General Chat

"Growing up in a greener urban environment boosts children's intelligence and reduces behavioural problems, a study has found. A 3 per cent increase in greenery raised children's IQ scores by an average of 2.6 points, according to an analysis of more than 600 children aged between ten and 15"

My sister and I were discussing this last night.

We had a pretty 'feral' childhood, moving around a lot, but mainly living in or near the countryside, and spent most of our childhood outside, roaming around the surrounding countryside (caravans can be pretty claustrophobic)

I went to 6 different primary schools, and had 3 months with no education at the age of 6, but still passed my 11+
Sister went to 8 different primary schools, didn't take the 11+ because we were in Scotland when she was 10. She went to a High School, a Secondary School, then a Comprehensive School, and ended up in a Grammar School at 15, based on her results at the Comprehensive school.

What do you think about the countryside being good for IQ?

I also grew up in the country and spent much of my time roaming the fields. I wonder if being outside boosts health and immunity and that has something to do with it. Probably IQ is also part genetic so maybe having the correct combination of fresh air. Good healthy food and good genes ( of the right sort) equals higher IQ.

Isn’t this almost the old nature versus nurture argument?

I think it is better for children than sitting indoors with electronic games, their imagination is vast and shouldn’t be stifled.

I grew up near open countryside and family leisure time was often walks or picnics. My parents did take us out and about to the seaside and other various attractions, but we certainly weren't entertained all the time. We thought up our own games or got involved with other local children and played skipping or ball games with them.

I've known parents pack in lots of organised events at weekends in recent years, when actually the children would sometimes benefit more from low-key events or family outings, when they can just talk or discover their surroundings together.

My eldest (L) works some weekends, so when she isn't working, her children are taken out.
L loves history, and her children are taken to National Trust properties, stone age hillforts etc. Even during lockdown, she would drive them to some remote hill for a picnic.
When the grandchildren (pre-pandemic) stayed with me, they were pleased to be able to just 'hang around,' doing nothing! :-D :-D

It must be difficult for families with little money, who live in flats in big towns.

I grew up in London in a street of gloomy Victorian terraced houses but we had a small park nearby and a bigger one a mile or so away. Our mothers happily sent us off with a couple of jam sandwiches and a drink and we spent the day in the park. Access to “nature”, even if it’s man made must stimulate imagination more than sitting in front of a screen for hours on end and I believe that seeing green around you has a calming effect so children are more likely to absorb what they are being taught.

On the other hand, I could be talking a load of rubbish :-D

Not rubbish at all, Vera!
There was a park - and you were sent off, with no adult!
Something that would rarely happen nowadays.

My children were pretty feral, but not as bad as me.

They'd go around in a group for most of the day, and come back for meals.
Youngest, (N) at about 8, used to walk over a mile to the river, with the boy next door, (V) who was 3 years older than her. They'd play in the river, or sit on the bank and talk. They were just like siblings.

I lived at the bottom of a town but we were just 5 mins from open countryside. During the summer months on Saturdays and school holidays, we would go blackberry picking or walk 3 miles to the nearest village noting all the different birds and animals along the way. Our rucksack contained a jam sandwich, plastic bottle with orange squash and an apple...no sweets.

My mum took us fruit picking with her in summer and we had our area at the bottom of the orchard to play. The farmer let us be there as long as we didn't get in the way. We took a small ball and a bat and amused ourselves. We learnt a lot about nature which helped in school.

My primary school had a huge playing field surrounded by trees. At lunchtimes we would walk around collecting leaves to press under our carpet.

We spent a lot of time outdoors playing and many lessons too learning about the environment.
Makes me laugh actually as the new teaching up here called Curriculum for Excellence focuses on everything I learnt as a child so in a way, our teaching was way ahead of its time!
Even on rainy days, we did not watch tv all day instead we had board games, read books and made things out of recycled cereal boxes...Yes we recycled all those years ago except it wasn't called that then.

We were taught skills and how to be independent from an early age. I had a younger brother 10 years below me, mum taught me how to change his nappy, bathe and feed him. All skills for life.

Yes outdoor learning certainly does have a positive effect on children.

I also see it in tourists who come here with children. Some complain bitterly because there are no arcades or theme parks or Macdonalds etc or there isnt wi-fi in the house they are renting, having come from the big cities but we have beautiful beaches, clean unspoilt, fresh air and a place most of us feel safe to let our children play outside in the gardens without fear of someone snatching them!

Does spending a lot of time outside improve a childs I Q? Yes I absolutely think it does.

