The first natural play area for children constructed at an Oregon state park is now open at Silver Falls State Park, east of Salem. The area is designed as a safe place for unstructured play, where children can climb a tree, hide out in a den, weave a bird’s nest and experience the outdoors. The creation of the play area is a response to a concern that children are suffering from a “nature deficit disorder,” a term coined by author Richard Louv in 2005 to describe the decline of children’s interaction with the natural world.
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