Fifteen Minutes Outside: 365 Ways to Get Out of the House and Connect with Your Kids Paperback – March 1, 2011

I really love this book. I bought it because I know I should get my kids outside more, but sometimes I run out of ideas. This book is great for that! It is very encouraging, but not preachy at all - it has a great discussion of why you should get your kids outside that I found very inspiring. The 15 minute goal is great because it's very doable. It is so hot in Texas in the summer that I often just can't stand the thought of going outside, but knowing it's just for 15 minutes is usually enough to get me out - and once we're out, we usually stay out for much longer than 15 minutes. There are so many ideas in this book, and they are grouped by month, which makes it really easy to find some seasonally appropriate ideas. Sometimes I read one of her ideas and it inspires a totally different activity, or I modify one of her activities in some way. Getting the kids outside works magic. Bad attitudes disappear in fresh air!

This is a great resource to have at your fingertips. Its brilliance is in how easy it is to implement many of the ideas. It also contains nice commentary that made me rethink my attitude about outdoor time. That was surprising considering I'd spent decades playing outside! I tried out the library copy and decided this was worth having on hand.

Fifteen Minutes Outside is a book dedicated to families who want to spend more time outside and are looking for some simple, creative ways to have fun in the great outdoors. The book lists ideas for each day of the year, in chronological order, and it serves as a good reference for those parents who want to do something but could use a quick reference to generate ideas.Most of us are fully aware that children do not play outdoors the way they did in the past. Television, computers, electronic games, and other things have taken the place of physical activity and the health consequences are obvious. Adults are often equally bad, watching television or spending excess hours online when they could be enjoying some outdoor time with the family. This book aims to get you and the kids out of the home and into contact with the great outdoors and it has enough suggestions to keep you and the family busy for a very long time.I agree that everyone should try to spend more time outdoors and as I read the different ideas presented in this guide, I noticed a few things. For one, some of the ideas require certain, specific materials that some families may not have available and may require making a small purchase. However, others are cost and trouble free and involve nothing more than walking outside and playing a game, picking a plant, or gathering leaves. The majority of the ideas involve no expenditures- all you need is access to a lawn, trees, flowers, etc., and the physical ability to get to them.Most of the ideas presented in this book are obvious and I like that the author took the time to come up with a different activity for each day of the year. If there is one small criticism to make about the book's ideas, it would be that the book assumes that readers live in areas of the United States that have four distinct seasons. I started to read this book and immediately noticed that January, February, and part of March suggest activities that involve snow and cold weather. These activities won't apply to those of us who live in warmer climates. Only when I got to April did I find things appropriate for warmer weather. So, a good number of ideas in this guide do not apply to someone who lives in a tropical or subtropical climate. This limits the book a little, but it will be just fine for the majority of residents in the U.S. since most people do live in normal, four season climates.Outdoor family time isn't what it used to be, but this book wants to reverse the trend and get you and the kids away from the electronics and back in touch with nature. The book is loaded with creative ways to get outside and while not all of the ideas will appeal to all children or adults there are enough suggestions to make the book useful for everyone.

I agree whole-heartedly with the other positive reviewers. This book is fun, easy, filled with ideas that are not difficult but that I wouldn't have thought of on my own. Best of all, I periodically leave it on our kitchen table and my children love to skim through it and make suggestions. As a busy Mom who wants to spend time outside but often feels pulled in many directions, it helps inspire and motivate me, too! I really like the author's practical, peaceful, aim for good not perfect approach. She would appeal to a wide variety of people living in various urban to rural settings.On another note, I also have Rebecca Cohen's "Curiosity Cards" and they are great! We used one tonight at dinner "If you could do more of one thing everyday, what would it be?" I use them whenever we have to wait. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005FQGCUG?redirect=true&ref_=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_0

I got this book from Santa for xmas (: and we started using it on New Years Day. Everyday we have been outside doing super fun things from tracking animals, finding new routes in our neighborhood and playing in the snow. Some days we are out for only 15 minutes and others we are outside for hours. LOVE IT! Thank you so much for this great book filled with amazing ideas of fun and simple (and many times free) outside activities.

A lot of the things are a little repetitive. She leaves lots of leeway for you to adjust her ideas for your family. This could be good, or bad, depending on the amount of guidance you need. I think it's good encouragement for getting your family outside.

I'm somewhat surprised at how useful this book has been to me. How hard is it to think of things to do outside? But I love that I can flip through it quickly (by month and day) and see quick, easy to pull off activities for my family. I'm a strong believer in getting kids outside, but live a busy life (like most everyone) and don't always make time for the outdoors. Already this week, we've planted peas, onions and spinach, pulled on rain boots and splashed in melting snow and took a walk in our small creek. And you know what? Rebecca is right, outdoors time is like a release valve for our family. We all are in a better mood, with just a small amount of time outside. Thanks!