Super fun outdoor activities for kids truly do have very special powers.
Playing outside for hours and hours every week transforms kids health, boosts kids confidence and makes family life a whole heap happier!!!
And the most fun outdoor activities do NOT need lots of fancy prep.
So I have here a huge list of simple prompts for fun outside for kids of all ages wherever you are. Enjoy!!
Table of Contents
Outdoor Activities For Kids In Woods & Forests
Woodland has a magical impact on kids wellbeing offering hours of freedom for imaginations to run wild as they climb, chase, hunt and hide.
So hit any woodlands near you regularly with nothing more than a picnic – and some spare string – to …
- Climb Trees
- Walk The Plank
- Make A Log Seesaw
- Build A Tree Swing
- Play Forty Forty
- Build A Den
- Make Stick Swords
- Make Leaf Crowns
- Make Bow & Arrows
- Make Stick Flags
- Gather Craft Supplies
- Create A Trail
- Make Forest Face Monsters
Climb Trees
Climbing trees is not just fun for kids. It involves balancing and crossing the midline both of which boost mood and help kids worry less.
Walk The Plank
The simple fun of balancing on logs is also key for child development.
And even more fun if you balance the log over a ditch or stream and weave a tale of daring-dos around it.
Make A Log Seesaw
If you find a decent sized fallen branch and log make your own see saw for DIY fun that lets kids explore the power of levers for themselves.
Build A Tree Swing
Throw a rope over a strong branch and make an impromptu swing with a wooden stick for hours of fun.
Play Forty Forty
A classic kids game, Forty Forty is a super cool version of hide and seek that is the perfect outdoor activity for having fun in the woods.
Build A Den
Design your own den any which way you like with old branches then camouflage it with fallen supplies.
The very simplest of dens can be the start of hours of imaginative play.
Make Stick Swords
Make stick swords with some quick square lashing. Avoid injury with below-your-butt only battle rules!
Make Leaf Crowns
Simply thread string through leaves and tie around your head to create your own instant leaf crowns.
Make Bow & Arrows
Capture the spirit of Robin Hood with stick and string bows. And don’t worry about firing actual arrows – that’s what imagination is for.
Make Stick Flags
Tie a hankie, a scarf, a t-shirt – whatever you’ve got – to a good stick and you’ve a flag to march under!
Gather Craft Supplies
Woods are full of free craft supplies from twigs to pine cones and seed heads that are perfect for nature inspired craft activities including Christmas decorations …
Create A Trail
Make sure you don’t get lost by creating a trail with simple tracker trips e.g. twig arrows, little stone cairns, marks in the ground with a stick, piles of pine cones and more.
Make Forest Face Monsters
Use your forest finds to make super fun forest face monsters.
If you’re a fellow Londoner check out this guide to the best woods in London. It covers 18 stunning woods in all parts of the city.
Outdoor Activities For Kids In The Garden Or Backyard
Kids need loads of energy burning, body building backyard fun but also simple, soothing backyard activities that help them calm down.
There’s loads of fun backyard activities for kids that do both here.
High Energy Backyard Activities For Kids
For high energy backyard fun with little prep, help kids enjoy these:
- Camp In The Garden
- Crazy Obstacle Course
- Make Box Tunnels
- Paint Outdoors
- Make Bean Bags
- Tin Can Alley
- Soda Bottle Skittles
- Back Yard Train Track
- Build A Teepee
- Water Play
- Giant Bubbles
- Build A Stick Maze
- Create A Mud Kitchen
- Star Spotting
Camp In The Garden
Kids of all ages have great fun camping out in the garden. Just up their independence as they grow.
On warm summer nights older kids can have fun rigging up a shelter with a picnic blanket or some such and sleep under the stars.
