Play Nature Podcast

Rusty Keeler
  • 5.0 (8)
  • Parenting
  • Biweekly

Welcome to Play Nature Podcast, a podcast dedicated to celebrating the beauty and benefits of outdoor, nature-based play—for all children (and us adults too!) Hosted by Rusty Keeler, a passionate play advocate, with over 30 years of experience designing natural playscapes, writing about nature and risky play, and traveling the world to champion the power of play, Rusty’s Play Nature Podcast is your guide for supporting outdoor play, protecting childhood, and letting kids be kids. From willow huts and mud kitchens to sunflower houses and kale forests, Rusty will delve into the magic of natural materials, loose parts, messy play, and even the value of risky play in children’s lives. You’ll discover practical ways to nurture play in your own backyard, neighborhood, school, or community. Join Rusty Keeler to uncover the wonders of outdoor play and learn what tools you already have to create joyful, natural play experiences for all seasons, all weather, and all children. Let’s make the world a better place by saying “Yes!” to play. Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs

  1. 4d ago

    Ep 43 | Let Play Lead: Risky Play, Freedom, and Childhood with Suzanne Axelsson

    more than fun and games. It's what makes us human! In this episode of the Play Nature Podcast, Rusty Keeler welcomes Suzanne Axelsson, international play activist, educator, author, and creator of Playarista training to go deep into the magic of play-led play, children's autonomy, and the power of letting kids follow their own curiosity. From risky play and children's rights to the surprising connection between play and democracy, Suzanne challenges adults to rethink what it really means to support children. Spoiler alert: It's not about controlling the fun! What happens when we stop directing and start listening? Rusty and Suzanne explore how play builds resilience, strengthens relationships, and creates space for mistakes, big feelings, and brave discoveries. They also look at how our own fears and expectations can get in the way of children's freedom to play.  The big invitation? Slow down. Get curious. Let play lead. Because when we give children room to be themselves, we might just rediscover a little of our own playful spirit along the way. Top 3 Takeaways from Suzanne: Let play lead the way. True play is about freedom, joy, and flow. Give children the space to follow their curiosity instead of an adult's agenda. Risky play grows brave, capable kids. Climbing, exploring, experimenting, and making mistakes help children discover their limits, build resilience, and develop confidence. Pause before you jump in. Observe first. Intervene when safety or children's rights are at stake, but avoid unnecessary interference. Sometimes the best thing an adult can do is simply be present. Links: suzanneaxelsson.substack.com Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 43 | Let Play Lead: Risky Play, Freedom, and Childhood with Suzanne Axelsson

  2. Oct 13

    Ep 42 | Bev Bos and the Art of Standing Back with Stephanie O'Brien

    Think about this…the best thing we can do for children is…less and then more. Less directing. Less correcting. Less rushing to the rescue. More mud. More mess. More wonder!  In this episode of Play Nature Podcast, Rusty welcomes Stephanie O’Brien, longtime educator at the legendary Roseville Community Preschool, where the philosophy of beloved early childhood advocate Bev Bos is still going strong. With a background in occupational therapy and more than two decades at the preschool, Stephanie shares how this one-of-a-kind play space gives children the freedom to take risks, make choices, feel big feelings, and grow at their own pace. And how a school held together with zip ties, duct tape, and a whole lot of love can change the lives of children AND parents. From the art of being an "unhelpful" adult to the importance of messy play and strong developmental foundations, Rusty and Stephanie explore what happens when we stop controlling childhood and start trusting children.  They talk about creating environments filled with possibilities, supporting big emotions without judgment, and making room for curiosity and discovery. Because childhood isn't a race to kindergarten readiness. It's about building the roots for a lifetime of learning, confidence, and joy. So slow down. Stand back. Let the magic happen! Top 3 Takeaways from Stephanie:  Master the art of standing back. Give children the space to solve problems, take risks, and discover what they're capable of. Stay close, but resist the urge to jump in and fix everything. Embrace the mess. All of it! Muddy clothes, spilled paint, big feelings, and even bigger frustrations are all part of growing up. Children need room to experience it all. Build the foundation before the academics. Climbing, digging, crawling, wondering, and playing develop the physical, emotional, and social skills children need to thrive. Slow and steady. Childhood isn't a race! Links: rosevillecp.org   Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 42 | Bev Bos and the Art of Standing Back with Stephanie O'Brien

