If we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it. Perhaps this is what Thoreau had in mind when he said, โthe more slowly trees grow at first, the sounder they are at the core, and I think the same is true of human beings.
David SobelExploration of the natural world begins in early childhood, flourishes in middle childhood, and continues in adolescence as a pleasure and a source of strength for social action.
David SobelThe heart of childhood, from seven to eleven, is the critical period for bonding with the earth.
David SobelIf we want children to flourish, to become truly empowered, then let us allow them to love the earth before we ask them to save it. Perhaps this is what Thoreau had in mind when he said, โthe more slowly trees grow at first, the sounder they are at the core, and I think the same is true of human beings.
David Sobel