IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Children and conference28 August 2016 Fremantle

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Western Australia’s Department of Parks and Wildlife is dedicated to working with the community to manage the State’s outstanding network of national and marine parks, State forests and other reserves and conserve and protect our unique native animals and plants, for their intrinsic values and to enrich people’s lives.

Nature Playgrounds are one of Australia's premier design and construct nature playground contractors. Furthermore we manufacture our own standard and custom playground products available for the supply only market. In addition to our own equipment designs we also import and stock specialised play equipment from national and international suppliers.

Organisational PartnerThe State Government, through the Department of Sport and Recreation, is a major supporter of Nature Play WA. Sport and recreation builds stronger, healthier, happier and safer communities.

Welcome Welcome to Nature Play WA’s inaugural Children and Nature Conference, and thank you for taking part in this exciting opportunity to broaden, and deepen, the conversation on the value of nature and play in the lives of children.It is a conversation that has gathered voices and volume in recent years. It is also a conversation that grows more urgent with every day and every child who grows up without knowing that most fundamental of human inheritances – the joys, freedoms and power of playing, learning, and exploring in the natural world.During the course of the day we will be hearing from experts in diverse fields, with insights to share into the ways nature play fuels children’s health, cognitive development, scientific curiosity, capacity to learn, and growth as members of a community.

From Nature Play WA please accept our warm welcome and our invitation to engage with the topics being discussed, with your fellow attendees, and with Nature Play WA as we endeavour to support and encourage this growing movement to reconnect children to nature for the sake of their health, happiness and wellbeing.Our thanks also go out to the Department of Sport and Recreation, without whom we couldn’t do our important work, and to our conference sponsors and generous presenters without any of whom this conference would not have been possible.Griffin LongleyNature Play WA CEO

Conference SponsOrs

PHASE3 LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION PTY LTD.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

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Download the free Nature Play WA App for key conference information, to post your questions for the Panel Discussion and to enter the prize draw by submitting your evaluation form. The Nature Play WA App is also your mobile source for Nature Play trails, events, places to go, access to hundreds of activity ideas through the Passport to an Amazing Childhood program, and for dozens of discounted outdoor experiences through Friends of Nature Play WA Membership.Download it in the Apple App Store or in Google Play by entering Nature Play WA as a search term.

Conference PROGRAMSunday 28 August 20168:30am – 9:00am Registrations Open - Arrival tea and coffee9:10am – 9:35am Welcome and Conference Overview

Address from The MCPeter Rowsthorn, Comedian and Friends of Nature Play WA AmbassadorWelcome to CountryAddress from Nature Play WAGriffin Longley, CEO

9:40am – 10:20am EducationKeynote Speaker: Professor Lyn Beazley

10:20am – 11:00am HealthKeynote Speaker: Dr Alan Logan

11:00am – 11:20am Morning Break11:20am – 12:00pm Nature to Educate

Keynote Speaker: Ben Klasky12:00pm – 12:40pm Health

Keynote Speaker: Professor Susan Prescott12:40pm – 1:30pm Lunch1:30pm – 2:10pm Engaging the Broader Community

Keynote Speaker: Martin LeBlanc 2:25pm – 3:25pm Concurrent 1

EducationEducated by Nature

Concurrent 2Politics & PhilanthropyMartin LeBlanc & Ben Klasky

Concurrent 3HealthDr Alan Logan & Prof. Susan Prescott

3:25pm – 3:45pm Afternoon Break 3:45pm – 4:35pm Panel

Dr Alan Logan, Ben Klasky, Prof. Susan Prescott, Martin LeBlanc and Daniel Burton - Questions

4:35pm – 4:45pm Official Conference Close 5:00pm – 6:00pm Sundowner @ Marine Lounge Bar, Esplanade Hotel By Rydges

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Concurrent SessionsNature and HealthProfessor Susan Prescott and Dr Alan Logan

In this session Professor Susan Prescott and Dr Alan Logan will delve deeper into the way changes in our surroundings impact our mental and physical health. Learn more about the impact of bio-diversity on gut-flora and its correlation to health outcomes, the relationship between time in nature and positive mental health and more. The session will also be an opportunity to ask questions and engage in a dialogue on the relationship between nature and human health.