Florence in the hebrides

Think nurture too can play a part

At 2 years and 6 months I was evacuated to Kent from London

Was billeted with a young married couple who had their own business doing commercial window cleaning and employed several lads and older men when the lads got called up

Auntie was a qualified tailoress who had worked for some of the big fashion houses in London but she took over the running of the business when Uncle went into the army so it was just auntie and me

She also came from a family of business people her father being a dental technician

We lived in a new build 1930,s semi in High Brooms Tunbridge Wells

I do remember wearing beautiful hand made coats that she made !

Also remember being told when we were suited and booted to go out i would go all preened and say to her oh auntie let’s be ladies

I finally returned to London in jan 1946 and felt like a fish out of water

Loved my mum and dad and siblings but never did feel like I fitted in

I was the only one too that passed the 11 plus and went to grammar school

My hubby used to say you are nothing like your brothers and sisters !


Soo yes I do think environment as well as nurture in the formative years play a part

Florence, your talking about school lessons reminds me that in Mevagissey, if the weather was nice, our teacher, Miss Franklin, would take the class out for a walk in the morning.
We'd look at wild flowers - maybe pick one, or buildings in the village, a local pond, the sea - anything!
The afternoon, and perhaps the next day, was spent doing 'formal' lessons, all based on our walk.
Maths/science became things like how the dandelion developes, what are the 'clock' bits, and how many puffs does it take to remove all the seeds from a dandelion?
If we looked at buildings, history was involved, and angles in maths.
Art would be to draw a flower or building comprehension was a paragraph on whatever we'd looked at, homework would be to learn how to spell flowers, or bits of buildings - she was an amazing teacher - learning became tangible!

Now the curriculum is 'set' - and learning is mainly stuffing in information purely to pass SATS.

Shirley in the 70's I lived very close to High Brooms and my mum now lives on the main road about 5 mins from there...how amazing and also my mum is called Shirley..lol

When we were in secondary school, we did Home Economics. This covered a lot more than just cooking. You learnt about how to use a cooker and the oven temp etc. You were taught what all the labels on clothes meant and what temp to wash at. and how to use a washing machine. You learnt about foods which were good to eat when you were unwell, which vitamins were in foods etc.
We were also taught about different foods in other cultures and various festivals during the year where certain foods were eaten.
All this we learnt and didn't think anything of it.

Now the subjects of the Curriculum for Excellence in Scotland are
Expressive Arts,Health & Wellbeing, Languages,Mathmatics,Religious & Moral Education, Sciences,Social Studies & Technologies.

Each lesson of the day...ie Home Economics should include something from each of the subjects listed. So given what we were taught, H E in my time did cover all those subjects.So the "new" teaching today isn't really new at all. We have been learning this way for years.

The outdoor learning you mention Maggie was far more interesting then sitting in the class all day.Im lucky working in a small rural school as we do go outside to do maths like measuring the playground with a Trundle Wheel or the size of the windows etc. For outdoor art, the children have to draw something they can see around them .A tree, birds, the buildings etc.
The town school I work in does do somethings outside but with nearly 200 pupils there, its a lot harder to organise and control the learning.

We are probably one of the few places where after the summer holidays, the children from primary 1-7 have to write how they spent the holidays and what they did etc. We also still do handwriting practice!!

Love Mevagissey, Looe, Polperro.Lovely part of the country

Florence in the hebrides

What a coincidence Florence

I Iived in Nursery Road and went to infants school in powdermill lane then to the primary school

Had strict instructions from auntie not to use the toilets as they were smelly Elson bins

Went home every day for lunch and had to make sure I looed before going back to school


Remember places like yew tree road and walking down powdermill lane picking blackberries from the hedgerow

We had two apple trees on the back garden one an eater one a cooker and auntie made all types of apple and ?.. Jams
She also preserved apples to use for cooking in the winter.

Shirley - back to your nurture - I fully agree!
If you are told you can try things, we all make mistakes, where there's a positivity - you're more likely to try new things.
If you're told you're a failure, you'd avoid trying things you may not manage,

Florence, when My children were at school 'Home Economics' consisted of bringing in a pizza box, looking at the ingredients, then designing your own box!
We never ate pizza, so buying one, just for the box, was galling.


...my Hampshire gran used to make her own wine with things like gorse, elderflower, rowan etc, or fruit/veg she'd grown in her garden

Im sure it tasted very nice too maggie :-)

Florence in the hebrides

My dad always says, its ok to make mistakes, that how we learn from them.

Florence in the hebrides

The wine? Definitely!
The pizza - no.

I grew up in a wholly rural environment and I am thick as two short planks.

That's not true, Sharron!! :-0 :-D :-D :-D

It is. I could only see one other house from ours until I was ten. Ever so rural!

:-D :-D :-D