{"id":19578,"date":"2021-08-04T12:46:44","date_gmt":"2021-08-04T11:46:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/?p=19578"},"modified":"2021-08-04T12:46:57","modified_gmt":"2021-08-04T11:46:57","slug":"make-the-outdoors-your-natural-playground-this-playday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/2021\/08\/make-the-outdoors-your-natural-playground-this-playday\/","title":{"rendered":"Make the outdoors your natural playground this Playday"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This year\u2019s theme for Playday, the national day of play on 4 August, is \u2018Summer of Play\u2019 and the National Trust NI has is encouraging families to experience a range of simple outdoor pleasures designed to keep families entertained right through the school holidays. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Going for gold at The Argory. Credit National Trust: Matthew Morrison<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s been a challenging year, but with restrictions easing and summer in full swing, the National Trust in Northern Ireland is encouraging people to boost their wellbeing by getting outdoors and enjoying simple pleasures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing is essential for children\u2019s mental health and well-being and recent research by the conservation charity showed that connecting with nature supports different types of wellbeing, from being happy and feeling good, to functioning well day to day [1]. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research also found that children were more likely to report feeling happy if they had a higher level of nature connectedness, engaged in meaningful activities linked to nature (such as writing songs or poetry about nature) and spent time relaxing in nature [2].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The good news is that nature connection can be simple, everyday and under our noses like walking barefoot, listening to birdsong and smelling flowers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Annie Reilly, Experience Development Manager<\/strong> at the National Trust said: \u201cGoing barefoot is one of those simple pleasures that forces you to stop to be more aware of your surroundings and is a really great way of connecting with nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe know other simple sensory pleasures such as smelling flowers, listening to birdsong and noticing butterflies and bees can also help with nature connection and encourage feelings of wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith people\u2019s desire to reconnect with family and friends, and to enjoy time outdoors and the simple and sensory pleasures in life, we will be concentrating on ensuring families can do just that at many of our places this summer by providing safe spaces to enjoy and to have fun.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This summer, National Trust places in Northern Ireland will be ready to \u2018Get set, go!\u2019 with a range of active, sensory and playful activities that encourage fun, laughter and taking time out in nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll be able to pick up a ‘Get set, go’ activity card – or if you prefer, download them<\/a> to take with you – to inspire your summer adventure. These activity cards have lots of ways to enjoy summer activities, such as ‘Find your way’ to explore new paths and discover different natural textures, or ‘Feel the beat’ to tune in to the sounds and rhythms of nature. Each activity is designed to have fun with what’s around you and explore the simple things this summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

National Trust \u2018Get set, go!\u2019 activities near you<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Argory, County Armagh<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Challenge friends and family at Blackwater Bootcamp. How high can you jump? How much can you lift? Enjoy schoolyard skipping and tennis on the lawn; compose a nature tune in the giant arbour sound boot; try your hand at some Argory Art or help the next generation of cyclists learn to ride on the new free-to-hire balance bikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pre-booking not required. Visit <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/the-argory<\/em><\/a> <\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Castle Coole, Florence Court and Crom, County Fermanagh<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grab a Get Set, Go card at Castle Coole, Crom or Florence Court and create your own adventure as you explore the activities at each place. You can make a splash at Crom, add some bounce at Castle Coole, or follow the path at Florence Court, all whilst noticing nature at each of these special places.  Don\u2019t forget to collect your wooden medal for taking part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pre-booking not required visit <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/crom<\/em><\/a> <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/castle-coole<\/em><\/a>   <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/florence-court<\/em><\/a> <\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rowallane Garden, County Antrim<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Venture into Explore & Play, a natural playground filled with fun, physical challenges. See if you can survive the swamp, find the tallest trees and get active in nature. Don\u2019t forget to pick up a Get Set, Go card to inspire your summer adventure. ‘Find your way’ to explore new paths and discover different natural textures, or ‘feel the beat’ to tune in to the sounds and rhythms of nature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pre-booking recommended, visit <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/rowallane-garden<\/em><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mount Stewart, County Down<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pick up your Get Set, Go pack from the courtyard outside Visitor Reception and choose your own adventure. Take a dive into forest bathing, hunt for hidden digital treasures with geocaching or try your hand at archery. Make a bee line for the Magic Ink Pot, a natural play area themed around magical journeys and mythical creatures; or see what strange and exotic animals you can find in the ark in the Italian Garden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pre-booking recommended visit <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/mount-stewart<\/em><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Castle Ward, County Down<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choose to go barefoot in the wildflower meadow, hit the target while buzzing along with the bees, Get Set, Go in a potato sack race, catch your breath during a yoga pose, or find your way through the estate with a natural sensory trail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pre-booking not required, visit <\/em>www.nationaltrust.org.uk\/castle-ward<\/em><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This year\u2019s theme for Playday, the national day of play on 4 August, is \u2018Summer of Play\u2019 and the National Trust NI has is encouraging families to experience a range of simple outdoor pleasures designed to keep families entertained right through the school holidays.  It\u2019s been a challenging year, but with restrictions easing and summer … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19578"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19578"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19581,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19578\/revisions\/19581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}