Sing, read, relax: New features at Morton Arboretum encourage kids’ development, in simple ways

When a toddler examines a bug or touches a tree at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, they aren’t “just” playing.

Their brain is developing, stimulated by sights, sounds, textures and their own feelings.

On Friday, the arboretum, the DuPage County Health Department and WeGo Together for Kids celebrated a new partnership that will help families encourage that development.

Several of the spaces in the Children’s Garden now feature advice and activities tied to The Basics, a national early childhood development effort based on research done by Harvard University. The organization says that 80% of brain growth happens during the first three years of a person’s life.

The Basics suggests five ways to help children: “Maximize Love, Manage Stress”; “Talk, Sing and Point”; “Count, Group and Compare”; “Read and Discuss Stories”; and “Explore Through Play and Movement.”

“We know there is a strong connection between nature and health,” said Adam Forker, executive director of the health department, which offers The Basics.

A Morton Arboretum official learned about it during a health department presentation.

“Here in DuPage County, our mission is to help children and families stay healthy, learn and build a strong foundation for the future. And these garden spaces help bring that mission to life,” Forker said.

The installations feature artwork designed by a West Chicago High School student.

There are currently three installations.

The reading garden features “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” which visitors are encouraged to read together.

In another, people are prompted to sing and act out the classic “Itsy-Bitsy Spider” song and help children look for spiders. The singing can help develop language skills. On Friday, children were making pretend webs, using yarn.

That appealed to 10-year-old Sebastian Saucedo of West Chicago, “because you can be, like, creative,” he said. Sebastian made star-shaped webs.

He was there with his mother, Maila. They are patrons of WeGo Together For Kids, which is a partner in the garden spaces.

“They’re wonderful. We love them in West Chicago,” Maila Saucedo said.

WeGo Together for Kids works to support and improve the health, safety, learning and well-being of children and families in West Chicago.

“A lot of times families are talked to as opposed to being walked with,” said Jennifer Rodriguez, early childhood manager for WeGo Together for Kids.

Rodriguez said she likes The Basics program because of its collaborative approach and the simplicity of its instruction. For example, parents can sign up to receive a daily tip by text.

Bringing the program to the arboretum seemed a natural fit.

“We are bringing these ideas where families already go,” Rodriguez said.

ssarkauskas@dailyherald.com