An event last week in Mars deserves praise for both of its goals: raising money for the Mars Area School District’s field trip program and encouraging children to be active outdoors.

The March for Mars, conducted Oct. 6 through 8, is operated by the Mars Parent Teacher Organization and is the group’s largest fundraiser of the year. The event helps to pay for the school district’s field trips, T-shirts that students wear on the trips and field days.

Better yet, students in the district’s schools get to spend 30 to 45 minutes being involved in outdoor activity during the course of the three days.

On the one hand, many students were cooped up inside their own homes during the past year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic and didn’t get much time to spend with friends. On the other, during remote learning from home students likely spent more time outdoors than they normally would have, considering that so many indoor activities weren’t available.

So, the school district encouraging students to keep that outdoor activity going — especially when the pandemic finally ends — is a good thing.

Studies have long shown the benefits of children spending time outside. A Harvard Medical School study noted that safe exposure to the sun, exercise and socialization are among the top reasons why it’s important.

And studies by the National Education Association have found that children who engage in school field trips have better grades, higher graduation rates and are more intellectually curious and interested in learning.

At the same time, a report from the National Recreation and Park Association found that children today spend less time outdoors — an average of four to seven minutes per day for unstructured outdoor play — than any other generation, and that child obesity has reached unprecedented levels. Instead, they spend up to seven-and-a-half hours per day on electronic media, such as video games or the internet.

There’s no doubt that youths continued these online practices during the pandemic while stuck inside, but they also likely spent more time outdoors than usual. Now is a good time to build on that, and programs like the one at Mars Area School District — and events like March for Mars — are good ways to promote staying active for young people.

We wish this year’s initiative success.

— NCD