Reaction Paper (Life Sciences Reaction Paper)

Reaction Paper
Name
Institution
Reaction Paper
In Richard Louv’s book “Last Child in the Woods” (2008), the author addresses the many changes that have taken place today, which have robbed children of the joy of experiencing nature. He terms this condition as nature-deficit disorder especially since this deprivation from nature has resulted to some consequences that directly affect the children. For instance, this lack of exposure has led to an increase in health conditions such as attention deficit disorders as children are forced to stay indoors where their creativity is not stimulated. The author notes that the strict regulations put in place to preserve the environment only end up robbing these children of the chance to interact with nature. This could be due to the decreasing space as the population keeps increasing and pushing people to destroy natural lands to use them as settlement areas. It is even sadder that with only limited space remaining, people still use land in ways that tend to degrade it. The author generally calls for the need to preserve and protect the environment for the sake of the children.
My first reaction after reading this paper is that indeed, we need to invest in environmental sustainability because nature has an important role to play in a child’s development. Growing up in the modern age, it is common to see many children confined in their homes where they remain glued on TV or other electronic devices that robs them of their creativity. According to Louv (2008), this is very wrong since “nature inspires creativity in a child by demanding visualization and the full use of senses.” This clearly indicates that when we expose children to nature, they can be more creative because they interact with natural elements that require them to think outside the box unlike the electronic devices they are made to play with in their homes. For instance, when the author talks about his frightening experience climbing trees, this is something that can inspire a child to be a good problem-solver because he or she understands how to survive under challenging and frightening situations. Nature allows a child to take an active role in his or her development unlike staying indoors with electronic gadgets that only kill creativity and cause major health problems to children. Through environmental sustainability, we can be able to preserve and encourage this creativity and h...