Nature, Politics and PhilanthropyBen Klasky and Martin LeBlanc (Islandwood)

In this session Ben Klasky and Martin LeBlanc will talk you through strategies they have employed at Islandwood and in other programs to engage the corporate, philanthropic and political spheres in the movement to reconnect children to nature. Mr Klasky has successfully raised more than US$50million to support and grow Islandwood and Mr LeBlanc has been a key figure in engaging politicians in programs all the way to the White House. The interactive session will also get you started on your own action plan to boost support for your mission.

Nature and EducationDaniel Burton (Nature Play WA and Educated by Nature)

Multi-sensory experiences are vital for healthy brain development throughout childhood. The diversity of nature provides positive and challenging sensory opportunities for both children and adults. A strong foundation of these experiences not only develops good sensory integration but also creates memorable learning experiences, engages creativity and problem solving, promotes relaxation and develops intimacy and affection for nature. In this workshop, you will learn some of the brain science behind developing the senses, hear sensory discovery stories from Educated by Nature programs and participate in some nature sensory activities that can challenge both children and adults.

Panel Discussion Professor Susan Prescott, Dr Alan Logan, Ben Klasky, Martin LeBlanc and Daniel Burton will all be on stage to take your burning questions on the relationship between positive childhood outcomes and nature. The 45 minute session to end the formal proceedings of the Conference will allow for a broadening of the conversation around Children and Nature and be MCed by Peter Rowsthorn. Questions for the panel can be submitted throughout the day via the Nature Play WA App.

SundownerAfter the official close of the Conference, join the Nature Play WA team, conference speakers and other attendees for a drink and canapes. Enjoy a relaxing wind down after our packed day of presentations, and top off your weekend in the Marine Lounge Bar at the Esplanade Hotel with us.

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Keynote SpeakersPrecis: Professor Lyn Beazley is a passionate advocate for getting Australian children to love and learn science. In her keynote she will speak on the importance of children having positive experiences in nature to help them develop the fascination for the natural world that is the building block of curiosity and a scientific mind. In a world facing growing climatic and ecological challenges the need to engage new generations in science is pressing and the case for fostering a connection between children and the natural world has never been greater. Bio: Professor Beazley has dedicated over 30 years to neuroscience, researching recovery from brain injury and changing clinical practice in the treatment of premature infants. As Western Australia’s Chief Scientist from 2006 to 2013, Lyn advised governments on science and innovation, worked closely with industry and was a science ambassador in Australia and internationally. She was also named WA Australian of the Year for 2015.

Precis: Dr Alan Logan’s keynote will focus on the positive impact of natural environments on the human brain. He will draw on a growing body of research in making the case that exposure to nature promotes positive emotions, increases mental energy, improves cognitive function and mental health, and has a positive influence on children who have been diagnosed with impulsivity, hyperactivity and attention-deficit disorder. Bio: Dr Logan is a Canadian researcher, naturopathic doctor, consulting science writer and member of the Harvard Natural Environments Initiative, with a key focus on the health impacts of urbanisation and bio-diversity loss. He is also the author of two pioneering books on connection between human health and the natural world, The Brain Diet (2007); and Your Brain on Nature, the science of nature’s influence on your health, happiness, and vitality (2012)

Precis: Ben Klasky will share insights from one of the world’s leading environmental education centres on the power of meaningful experiences in nature to unlock learning and inspire young minds. He will share the remarkable story of Islandwood, (located on Bainbridge Island in the wild Puget Sound), along with the philosophy, science and philanthropy behind its success, and offer an educators perspective on the link between nature and learning. Bio: Mr Klasky is an educator, a social entrepreneur, and the President and CEO of Islandwood, one of the world’s leading environmental education centres. Headquartered on Bainbridge Island near Seattle, Islandwood is an innovative US non-profit outdoor education organisation, with the core mission of creating meaningful learning experiences for urban children in nature.

