdoors as much as the oldest two, but now they are able to play out there for hours.

[Serenade]

You would think I put my kids in an absolute awful place when I tell them to go play outside. It's always too hot or too cold or too windy or too wet or too whatever. They will sit on the porch and stare at each other, beat on the door, stare at me through the windows. When I was a kid I lived outside. I am an only child and ALWAYS found something to do outside. They have each other to play with outside so I don't understand why they feel like it's torture. I know that they would rather be glued to some electronic, but I don't like them stuck in front of a tv or video game (they get limited daily use). So does anyone else have kids they have to force outside (and sometimes lock the back door to keep them out there!)?

 

Same here. My youngest would go outside more, but his brother never wants to, so he doesn't. Sometimes i force them to go outside. LOL, I give them outside assignments, like a specific bike route they have to do.

 

Ironically, my oldest son (the one who doesn't like to go outside), loves Boy Scouting and being out with the Boy Scouts. He just doesn't like to go outside at our home. We have a huge lot, with fields and trees, yet he has no interest. It kind of makes me sad because we moved here so the kids would have a great place to play.

[Laura Corin]

When I was home educating, they needed to average at least an hour of exercise a day. Some of that took place in classes, some was (compulsory) running. So they were outside, like it or not. It started off with walks (all of us) when they were small, moving up to running alongside me while I walked fast as they got older.

 

As far as enjoying the outdoors: I found that the only ways to make it fun were for us all to do things together, or for them to have friends to play with outside. When we lived in China, they would play outside for hours with their friends. Once we moved to Scotland, and before they had made local friends, family walks were a big part of our routine.

 

Hobbes has ended up with a strong interest in the outdoors, including in gardening. Calvin is not a natural outdoors person, but he recognises his body's need for exercise, and the positive effect on his mood that comes from a walk surrounded by green.

 

Laura

[JudoMom]

You would think I put my kids in an absolute awful place when I tell them to go play outside. It's always too hot or too cold or too windy or too wet or too whatever. They will sit on the porch and stare at each other, beat on the door, stare at me through the windows. When I was a kid I lived outside. I am an only child and ALWAYS found something to do outside. They have each other to play with outside so I don't understand why they feel like it's torture. I know that they would rather be glued to some electronic, but I don't like them stuck in front of a tv or video game (they get limited daily use). So does anyone else have kids they have to force outside (and sometimes lock the back door to keep them out there!)?

 

When my 2 oldest boys were about the age of yours and didn't want to go outside, we took away electronics for a year. They still remember it and tell their brothers about it. They all play outside without issue now.

[Mommy22alyns]

My two don't care for it as a rule. I still shove 'em out there, weather permitting. :tongue_smilie:

[Alicia64]

We just moved into a house w/ a large backyard: trees, stream when it starts raining, the works. So far my two are balking at going outside.

 

So, I started giving them interesting "jobs" to do:

 

1) I asked them to each make a full map of the backyard. Survey it so that I could figure out where to put flowers and veggie. I didn't really need it -- just wanted them outside exploring.

 

2) Asked them to check the fence for holes in case our dog found an exit. Not really needed either: our dog is mainly indoors and the fence is brand new.

 

3) Please dig holes for seeds.

 

I didn't really need any of this done, but I told them they couldn't play until their work was done. It was just a way to get them involved a little in the outdoors. I just started; jury is out on whether it worked.

 

Alley

[PeacefulChaos]

I don't force my ds to play outside. It doesn't matter whether or not I liked to play outside when I was a kid. It's not about me and what I liked or didn't like. It's about him and how he feels about it.

 

If he wants to play outside, he plays outside. If he'd rather stay in the house, he stays in the house.

 

I get this to an extent.

 

I did, however, have to make my boys go play outside at the beginning of the spring (that was the first I started allowing them out without my constant supervision).

It's not such a big deal anymore for us, they love going outside and go out often in the afternoons - especially when the neighbor kids get home from school. :) Occasionally they come back in for awhile before the bus goes by just because they haven't found anything to do out there, or because they want to play with their toys, etc.

I'm ok with that because now I feel like they have more of a desire to go outside than they used to. I know that they will go out most days. Also, it was different when Pink napped during the summer - they would be heading out and I wanted them to STAY OUT because coming back in woke her up. She still naps, but she's in a deeper sleep by the time they go out (we finish school around 1:30/2) so in/out doesn't matter so much.

I do still limit the coming in and out, though. That'll drive me UP THE WALL! :lol: :D

Oh, and we limit electronics, too - they can only play video games after dinner. We also don't turn on the tv, period, until after dinner (unless DH turns on the news around 5 or 6).

I've found that on most days, barring inclement weather or something, they choose to go back outside, instead. :)

[Catwoman]

Perhaps it's about his health and well-being. Playing outside is GOOD for kids. Fresh air and exercise and all that. The world doesn't always revolve around my child's uninformed whims. Sometimes a parent needs to guide a child to do what's best for them.

 

 

I never said that the world revolved around my ds's "uninformed whims." I also didn't say that he never played outside, or that he didn't get enough exercise. Perhaps your idea of kids' "health and well-being" is different from mine, because I don't believe that a set amount of daily outdoor play is necessary for either one -- we're out of the house every day for any number of reasons; it's not like we're holed up in a dark basement somewhere. I mean, sure, we're vampires and all, but technology has changed and we can go outside in the daylight now. :D

 

And if you check the air quality outside, you may discover that it's not exactly "fresh air" that the kids are breathing out there. :rolleyes:

 

I don't believe in kicking kids outside to play if they don't want to be there. It seems mean and unnecessary.

Edited October 1, 2012 by Catwoman

[Heather in Neverland]

I don't force my ds to play outside. It doesn't matter whether or not I liked to play outside when I was a kid. It's not about me and what I liked or didn't like. It's about him and how he feels about it.

 

If he wants to play outside, he plays outside. If he'd rather stay in the house, he stays in the house.

 

:iagree:

 

I have 2 kids who love playing outside and 1 who loathes it. They are who they are and I respect that.

 

I was never a big fan of playing outside either. When I was little, if you were looking for me, I was usually in my bedroom with my nose in a book. I am still pretty much that way. :D

 

 

.

[The Girls' Mom]

I have one that absolutely hates ANYTHING with the great outdoors. I have given up. At 12, nothing I can do is going to change her opinion. So now the other two and I do stuff without her. I figure she'll get bored and join us...or not. I'm now just trying to figure out how to get her to exercise.

[ChiMomNP]

My son doesn't like to be outside. If we go in the pool or in the spa he will usually come in, but he doesn't play outside. He is older though (13) and he is an only child. I think that might make a difference.