Eagles

The NCTC Eagles are busy working on the nest. With a new webcam in place, we expect to have live video and audio up in January. the NCTC cam is consistently one of the top viewed bird cams on the web.

Best times to see the pair is in the am, between 5:00 am and 8:00 am, and in the PM between 4:00 pm and dark, although they have been active in the early afternoon recently.


Check it out at here, and join the eagle cam community at the blog.

I know that this technological thing is not overtly getting folks outdoors, but the interest in this cam has resulted in a number of school trips to NCTC to get outdoors and see the nest, and many, many schools around the country are watching the cam. Hopefully it is a catalyst for getting kids out.

This eagle showed up as I posted:

Nature Deficit Everywhere

The notion of nature deficit continues to resonate. Here's a post on an obscure blog that gives some good personal testimony.

I suppose I hadn’t thought much about this problem since I live in a rural area where children are outside more than their city counterparts. However, I usually have at least a couple of students who seldom, if ever, play outside for extended periods of unstructured time. I suppose safety is the big concern these days. Parents don’t want to send their children outside for unsupervised play, and they are too busy to join them. Another concern is germs. Parents don’t want their children playing with dirt and bugs and sticks and other dirty things. Better to be inside where everything is washed down with anti-bacterial soap. Better to have them in the house playing video games or watching television where it is safe. Turns out that safety is only an illusion. They may be safe from physical harm, but their brains and bodies are turning to mush.

More From NH

Outdoor writer John Corrigan writes about fishing and kids. Who wouldn't want to catch one of those landlocked salmon?

It was a day to reach out and touch ... well, something cold, wet and slimy. Some complain that we cope with this time of dwindling daylight and declining temperatures by turning our attention too quickly to the holidays.

Changing Experiences of Childhood

World Changing has an interesting essay up on changes in childhood experiences.

One of the most effective responses, according to research in the field of significant life experiences is to nurture connections with the earth. Spend time in nature with your little ones. Send your kids outside to play with someone who loves the woods or is happy to overturn rocks in the vacant lot in search of bugs. Create space and time for childhood adventures and share the wonder of their discoveries. "Healing the broken bond between our young and nature is in our self-interest, not only because aesthetics or justice demand it, but also because our mental, physical, and spiritual health depend upon it," writes Richard Louv, best-selling author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. In a world filled with well-intentioned parents driving their kids from Little League to piano to gymnastics, such moments of unallocated time may be difficult to find. Yet they are precious.

Read it here.

NH Children and Nature Forum

Here's the program from yesterday's New Hampshire Leave No Child Inside Forum: A Community Conversation about Connecting Children and Nature.

And more on the NH Initiative.

More Innovation from Maine

Good ideas keep flowing from Maine. This time, it's gift certificates for participation in outdoor programs at Tanglewood 4-H Camp and Learning Center.

Instead of giving a child one more device that will collect dust in a couple months, why not give him or her a Tanglewood gift certificate ... a gift to the outdoors, a gift of nature, adventure and discovery?

Read the rest here.

Outside in Southern Colorado

Too many have no idea what it’s like to climb a tree or build a dam in a stream. My surveys indicate that the majority of Pueblo’s fifth-graders have never gone on a hike and have never been to the mountains prior to participating in one of our programs.

See editorial here.