Conference Presenters

MCPeter Rowsthorn is a high energy, fast-paced stand up comedian one minute and a measured character actor the next. A masterful MC of corporate and private functions, he has been performing his slick & blistering stand up for three decades. Peter is an ambassador for the Friends of Nature Play WA program and is the membership program's Number One Ticket Holder. He spent much of his childhood making his own fun. “I was a 70s child, so we were not expected home until dinner time,” he says. “We would run around the neighbourhood and make up things to do.” But Peter takes a different approach to his children. “Parents don’t have the courage to just let their kids go. With screens being so engaging, it can be harder to get them out of the house. We need to find something different to get them outside.”

Professor Lyn Beazley

Dr Alan Logan

Ben Klasky

Peter Rowsthorn

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Precis: Professor Susan Prescott, a paediatrician and internationally renowned specialist in childhood allergy and immunology, will take us on a journey into the world and science behind the modern allergy epidemic and the importance of nature and bio-diversity for all aspects of childhood health. She will speak to the connection between our modern indoor lives and the rise of non-communicable diseases which are increasingly affecting children, and lay out the medicinal properties of early and regular exposure to nature.Bio: Professor Prescott is internationally recognised as one of the leading researchers in the area of allergy and early immune development and the author of The Allergy Epidemic, a mystery of modern life; and, Origins, early-life solutions to the modern health crisis. She is a strong advocate for the health benefits of children connecting with nature. Her studies on early immune development have been translated into novel concepts and lead to a paradigm shift in the pathogenesis of allergic disease. She is also chair and co-founder of the ‘DOHaD Consortium’ (Developmental Origins of Health and Disease) in Western Australia, and is leading the establishment of a regional ‘DOHaD’ Society in Australia and New Zealand.

Precis: Martin LeBlanc has been at the forefront of the movement to reconnect children to nature for more than a decade. In his keynote he will share insights from some of America’s leading programs to reconnect children from underserved communities to nature, the transformative power those experiences have, and the keys to engaging communities and garnering political support. Bio: The Senior Vice-President External Affairs with IslandWood, Mr LeBlanc has successfully engaged the political process, all the way to The White House, in creating new opportunities to connect children to nature. A founding Board Member of the Children in Nature Network and a former National Youth Outings Director at the Sierra Club (America’s largest and most influential environmental organisation) Mr LeBlanc is also Vice-President emeritus of the Children and Nature Network and a senior advisor to the Children and Nature Network's 'Natural Leaders' initiative that combines community organising and outdoor leadership certifications that empower the next generation.

Concurrent Session PresenterPrecis: Daniel will discuss some of the brain science behind developing more than the five basic senses, tell stories of sensory risk-taking from Educated by Nature programs and challenge participants with some sensory risk taking opportunities of their own.Bio: Daniel is a qualified primary school teacher and passionate nature connection mentor. He considers himself an advocate for connecting children with the natural world, following children’s inbuilt sense of wonder and curiosity to inspire the process of inquiry based learning, and has developed and run outdoor classrooms and Wild Spaces with various age groups.

Martin LeBlanc

Professor Susan Prescott

Daniel Burton

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Key ResearchHow Nature Play helpsNature play provides opportunities for physical activity, creative thinking, social and emotional development and to benefit the emotional and cognitive reset that time in nature provides.

• “Immune system may be pathway between nature and good health.”1

• Time in nature assists the performance of children with ADHD.2

• Children get more of their physical activity (42%) from free play than any other activity, including sport.3

• “Play fosters maturation of the very centres of the brain that allow kids to exert control over retention, emotions and to control behaviour.”4

• Children are twice as coordinated and have triple the balance skills when they have access to playing outdoors.5

Benefits of Nature EducationLiteracy/Numeracy

• The sensory complexity of nature increases the vocabulary used by children.6

• Writing scores on average doubled when using the natural environment for inspiration.7

• Students participating in an environmental education curriculum increased math scores by 63%, language art scores by 76% and social studies by 73%.8

• Science test scores doubled when concepts were taught in an outdoor classroom.9