Crazy Obstacle Course
Design a instant crazy obstacle course with whatever you can grab from your garage or shed :
- Hoops
- Skipping ropes
- Trikes
- Space hoppers
- Planks of wood to balance on
- Lawn mower box to hurdle
- Play tunnel to crawl through
- Garden sacks for sack race
- Ground sheet to crawl under
- Tub lid stepping stones
- Chalked hopscotch
- Bucket for bean bag toss
- Racket & ball for bouncy uppies and bouncy downies
- Bean poles to weave around or crawl or limbo under.
Make Box Tunnels
Put all those delivery boxes we all keep getting to good use making the biggest tunnel you can of boxes and gaffer tape all around the garden.
Paint Outdoors
Who says painting need to be indoors? There are all sorts of high energy creative ways to paint outdoors with kids from feet painting to spray painting, balloon painting and even catapult painting!
Make Bean Bags
Make bean bags from old socks and beans or rice and then enjoy all sorts of throwing and catching games.
Tin Can Alley
Make your own tin can alley with empty tins and your sock bean bags. You can even paint letters on the cans for a bit of reading practice.
Soda Bottle Skittles
Fill plastic bottles not gone in the recycling yet with sand, soil or a few marbles and enjoy backyard bowling with any ball you have.
Back Yard Train Track
Take a wooden train set outdoors for backyard railroad engineering fun and awesome journeys in the forests and savannahs of the garden.
Build A Teepee
You don’t need a fancy play house! Just grab 5 or 6 bean poles, string and an old sheet to make a simple 5 minute backyard teepee.
This is a fun backyard activity for older kids to whip up for little ones.
Water Play
Water play is always a winner when it’s hot and does NOT need lots of equipment or preparation.
Kids truly will make their own fabulous fun outdoors with :
- Buckets of water
- Dish soap
- Squeezy bottles
- Sponges
- Paint brushes
- Colanders
- Funnels
- Spoons for stirring potions
- Containers for pouring
- Plastic sheeting for a water slide.
Have faith in their imagination!!!
Just lay down basic rules at the beginning and stick to them.
Make Giant Bubbles
Make gorgeous rainbow giant bubbles with super quick DIY stick and string bubble wands …
Create A Mud Kitchen
It truly doesn’t need to be fancy.
Turn a couple of old boxes or crates into a pretend stove and hand over unused pots and pans cluttering the kitchen and let them play.
Any of these will add to the fun :
- Small saucepans
- Small frying pans
- Wooden spoons
- Colanders
- Seives
- Mixing bowls
- Ice cube trays
- Plastic or metal beakers
- Jugs
- Ladles
- Ice cube scoops
- Rolling pins
- Play dough cutters
- Metal tea pots.
And yes, mud kitchens are messy but they offer hours of imaginative fun!!
Build A Stick Maze
Use all those sticks you brought back from the woods to create simple stick mazes all round the backyard.
Star Spotting
You don’t have to go crazy learning every star but little by little share the easy ones to spot e.g. the plough or big dipper, Orion, the little bear.
Backyard Craft Activities
Sitting outdoors making very low prep nature inspired crafts is a great way to get outdoors and ease stress levels when everyone is tired …
- Paint With Petals
- Flower Crafts
- Nature Paint Brushes
- Garden Weed Mandalas
- Stick & Ribbon Wands
- Flower Crowns
- Paint Story Stones
- Stick Maze
- Stick Picture Frames
Paint With Petals
Find fallen petals or pull apart a few flowers you are happy to pick to create gorgeous petal paintings to explore flower structure & parts.
Flower Crafts
And don’t stop there as there are all sorts of lovely simple flower crafts for kids you can make with real petals.
Nature Paint Brushes
You can make your own nature paint brushes with seed heads, leaves, flowers, firs and ferns and also use them for creating pretty prints.
Swooshing paint with a fir tree brush is a wonderful sensory activity for exploring nature with kids.
Garden Weed Mandalas
Get your kids to do some weeding and be creative at the same time making garden weed mandalas.
They can add in snail shells, sticks, petals or whatever they can find.
Stick & Ribbon Wands
Simple stick and ribbon wands are lovely to make on a slightly windy day so you can swirl around the garden with the ribbons flying out.
