About Us
Mission
To expand access to childhoods rooted in play and nature that nurture creativity, resilience, and environmental stewardship
Vision
We believe children thrive through nature-play. Every child deserves a joyfully muddy childhood and a strong sense of community.
Impact
We expand access to nature-play through our own programs and by equipping other organizations and schools to create their own.
Founder
Every Child Outdoors is founded by Sarah Besse.
Sarah has spent her career in experiential education and believes that play and access to nature are essential for healthy child development. Time outdoors supports children’s creativity, language development, social-emotional growth, resilience, and environmental stewardship.
Earlier in her career, Sarah established and grew a network of nature preschools in the Boston area that served over 600 children each year. Through that work, she helped demonstrate the power of nature-play as a scalable model for high-quality early childhood education.
Through ECO, Sarah now works to expand access to nature-based early education while supporting educators and organizations from near and far to bring outdoor learning into their own communities.
She holds a B.A. from Carleton College, an M.S. in Early Childhood Education from Wheelock College, and AMS Montessori teacher certification. She lives in Jamaica Plain and enjoys gardening.
Ethos
ECO is built on a spirit of possibility. We ask big questions, envision new ways of living and learning, and turn ideas into reality with care for people and the natural world.
Our teachers are trusted professionals. Our children are respected as capable thinkers and explorers. We are advocates for play and for children’s connection to the natural world in Boston and beyond.
Our values are:
Creativity
We value creativity over convention. We explore possibilities and connect ideas in unexpected ways.
Innovation
We value innovation over maintaining the status quo. We bring ideas to life, design new solutions, and turn possibilities into programs.
Collaboration
We value collaboration over competition. We bring ideas to life by partnering with educators, families, and community partners.
Benefits of Nature Play
In recent years, the evidence for play-based outdoor learning has become impossible to ignore. Far from being “just play,” time outdoors is one of the most powerful, research-backed ways to support children’s development — across cognitive, emotional, and social domains.
Here are a few key findings from the research:
Improved focus and executive function
Studies from the University of Illinois and others show that outdoor play enhances attention spans and self-regulation skills, especially for children who struggle with focus indoors.
Stronger academic outcomes
Research from Frontiers in Psychology (2022) found that outdoor, play-based learning environments improve problem-solving, creativity, and science reasoning — foundational skills for long-term academic success.
Better mental health
Time in nature is consistently linked to reduced stress, lower anxiety, and improved mood in both children and educators (Chawla, 2015).
Social and emotional growth
Outdoor play encourages cooperation, negotiation, and empathy as children navigate unstructured environments together — skills that can’t be taught through worksheets.
Physical wellbeing
Movement-rich outdoor play builds strength, coordination, and confidence — combating sedentary lifestyle risks.
The message is clear:
When we prioritize outdoor play, we’re not taking time away from learning — we’re giving it room to grow. It’s time to see play-based outdoor learning not as an extra, but as an essential part of education.
Citation: Excerpted with permission from Amy Reyes-Hauff, 2025.
