In a world of rising costs, uncertainty, and disruption, resilience may be the most important skill we are not teaching our kids.
Right now, many children are struggling with things that should feel manageable.
Sore wrists from too much gaming mean skipping PE.
Eight-year-olds asking adults to get lunch boxes out of their bags because it’s too hard.
Young children who fear running because the sensation of being out of breath is so unfamiliar that it scares them.
As educators, with nearly 40 years’ experience between us, we’ve noticed a lot.
This isn’t about blaming kids—it’s a sign of the world they’re growing up in. But it does mean we need to do things differently. And that needs to happen now.
Because resilient children become resilient adults—and that shapes everything: families, communities, and the future.
Resilience isn’t about “hardening up,” ignoring emotions, or “just getting on with things.”
It requires emotional intelligence as well as physical capability and preparedness.
To be truly resilient means understanding feelings, mastering them so they don’t take control, and knowing deep down: “I can handle this, no matter what.”
Because when systems fail—power outages, supply issues, extreme weather—we quickly realise how dependent we’ve become on the conveniences and luxuries that keep us safe, but soft.
Practical capability and confidence are essential parts of resilience too.
The good news?
Resilience doesn’t require a complete lifestyle overhaul—like installing solar, composting toilets and moving off grid. Or even bringing old Daisy the cart horse out of retirement to travel into town for supplies.
It’s built through small, real experiences:
Starting and cooking over a fire
Growing potatoes in a bucket
Seeking solutions rather than dwelling on problems
Becoming comfortable with uncomfortable feelings—and knowing discomfort passes
Moving our bodies, getting strong, and feeling capable to walk or bike
Learning how to communicate effectively in times of conflict
This is exactly what we focus on at True in Nature Bush School.
Our programmes aren’t just about getting kids outdoors (although that’s a big part of it). They’re about building capable, confident, resilient humans.
Children learn how to cook over fire and on gas stoves, filter water, forage, build shelters, problem-solve, and work as a team. They experience challenge, take measured risks, and discover they can do hard things.
And something shifts.
They become calmer. More confident. More willing to try—despite the possibility of it not working.
“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.” — Theodore Roosevelt
Because deep down, they know:
“I can handle this.”
That’s resilience.
If you want your child to build real-world skills, emotional strength, and genuine confidence, enrolments for our True in Nature holiday programmes—and our one-day-a-week Bush School during term time—are open now.
It’s combining old-fashioned skills with modern-day emotional awareness.
Because resilience isn’t something we talk about.
It’s something we live.
For more details, head to: trueinnature.com or True In Nature Facebook Group
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