You can create beautiful rainbow ribbons easily with felt pens but any fabric scraps tied on will do.
Flower Crowns
Gently weaving flowers to make flower crowns is unbelievably calming and soothing on scorching hot days and a great prompt for imagination and story telling …
Paint Story Stones
Don’t over complicate it. Let kids decorate any stones you have from woods, beach or garden with whatever paint or pens you can find.
For inspiration try these ideas …
Stick Picture Frames
If you have nature finds from the woods, park or garden, create simple stick picture frames to display them.
Tying the sticks and threading finds onto them is super soothing when you’re all whacked and need calm.
Backyard Bug Activities
There are lots of ways for kids to get up close with bugs in the backyard which are strangely calming …
- Race & Raise Snails
- Garden Pest Scavenger Hunt
- Raise Butterflies
- Raise Ladybirds
- Build A Bug Hotel
- Create A Wormery
Race & Raise Snails
Race & Raise Snails
I know snails are a pain when eating home grown vegetables but make brilliant little pets for kids and can be raised easily in a DIY snail home.
Garden Pest Scavenger Hunt
Get your kids to hunt down caterpillars, green fly, beetles and more in a garden pest scavenger hunt. It removes pests organically and teaches kids about the many micro habitats in their own garden.
Raise Butterflies
If they haven’t yet, get your kids to raise butterflies. They will be truly mesmerised by the transformation.
Raise Ladybirds
Alternatively raise ladybirds. They go through their own amazing lifecycle and helpfully eat lots of pests …
Build A Bug Hotel
And you can encourage good bugs to your garden with a bug hotel.
Create a Wormery
And for kids who love bugs do make a wormery – it’s incredibly simple but a brilliant way to explore soil.
Simple Gardening With Kids
There are loads of simple gardening activities kids can enjoy outdoors all year round. They can be wonderfully calming for kids who worry lots :
- Growing Peas
- Quick Growing Vegetables
- Growing Veggies From Scraps
- Growing Courgettes
- Plant A Mini Pumpkin Patch
- Grow A Tree
Growing Peas
Pea seeds are super easy for little kids to plant and kids can have great fun providing sticks for the cool little pea seedlings to grow up …
Quick Growing Vegetables
Kids aren’t patient gardeners but these quick growing vegetables will give them a crop in weeks which is the best motivation to grow more.
Grow Vegetables From Scraps
You can also take scraps of vegetables including carrots, cabbage and turnip tops and regrow them in little jars of water.
It’s free, takes no prep and is a cool plant life cycle activity for kids.
Growing Courgettes
Courgettes or zucchini are fun plants for kids to grow as they are easy to handle and make delicious chocolate zucchini brownies!!
Plant A Mini Pumpkin Patch
Pumpkins take longer to grow but the joy of growing your own pumpkin for Halloween is worth it!!
Grow A Tree
It’s super powerful for kids to see a conker or acorn from the park start to grow into a whole new tree.
Or for even more magic pop a fallen pussy willow twig in a jar of water and watch it come back to life!
Fun Outdoor Activities For Kids In The Park
We don’t need a plan to hit the park for the playground, football or hide & seek but local parks are also chock full of nature and lovely simple nature crafts for kids to enjoy :
- Daisy & Buttercup Chains
- Braid Grass
- Collect Conkers
- Collect Acorns
- Bark Rubbings
- Leaf Rubbings
- Paint The Park Like Monet
- Micro Habitat Collages
Daisy & Buttercup Chains
Daisy and buttercup chains are as old as the hills but threading stem into stem is still a lovely activity for little fingers on a sunny day.
Braid Grass
In the lazy days of late summer when the grass has got long, grass braiding is another lovely calming activity to enjoy outside with kids.
Collect Conkers
In autumn collect beautiful horse chestnuts for good old fashioned games of conkers or use them to make all sorts of cute conker crafts.