  3. Sep 29

    Ep 41 | Everything Can Be Taught Outside with Dr. Megan Zeni

    What if the answer to better learning, happier kids, and even easier classroom management is just outside the door?  In this episode of the Play Nature Podcast, Rusty talks with Dr. Megan Zeni about bringing play, learning, and a little healthy risk into the school day. No fancy outdoor classroom required. A tarp, a patch of grass, and a willingness to try can be plenty. Megan shares what she learned from decades of teaching outdoors and helping other educators do the same. They talk all about why outdoor learning gives kids more room to move, regulate, explore, and actually engage with what they’re learning. They also look at the spectrum from adult-directed activities to guided play to child-led play—and how teachers can use all three to meet curriculum goals without squeezing the play right out of learning. And then there’s risky play. Saws. Climbing. Mud. The good stuff. Megan explains how clear routines and strong relationships create the freedom kids need to explore. Her advice? Skip waiting for the perfect outdoor classroom. Take something you already do and move it outside. Start small. Go play. Top 3 Takeaways from Dr. Megan Zeni: Outside can make school work better. More room to move and explore can support engagement, relationships, and classroom routines. Structure can create freedom. Teach the skills and routines first, then give kids the time and space to take the lead. Start with what you already do. Read a book under a tree. Take a lesson for a walk. Put the Legos on a tarp. Going outside doesn’t have to be complicated. Links: meganzeni.com @roomtoplay Facebook | Intsagram   Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 41 | Everything Can Be Taught Outside with Dr. Megan Zeni

  4. Sep 15

    Ep 40 | Stop ’Splaining the Play: Lisa Murphy on Trusting Kids

    What if play didn’t need a lesson plan? Or an outcome? Or a grown-up standing nearby explaining what’s supposed to happen next?  In this episode of the Play Nature Podcast, Rusty Keeler sits down with longtime early childhood educator, author, speaker, and unapologetic play advocate Lisa Murphy to talk about what children really need in order to play: time, choice, trust, and adults willing to get out of the way. Lisa has spent more than 30 years helping educators understand that play isn’t something extra we squeeze in after the “real learning.” It is the foundation underneath it.  Rusty and Lisa are talking about why freely chosen, open-ended play matters, what happens when children (and adults) haven’t had enough of it. Curiosity might be one of the most important things we can protect, so let’s evaluate the danger of chopping a child’s day into twenty-minute pieces. Because play has its own speed. This conversation is also a rallying cry for educators. Know what you believe. Own it. Stop apologizing for play before anyone has even questioned it. Play doesn’t need an agenda. Sometimes the best thing we can do is give it space and see where it goes. Top 3 Takeaways from Lisa Murphy: Give play time. Real play needs enough room for choosing, negotiating, experimenting, changing course, and deciding when it’s finished. Protect curiosity. Children (and grown-ups) need opportunities to wonder, explore, get messy, and follow ideas without always knowing where they’ll lead. Know your values. When educators are clear about what they believe about children and play, it becomes much easier to stand confidently behind their practice. Links:  ooeygooey.com @OoeyGooeyLady on Facebook | on Instagram | on YouTube   Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs    Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 40 | Stop ’Splaining the Play: Lisa Murphy on Trusting Kids

  5. Aug 25

    Ep 39 | Should Kids Go UP the Slide?

    What happens when one kid climbs up the slide while another is coming down? Is going up the slide really dangerous? Or is it just one of those playground rules we’ve inherited without thinking too hard about it?  In this episode of the Play Nature Podcast, Rusty Keeler dives into one of the surprisingly spicy debates of early childhood play: Should kids go UP the slide? Rusty shares stories from risky play conversations with educators, including a triumphant tube-slide climb, a former emergency room nurse who has seen more than her share of childhood injuries, and *content warning* a few genuine playground horror stories involving sticks, teeth, and yes, an eyeball.  The point isn’t to dismiss anyone’s fears. It’s to understand where those fears come from and ask whether a blanket “NO” is always the best answer. This episode is really about more than slides. It’s about questioning old rules. Making room for different comfort levels and finding thoughtful ways to say yes to challenge without ignoring safety.  Top Three Takeaways: Question the rules. Ask why they exist. Then ask whether they still make sense. Make space for different perspectives. Our experiences shape how we see risk. Find your way to yes. Safety and adventurous play don’t have to be opposites. Get on the waitlist for Nature Play Academy: rustykeeler.com/the-nature-play-academy Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 39 | Should Kids Go UP the Slide?

  6. Aug 11

    Ep 38 | Let’s form a Nature Play Community!

    What happens when children meet a muddy hill, a dangling rope, and a whole lot of possibility? They climb. They slip. They tumble. They try again.  In this episode of Play Nature Podcast, Rusty returns to Six Mile Creek and shares the story of Challenge Hill, where preschoolers in mud suits showed him just how capable, joyful, and determined children can be. That wide-eyed moment is part of what inspired Rusty’s newest adventure: Nature Play Academy. After years of visiting inspiring play spaces, designing natural playgrounds, leading risky play conversations, and collecting stories from around the world, Rusty is ready to get all that goodness off his hard drive and into a living, growing community.  The Academy welcomes everyone from curious seeds to seasoned forests: teachers, directors, parents, grandparents, designers, playworkers, and nature play champions of every kind. Most of all, Nature Play Academy is a place to stop feeling alone. A place to ask questions. Share ideas. Grow confidence. Say yes more often. And go farther together. Top Three Takeaways Nature Play Academy is designed for everyone, from brand-new nature play beginners to experienced leaders growing the movement. Community and practical support can help educators move through fears about risk, licensing, parents, and program expectations. Small changes, shared ideas, and a little courage can create richer, wilder, more joyful play for children. Get on the waitlist for Nature Play Academy: rustykeeler.com/the-nature-play-academy Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 38 | Let’s form a Nature Play Community!

