SpecialSections

• Reprints

The great outdoors: The Morton Arboretum in Lisle can help children forge a life-long bond with nature. | FILE PHOTO

Summer presents one of today’s greatest parental challenges: connecting your child with the great outdoors.

The Morton Arboretum in Lisle can help families forge a life-long bond with nature.

“You can explore the Arboretum all summer long and never run out of ways to experience nature,” said Susan Wagner, vice president of Education and Information Services. She suggests three ways to get toddlers through teens outside and engaged with nature at The Morton Arboretum:

1. Enroll in Summer Science Camp. The Morton Arboretum offers eight weeks of outdoor adventure through camps for children entering kindergarten up to eighth grade. It’s a safe and fun way for kids to experience the great outdoors. They’ll encounter frogs, trees, mud, photography, eco-careers and more.

2. Hike and bike together. At the arboretum, visitors can walk 16 miles of trails and bike nine miles of paved roads. Vehicle-free biking is available all summer long every Friday from 5:30 p.m. to sunset and on Saturdays and Sundays from 7 to 9 a.m. Bike rentals are also available.

3. Play in the Children’s Garden. Called “The Best Backyard in the World” by Landscape Architecture magazine, the Children’s Garden immerses children and adults in the natural world. Entrance to the Children’s Garden is free with admission and included in arboretum membership.

Summer invites us all to be outside. To learn more about each of these opportunities, visit www.mortonarb.org.

Program support provided by: Molex, Youth Science Camp Presenting Sponsor and the Exelon Foundation, STEM Education Programs. Presenting Sponsor of the Children’s Garden: Navistar.

— Provided by the Morton Arboretum