Collect Acorns
It’s not just conkers you can collect. Compete with squirrel for acorns to use in all sorts of acorn crafts.
Bark Rubbings
Even as kids get older it’s worth carrying a little tin of crayons and a notepad with you wherever you go for some impromptu bark rubbing.
It’s a great way to get up close and really explore the tree and if you look out for silver birch trees you may even find bark you can write on …
Leaf Rubbings
And there are all sorts of ways to do lovely leaf rubbings. You could take the leaves home or get crafty right then and there in the park …
Paint The Park Like Monet
You could even hit the park with paints and make a big impression learning to paint like Monet …
Micro Habitat Collages
Parks are bursting with micro-habitats from squirrels in trees and bugs under logs to ducks on ponds.
Take the time to look up, look down and poke around to see who’s building their nesting where.
Then gather a few nesting supplies and create cute bird’s nest nature collages when you get home …
Outdoor Activities For Kids On The Street
We played out on the street as a big gang of kids when I was little. That’s been lost for this generation but these are fun ideas to tempt kids on the street back out …
- Paint Your Shadows
- Play Hopscotch
- Long Rope Skipping
- Play Mother May I
- Paint Your Box Tunnel
- Have A Frumble Sale
- Rainy Day Art Gallery
- Sweep Leaves
Paint Your Shadows
Create some street art by painting your shadows and learn about light waves whilst you’re at it …
Play Hopscotch
We played this for hours as kids. If you’ve forgotten how read these hopscotch rules and get chalking on the pavement or side walk.
Long Rope Skipping
This does need car-free space but with a long rope – an old washing line? – you can get kids playing these classic long rope games together.
Play Mother May I
Kids street games were passed down generation to generation. You can re-start the connection with Mother May I an old school favourite for a gang of kids from two to 10!!
Paint Your Box Tunnel
Combine your box stash with other family’s for a giant box tunnel and paint it. This is a gloriously messy fave at our street party every year.
Have A Frumble Sale
If your home is full of kids clutter that needs free cycling help them set up a little Frumble sale and experience the joy of passing things on.
Rainy Day Art Gallery
On a rainy day create a gallery of fabulous rainy day rainbow pictures for your front fence or wall.
Sweep Leaves
Get all the kids out on the street to sweep the autumn leaves with big brooms and then have a big leaf fight … before sweeping up again!!
Outdoor Activities For Kids On The Beach
Kids don’t really need tips to play on the beach but there are days when the weather’s not great and these little prompts are great starters for family fun …
- Go Rock Pooling
- Catch Crabs
- Create Miniature Worlds
- Dig A Sea Canal
- Play Stuck In The Mud
- Create Sand Pictures
- Shell Mandalas
- Sand Angels
- Skip Stones On The Sea
- Have A Camp Fire
Go Rock Pooling
Just poke around in the rock pools and see what you can find …
Catch Crabs
Bait a net with some ham or bacon and catch some crabs off the rocks or the harbour and then race them down the jetty.
Create Miniature Worlds
Don’t settle for sandcastles, build yourself whole miniature worlds with beach combing finds.
Dig A Sea Canal
If you do build a giant sand castle, get the whole family digging a massive sea canal so as the tide comes in you can see the moat being slowly flooded.
Play Stuck In The Mud
Classic kids game stuck in the mud is great fun to play on the beach as it’s so easy to crawl under people’s legs to release them.
Create Sand Pictures
If you’re on a beach with loads of shells and pebbles create lovely mermaid pictures …
Shell Mandalas
… or design lovely shell mandalas …
Sand Angels
.. or simply make sand angels with your own body.
Play French Cricket
Burn off energy with a family game everyone can play try french cricket, you don’t need a bat, you can use any racket you have or even a stick.
Learn To Skip Stones On Sea
Teach the kids how to make stones skip across the water .