  7. Jul 28

    Ep 37 | Nature-Based Learning Doesn’t Need a Forest with Dr. Rachel Larimore

    Nature is everywhere. In the trees. In the rain. In the crack in the sidewalk where one determined little plant is doing its thing. In the tree that looks like a butt. In this episode of Play Nature Podcast, Rusty talks with Dr. Rachel Larimore about helping children build real relationships with the natural world, even when a school does not have a forest, a fancy outdoor classroom, or a flock of woodland creatures waiting at the gate. Rachel shares simple ways educators can bring more nature into the school day. Start inside with books, pictures, and materials that reflect the actual plants, animals, weather, and seasons outside the classroom window. Then step outdoors. Stay a little longer. Add loose parts. Eat snack outside. Notice the wind. Follow the puddles.  Nature-based learning does not have to arrive all at once wearing expensive rain pants. Rachel and Rusty talk about slowing down, letting play stretch, making room for uncertainty, and trusting children to form their own relationships with the birds, bugs, trees, rainstorms, and wonderfully named “butt trees” in their lives. Top three takeaways from Rachel Larimore, PhD: Nature-based learning can begin with small, doable changes. Longer outdoor play needs variety, loose parts, and adult patience. Relationships with nature grow through time, attention, wonder, and gratitude. Links: samarael.com Rachel's 90 second quiz: samarael.com/quiz    Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs   Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide

    Ep 37 | Nature-Based Learning Doesn’t Need a Forest with Dr. Rachel Larimore

  8. Jul 14

    Ep 36 | Outdoor Learning, Risky Play, and Food Education with Louise Licznerski

    A school that smells like mud, woodsmoke, porridge, and possibility? Well…that sounds perfect! In this episode of Play Nature Podcast, Rusty chats with Louise Licznerski about outdoor learning in Scotland, where children run, wander, forage, climb, get muddy, and settle into the slow, steady rhythms of the earth. This conversation is all about what happens when children are trusted with space, time, nature, and real play. Louise shares how outdoor nurseries and school-age nature programs can help children feel calm, curious, capable, and connected. They talk about child-led play, mixed-age learning, emotional regulation, seasonal rhythms, muddy immune systems, and why the forest can sometimes teach better than fluorescent lights ever could. There are sticks as wands. Puddles as science labs. Chickens as bedtime teachers. And children finding their way back to themselves outside. Louise reminds us that children everywhere need to play, but each place has its own gifts. Start with the land around you. Work with nature, not against it. Dream big. Start small. And maybe, just maybe, go big or go home. Top three takeaways from Louise: Children regulate, learn, and thrive when they have freedom, space, and nature’s rhythms. Outdoor learning can support children of all ages, not just the wee ones. Start with what is around you: your weather, your landscape, your food, your community. Links: littlebugs.co.uk weeforagers.com httscottishoutdoorlearning.co.uk @littlebugsoutdoors on IG @littlebugsoutdoors on Facebook   Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs  Rusty’s FREE Outdoor Loose Parts Guide Sign up for the Nature Play Academy updates: rusty-keeler.mykajabi.com/nature-play-academy-waitlist

    Ep 36 | Outdoor Learning, Risky Play, and Food Education with Louise Licznerski
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5
out of 5
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About

Welcome to Play Nature Podcast, a podcast dedicated to celebrating the beauty and benefits of outdoor, nature-based play—for all children (and us adults too!) Hosted by Rusty Keeler, a passionate play advocate, with over 30 years of experience designing natural playscapes, writing about nature and risky play, and traveling the world to champion the power of play, Rusty’s Play Nature Podcast is your guide for supporting outdoor play, protecting childhood, and letting kids be kids. From willow huts and mud kitchens to sunflower houses and kale forests, Rusty will delve into the magic of natural materials, loose parts, messy play, and even the value of risky play in children’s lives. You’ll discover practical ways to nurture play in your own backyard, neighborhood, school, or community. Join Rusty Keeler to uncover the wonders of outdoor play and learn what tools you already have to create joyful, natural play experiences for all seasons, all weather, and all children. Let’s make the world a better place by saying “Yes!” to play. Learn More: rustykeeler.com | @rusty_keeler_designs

Information

  • Creator
    Rusty Keeler
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    44
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Play Nature Podcast

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