Walking with kids

Strange phenomenon: the same kids who tear around a playground indefinitely will collapse in (supposed) utter exhaustion if asked to walk a mile. (I’m not talking about toddlers, for whom walking a couple blocks could indeed take all day, given all the fascinating detours they discover.) But the kids’ reluctance isn’t very mysterious: For able-bodied kids, low stamina for walking stems partly from low motivation—they won’t shy away from telling you it is BOOORRRIIINNNGGG—and partly from lack of practice or familiarity. Fortunately, if you want to walk with your grandchildren, both of these obstacles have solutions.

But before I launch into ways to get the grandkids to take walks with you, let me put some cautions out there:
• Be sure you’ve got the physical stamina to keep at it despite dawdling, and the mental stamina to urge the kiddos on creatively.
• Even so, short walks only, unless you can carry the child or bring a stroller.
• Be sensitive to the children’s needs—no point in urging a hungry, thirsty, truly exhausted, or sick child onward. Be sure to carry snacks and water, and be ready to regroup and save the walk for another day.
• And of course basic safety stuff like crossing streets carefully, sticking together, etc. 

Kid-friendly reasons to walk

Adults generally walk for some purpose—to get some exercise, enjoy nature, get an errand done, join a friend, walk the dog, save on greenhouse emissions, save transportation money. If you like walking enough to want to walk with your grandchildren, you’ve probably also grown to think that walking is inherently pleasurable—swinging along, getting some sun and outdoor air, relieving little kinks here and there.

Most kids, though, aren’t going to buy the “inherently pleasurable” line. Nor are they going to care too much about your errands, etc., or even the dog. So to get kids interested in walking, you need to find something that is motivating for them. Sometimes, the motivation is built in, because you’re going somewhere they want to go, like a library or park. But you might also want to do a nature hike together, or might need them to come on your errands. In those cases, you need some other motivation they can relate to. Finding that motivating something is definitely a case of “know your grandchild,” but here are some ideas to get you started:
• The main point of your walk can be a hunt of some sort. This post suggests types of hunts good for all ages.
• Bring along a toy or stuffy that can pose for photos. One chilly day, my 5-year-old grandson and I walked a 1-mile loop at a nature preserve with this method. His purple plastic bug sunned itself on logs, peeked out of crevices, and hid in the leaves—bug photo ops all the way around the pond!
• Older children can get into taking the photos themselves. A theme related to their interests would be great: Car logos, maybe? Or journalistic evidence of the prettiest (or ugliest?) animal between home and your destination?
• Use walking sticks to make the walk special. My grandfather carved sticks for each of us, and we would tap along in a little group exploring his neighborhood; my grandchildren enjoy their walking sticks, too.

When motivation wears thin 

Even with a good motivating theme for your walk, you might find the child’s interest flagging and feet dragging along the way. Then you can pull out some mid-walk distraction:
• Sing! (Assuming you’re old enough to be comfortable making a fool of yourself!) We especially enjoy “The Ants Go Marching,” “99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall,” and “Wheels on the Bus” with silly made up lyrics. Rhythm and laughing both work wonders for walking.
• Kick a small stone, ice chunk, or some other small found object along the sidewalk in an impromptu soccer game. A bottle cap came to our rescue walking the 1.3 miles from the Field Museum to The Bean in Chicago.
• Find something of interest (to the child!) that repeats, possibly with variations, along your route. One grandson sped down the sidewalk once he noticed the way address numbers increased as we progressed. Another, age two, covered much of the Walkway Over the Hudson after he got excited about the electronic controls on the lamp posts. He tested lots of them, and eventually he did get one panel to open (!).
• Play an imaginative game—maybe monsters hide behind trees in your neighborhood, too.
• Talk! That is, talk about something the child is interested in. Maybe they can give you a blow-by-blow of their most recent videogame victory.
• Treats. You can always pull out the big guns and go for a treat, like a stop at a bakery or toy store, at the midpoint or end of your walk. Best to use the treat technique sparingly if at all, however, because the other options will lose their appeal in comparison. 

Practice, practice, practice

As with lots of new ventures, walking with grandchildren takes practice, for them and you! Start short, keep it happy, make it routine, and over time the kids will take walks with you in stride.