Have A Camp Fire
At the end of a long day when most people have gone home, nothing beats a little camp fire on the beach …
Outdoor Activities For Kids By A Stream
Kids love water. So if you can’t get to the beach easily find cool streams near you when kids can get in and splash around for hours on end …
- Ford A Stream
- Bridge A Stream
- Dam A Stream
- Fish For Tiddlers
- Look Out For Frogspawn
- Hunt For Tadpoles
- Make A Stick Raft
- Play Pooh Sticks
- Sail Paper Boats
- Weave Mats
Ford A Stream
Look out for any big stones you can find and ford the stream with your very own stepping stones for hours of balancing fun.
Bridge A Stream
If there are no stones, look out for logs and build a bridge (making sure you have spare clothes for when someone falls in).
Dam A Stream
You could build a dam like a beaver with sticks and reeds and more.
Fish for Tiddlers
You can fish for tiddlers in even a tiny stream with a little net or bucket but put them back after a bit.
Look Out For Frogspawn
In spring look out for frogspawn on the edge of streams.
Hunt For Tadpoles
If you’ve got space take a few and raise tadpoles at home.
Make A Stick Raft
As long as you’ve got string in your pocket you can make cool little stick rafts to cross the stream.
Play Pooh Sticks
Simply play pooh sticks under a bridge.
Sail Paper Boats
If you have some paper handy – newspaper is perfect – make paper boots and have a sailing regatta. If you’ve forgotten how, here’s how to make a paper boat.
Weave Mats
Weave little mats with fallen reeds … and you could even have a go to see if they will float.
Outdoor Activities For Kids In The Countryside
Kids aren’t always up for a long walk in the countryside but there are lots of simple activities that make walks and exploring the countryside much more fun for kids of all ages …
- Make Journey Sticks
- Race Up A Hill
- Roll Down The Hill
- Pick Elderflowers
- Pick Blackberries
- Pick Strawberries
- Pick Apples
- Visit A Pumpkin Patch
- Join The Harvest
- Midnight Hike
Make Journey Sticks
Find a stick at the beginning of your walk and some long pieces of grass and attach finds to your journey stick as you go.
Race Up A Hill
Race up a hill to conquer it with a stick and hanky flag.
Roll Down The Hill
On summers days, grassy hills are just there to be rolled down. Obviously better in scruffy clothes but you can remove grass stains naturally.
Pick Elderflowers
In the early summer pick elderflower blossom and make elderflower cordial.
Pick Blackberries
Go blackberry picking with friends and whip up one of your favourite blackberry recipes when you get home.
Pick Strawberries
You will have to go to a pick your own farm but it’s a lovely way to spend a day outdoors as a family in June.
Pick Apples
You can go apple picking all the way from August to October. It’s a good way to tempt kids outside on darker days in autumn.
Visit A Pumpkin Patch
As is a trip to a local pumpkin patch.
Join The Harvest
See if there are other harvests around you to join as a volunteer, it could be anything from peaches to lavender and hops to hazelnuts. Being part of a community harvest is an incredibly powerful way to help kids connect with neighbour.
Midnight Hikes
It needs a bit of care but night hikes can be the most brilliant opportunities for kids to get hooked on nature.
I do hope these ideas help you enjoy loads more time outdoors with your family all year round.
For more simple parenting ideas do check out these other posts :
- Slower Happier Parenting
- Love Ways To Calm Down As A Family
- Building Kids Confidence
- 30 Flower Crafts For Kids
- Painting Outdoors With Kids
- 75 Balancing Activities For Kids
- Helping Kids Who Worry A Lot
And if these tips struck a chord do sign up for my occasional newsletter. I won’t be bombarding you with stuff but just sharing the practical tips and thoughts that make my family life more fun …
Original image source: verkeorg, Honza Soukup
Veronica Mitchell says
Such a great roundup! My kids love the outdoors too! I’m looking for new ideas on what to do in the outdoors and your post is really helpful. Will surely try those plant paint brushes! Thanks for sharing this!
Alice says
So glad you liked Veronica – the plant paint brushes are lovely aren’t they?