I'm a really big fan of the '50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾' campaign. Combine that with 'Country Kids' and it has transformed our weekend activities. That is genuinely no exaggeration; I like completing challenges and blogging about them as part of our lives, if it was the initial motivation for becoming more physically active then I see that as no bad thing.
The '50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾' campaign has been created to help ensure that our children are having the natural childhood they deserve. With children in the UK being the most depressed in the western world, providing them with a sense of achievement and pride in their accomplishments (while also reconnecting them to nature) is essential. The exhilaration experienced from managing to climb that tricky tree or seeing a kite that you've made soaring through the sky is second to none for a child.
In order to update the list and make it more relevant to children in the UK, the National Trust have made a few changes. Initially I was a little irritated as quite a few things that they've removed were challenges that we'd managed (feed a bird by hand, visit an island, bury someone in the sand, balance on a fallen tree) but upon further examination I realised that they are now far more accessible for all, and realistic to achieve. It's all very well having the challenge of 'getting behind a waterfall' but if you live in the middle of the flattest part of Britain then it's rather tricky to achieve. Likewise for landlocked residents, visiting an island or hunting for treasure on a beach is nigh on impossible. And I can't thank the National Trust enough for changing 'see the sun wake up' to 'go star gazing'; after many years of teaching The Boy to not wake up at the crack of dawn, I wasn't relishing that task!
I've blogged previously about the Fifty Things so am not going to write them all out again, but I would like to highlight the changes:
|
|
Out |
In |
| 11. | Throw some snow | Go on a really long bike ride |
| 12. | Hunt for treasure on a beach | Make a trail with sticks |
| 15. | Go sledging | Play in the snow |
| 16. | Bury someone in the sand | Make a daisy chain |
| 18. | Balance on a fallen tree | Create some wild art |
| 19. | Swing on a rope swing | Play Pooh sticks |
| 20. | Make a mud slide | Jump over waves |
| 21. | Eat blackberries growing in the wild | Pick blackberries growing in the wild |
| 22. | Take a look inside a tree | Explore inside a tree |
| 23. | Visit an island | Visit a farm |
| 24. | Feel like you’re flying in the wind |
Go on a walk barefoot |
| 27. | Watch the sun wake up | Go star gazing |
| 29. | Get behind a waterfall | Explore a cave |
| 30. | Feed a bird from your hand | Hold a scary beast |
| 33. | Catch a butterfly in a net | Catch a falling leaf |
| 36. | Call an owl | Make a home for a wild animal |
| 42. | Go wild swimming | Go swimming in the sea |
| 43. | Go rafting | Build a raft |
| 44. | Light a fire without matches | Go bird watching |
| 46. | Try bouldering | Try rock climbing |
| 48. | Try abseiling | Learn to ride a horse |
I'd urge parents to sign their children up for a '50 Things' account as it's fun to use and a great record of all the tasks completed, ours shows we've completed 21 of the tasks so far.
I have a linky running for anyone who has blogged about their children's '50 Things' challenges, I'd love for you to join in below.
OK my initial thought was – sigh they are moving the goal posts – but actually some are very similar to the previous ones – like pick rather than eat a blackberry, and others replace questionable ones – like catch a butterfly in a net which I wasn't too keen on anyway. So maybe i'm not as miffed as I thought. Eventually i will blog about the ones we have managed so far.