Reason No. 27 to Hike with Kids: Better Students

Greenery can help student academic performance.

Did your son do poorly on his spelling quiz? Your daughter get a bad grade on her math test? Then take them a hike.

A recent study showed that students at elementary schools with a lot of trees and shrubs on site or surrounding the school scored better on tests better than students at schools surrounded by concrete and asphalt. In addition, the farther the greenery stretches outward from the school, the better the test scores.

While linking greenery to better grades may be a leap, the study does reinforce other research that shows vegetation helps improve people’s mental states and adults’ work productivity.

So you might want to move to a school district in which your child’s school is surrounded by trees and other greenery…a day hike, though, is a lot less expensive!

Learn about trail guidebooks available in the Hittin’ the Trail series.