Concentration

• 78% of children who spend regular time in unstructured outdoor play are better able to concentrate, and perform better in the classroom.8

Creativity/Collaboration

• 89% of observations (in outdoor classroom settings) included social interactions like cooperation and collaboration.11

Behaviour

• 90% of teachers see increased enthusiasm and engagement in outdoor classrooms and 70% of teachers feel increased motivation when teaching outdoors.12

“Spending time in nature provides protections against a startling range of diseases,

including depression, diabetes, obesity, ADHD, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and many more,

research shows.”13

“Time in nature provides protections against a startling range of diseases, including depression, diabetes, obesity, ADHD, cardiovascular disease and cancer.”13

75% of students who spend regular time outdoors tend to be more creative and better able to problem solve in the classroom.10

Children manage stress better when they have more contact with nature.2

Contact with nature, especially during middle childhood, plays an important role in children’s mental health.2

REFERENCES1. ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 16 September 20152. Putting Nature back into Nurture: The Benefits of Nature for Children. A

Literature Review. Prepared for: The Department of Sport and Recreation, Government of Western Australia. Author: Dr Karen Martin, PhD

3. Is Sport Enough, 2014 Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Young People

4. Hara Estroff Marano - A Nation of Wimps 20085. Fjortoft, I., Norway, 20016. Waite S. & Davis B., UK, 20077. Lieberman GA, USA, 19988. Coyle, K.J, USA 20109. Khan, M. & Islam, Z., Bangladesh, 201410. Veselack, E.M, Cain-Chang, L. & Miller, D.L. USA, 201011. Charles, C. & Wheeler, K. 2012, Canada in Dyment, J., AUS, 200512. University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences13. Belonging, Being & Becoming, The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia

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Professional DevelopmentOUTDOOR CLASSROOM WORKSHOPS AND INCURSIONSNature Play WA is excited to offer a range of professional learning opportunities for teachers, education assistants, student teachers, and early learning professionals. This series of workshops provides an opportunity to explore the potential of using outdoor spaces and Outdoor Classrooms to engage with Nature Pedagogy and can be run as three full-day workshops, or condensed into a shorter format and run as an incursion at your school or early learning centre.

Engaging Outdoor Learning Workshop 1Potential of Outdoor Spaces

A comprehensive introduction into the ways natural spaces can be used as outdoor classrooms and learning spaces. Covers the principles behind outdoor classroom design; using loose parts to enhance natural elements; and engaging students in curriculum experiences inspired by natural provocations and innate childhood behaviour.

Engaging Outdoor Learning Workshop 2 Planning for Curriculum Integration

Outdoor Classrooms lend themselves to supporting, inspiring and connecting to the mandated curriculum. In this full day workshop, participants will explore the Early Years Learning Framework and Australian National Curriculum to explore ways to take learning experiences outside and plan for integrated learning opportunities. With a focus on taking current lessons outside as well as seeing the potential of natural spaces to inspire lesson development, this workshop aims to provide concrete examples of planning for Outdoor Classrooms.

Engaging Outdoor Learning Workshop 3Connecting to Student Directed Investigations

Student engagement and passion for learning is enhanced when we take learning outside and provide opportunities for Nature Pedagogy. When students have an opportunity to learn outdoors they start to ‘live their learning’. Workshop 3 in the Engaging Outdoor Learning suite provides educators with an opportunity to explore authentic, project based learning in an outdoor classroom context. With hands on examples and planning tools, this workshop explores the ways students (from Kindy to Year 6) can work together to design learning experiences and research projects for themselves in the outdoors.

To find out more about Nature Play WA and Professional Learning Workshops go to:www.natureplaywa.org.auemail: education@natureplaywa.org.au or call: (08) 9389 4059

Join the discussion with other teachers: www.facebook.com/groups/NaturePlayWATeacherForum

Family Nature ClubsWant to get your children outside more often, but find that time gets away from you? Join a Family Nature Club, or organise one with some friends or family to make sure you have a regular date in the outdoors! Visit our website for more information and to download your copy of our tool kit to get started.

