Expose children to nature

COLUMBUS

Now here’s an education reform idea that all parts of the political spectrum should be able to agree on: force kids into nature.

Make them put down their iPods and Game Boys, turn off the televisions and shut down the flow of all of the other electronic effluent. Then force them to breathe the fresh air, maybe go for a hike in the woods. Take them out after dark and show them the stars.

I think that’s a fair summation of what Gov. Ted Strickland was thinking about last week after spending his ceremonial night at the Ohio State Fairgrounds, continuing a tradition dating back to Gov. Jim Rhodes.

Hot night

A few years back, during his first night at the fair, Strickland said he slept in the dairy barn, “on the hottest night of the year, with a glaring light about six feet above my head.”

He has since switched to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources section of the fairgrounds, where one night last week he slept in a tent.

“It was a lot of fun,” Strickland told reporters the following morning. “... We had a campfire, we made and ate smores, we told tall tales, and we had a lot of fun. I slept a few hours, not many... Last night was a beautiful night. It was cool, the sky was clear.”

Strickland made the comments on the morning after his sleepover, as he helped one fair family feed some cattle. The combination of the starry night and livestock prompted the governor to comment on the need for more opportunities to expose youth to constellations and wildlife.

“Nature is a wonderful thing,” he said. “What we’ve seen here, these young kids working with their animals, taking great pride in what they do, it’s a wonderful thing. It’s part of Ohio’s past, our traditions and our history. And it’s a part of Ohio’s way of life. It’s something that I think needs to be valued.”

He added, “There are young people in Ohio who grow up in cities and never see the stars because of city lights. That’s really unfortunate, because nature’s wonderful, and I think our kids should be encouraged to spend more time in the out of doors. I think we would have fewer problems, fewer discipline problems certainly, if young kids had a better acquaintance with nature, animals and the natural world.”

Marc Kovac is The Vindicator’s Statehouse correspondent. E-mail him at mkovac@dixcom.com.