Passports to an amazing childhoodThe free Nature Play WA Passport to an Amazing Childhood program is an exciting, interactive and fun way to get active and outdoors!The hard copy passport is delivered free in Western Australia and includes ten “mission” pages, stickers, suggestions on great places to go and things to do outdoors, and a list of ‘15 things every kid should do before they’re 12’. Plus our website has 200+ extra missions for kids aged 3-12, lets them build avatars and then earn digital points by completing real-world missions.

We even have lesson plans for teachers looking to integrate the passport into their teaching.

See more at: www.natureplaywa.org.au/programs/passport-to-an-amazing-childhood

Nature Play WA Programs

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EventsOur events are all about getting families outdoors and active together, from tiny babies right through to grandparents. From our Play Out Days, offering cubby building, mud pie making, kite creation and water play, to our Family Geochallenge weekends, with geocaching, campfire stories, nature crafts and nightstalking, Nature Play WA creates memorable events to engage kids and parents in the great outdoors and inspire you to create wonderful experiences of your own! Watch our website, App and FaceBook page for details of all our upcoming events!

online resourcesThe Nature Play WA website has loads of ideas on places to go, things to do, and ways to get the kids in your care outdoors, active and learning.Use our Activity Finder to plan some nature fun. Try our Places To Go tool to find nature near you. Discover great ideas for camping, hiking, cycling, kayaking or geocaching with kids. Or download great resources like the Grow with Nature Play App, the 51 Things to do before you’re 12 list, lesson plans, and the Green Time vs Screen Time tool – all at www.natureplaywa.org.au!

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Calling all Park Explorers!If you’re travelling around WA in the next 12 months, share

your pictures and stories with us to help showcase WA’s amazing natural areas.

Wilderness revealed

#exploreparkswa #justanotherdayinwa #parksforpeople

Visit parks.dpaw.wa.gov.au/parkexplorers

For the duration of your trip we will provide free entry to national parks, free camping, some support for fuel and lend you camera gear to capture and share your experiences. You

may even pick up rewards including glamping weekend trips and other camping–related goodies.

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Nature PlaygroundsNature Playgrounds design, manufacture, supply and install nature play equipment and materials for use in schools, child care centers, public playgrounds and for private use.We manufacture standard and custom playground equipment to suit each individual project or client’s request. In addition to our own equipment designs we also import and stock specialised play equipment from national and international suppliers.

Along with our extensive range of nature playground equipment we provide a full site consultation and playground design service. This ensures the design for each play space matches the children and your needs and that the play equipment is professionally installed.

We also recognize that not all customers can afford to build or redevelop their whole playground at once and for this reason you may prefer to purchase and install elements individually.

www.natureplaygrounds.com.au

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Creating Beautiful, Natural Spaces for Children

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New centre designs | School design | Construction Improvements | Consultations with children Reggio specialists | Individual play elements

Professional development workshops for schools, childcare centres and local government on consulting with children and nature play.

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PHASE3 Landscape Construction Pty Ltd. Telephone +61 8 9337 6985 Facsimile +61 8 9337 6680Website www.phasethree.net.au Email contact@phasethree.net.au

Photography: Ross Wallace

BRAITHWAITE PARK NATURE PLAY AILA WA Award Winner 2016 - Parks and Open Space Landscape ArchitectureDesigned by Emerge Associates

PHASE3’s experienced team ensures a comprehensive service and quality outcome. Find projects like this one pictured and other examples of PHASE3’s quality work at our website at phasethree.net.au

LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION PTY LTD.

Get closer to nature. Climb, paddle, walk, ride and explore at camp. It’s a great chance to be outdoors, get physical, challenge yourself and learn new skills. You’ll have fun, gain confidence by learning to be a leader, appreciate the natural environment and make new friends too. www.dsr.wa.gov.au/camps/holiday-camps

Let’s go camping!

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Nature Play WA | E: info@natureplaywa.org.au | P: +61 8 9389 4050 | PO Box 3143 Broadway Nedlands WA 6009

www.natureplaywa.org.au