With the current pandemic, it might feel like we are constantly stuck inside with our kiddos not being able to do outdoor activities. You may even be wondering how many more times we can hear our name said or that they’re bored. Even the best moms can’t help but to feel overwhelmed. We are teachers, moms, housekeepers, personal chefs, and in most cases, still have a normal nine to five job to account for.
Finding new things for your kiddos to do doesn’t have to be expensive, or require you to do all the work. You can use things found outside during every season to keep everyone busy and get everyone outside. Once you finish your activity, you and your kids will feel rejuvenated from the fresh air and the fun you’ve had.
Winter Outdoor Activities for the Whole Family
Just because it is winter does not have to mean you stay inside, even when there is snow outside. Get outside and enjoy some winter outdoor activities. Here is one of my favorites…
Snow Painting
Most of us have food coloring on hand that we don’t use very often and probably aren’t sure if it’s good anymore. That’s okay! Grab the food coloring and an empty spray bottle and mix water and the food coloring until you get the color you’re looking for. If you have more than one empty spray bottle, make more than one color to play with.
Take them outside when there is snow on the ground and use the spray bottles to “paint” the snow; you and your kiddos can make a masterpiece together.
It’s non-toxic, safe for the environment and provides hours of fun for the kids. This is a great way to decorate a snowman or an igloo once they are built too, adding extra fun to the design. When you run out, simply go back inside and make another spray bottle full.
If you don’t have food coloring or rather have a kit with everything you need. I highly recommend this snow painting kit from Amazon. It saves you from very little prep time and also comes with some accessories for your snowman creation.
If this is still not enough Winter inspiration. Checkout my Winter Fun For Kids Pinterest board where I share all kinds of other great ideas people have shared online about winter from games, activities, and crafts that you can do with your kids.
Spring Activities for the Whole Family
During the spring months this is a fun time because the weather is starting to warm up and everything is beginning to grow. The options in spring for outdoor activities are endless with all the new plant life.
Flower art
Take the kiddos out to collect “flowers”; even dandelions will work. Leaves, grass, anything that catches their eye; the world is yours!. When you come inside and glue them to pieces of paper, you can make a bouquet of flowers that can be put on the fridge to be admired. This is a fun way to help them learn different plant species and the differences between weeds and flowers.
Gardening – Flower care
If you have a green thumb, this is a super fun way to get the kids involved in your gardening that you are going to start soon.
Freezing Flowers
Another super beautiful way to teach them about plant life is frozen flower designs. While these can’t be saved forever since they are frozen and will defrost, they are fun to make and the pictures are beautiful, able to be cherished for a long time.
If this is still not enough Spring inspiration. Checkout my Spring Fun For Kids Pinterest board where I share all kinds of other great ideas people have shared online about spring from games, activities, and crafts that you can do with your kids.
Summer Outdoor Activities for the Whole Family
Now when summer rolls around it does not always have to mean that you are bringing the kiddos to the pool every day, and there’s no need to stress about buying one, either. There are plenty of fun things to do that require little to no effort on your part.
Painting Rocks
Pet rocks are a fun way to let the kids get creative, decorate the yard, and keep them busy outside. Have the kiddos run around and collect rocks that they like the most; they should have a flat surface on at least one side to make painting them easier. Grab some paint, as well; acrylic paint is best for this project. It’s non-toxic, washable and dries quickly, which can help you make sure that the project stays put even with the most antsy kids.
Depending on the age of kids and of course if you are involved it is a great time to talk about character traits you want your kids to have, values they should follow. As well as just having fun putting inspirational quotes on rocks.
Getting Messy in the Mud
Summer is all about getting dirty and playing outside; making a racetrack in mud for car loving kids is a fun way to implement their imagination. All the toys and kiddos will come clean with the hose, also giving the kiddos an opportunity to cool off after playing so hard all day.
Nature Painting
Nature paintbrushes is a fun way to get the kids to problem-solve by asking them to find things outside they can put on the end of a stick with some sting and paint a picture with. This will give them the opportunity to get as creative as their minds will take them. It also teaches them about nature and gives them a better understanding of how to utilize nature for their benefit.
If this is still not enough Summer inspiration. Checkout my Summer Bucket List For Kids Pinterest board where I share all kinds of other great ideas people have shared online about summer from games, activities, and crafts that you can do with your kids.
Fall Outdoor Activities for the Whole Family
I won’t lie my personal favorite is fall activities; there are so many leaves falling from trees, giving us endless hours of fun to be had.
Leaves, Twigs, and Stick Crafts
Grab some crayons and paper, set them aside, put on a coat and go outside with the kids. Collect as many leaves and twigs that you can find, as many as you’d like; the bigger variety, the better.
Once your back inside with your collection of leaves and twigs, you have plenty of art projects and masterpieces you can create.
Leaf masterpiece
Using the crayons, you can trace leaves, giving you a perfect fall picture to hang up on the fridge for admiration. To do this, simply put the piece of paper over the leaves and lightly color over the paper with the color of your choice. Most times, you’ll want to use browns, reds, oranges and yellows to keep a fall feel in your art, but you can’t go wrong with letting the kids go crazy with their colors.
Twig and branch masterpiece
Using the twigs and branches you collected and some string, you can build real stick figures, houses, and even a birdhouse to put back outside. Help your kiddos come up with a sturdy design and use the string to hold the twigs together. This is especially fun for the kiddos who love Legos and blocks, giving them the same option to get creative and build out of this world projects.
If this is still not enough Fall inspiration. Checkout my Fall Fun For Kids Pinterest board where I share all kinds of other great ideas people have shared online about fall from games, activities, and crafts that you can do with your kids.
A mom’s final thoughts…
The projects with outdoor items don’t have to end here; there are plenty more things you can do with your kiddos to give them endless hours of fun.
Let their creative juices flow, and give them the freedom to use their imagination. These are just a few that I have come up with, and have personally done with my kiddos that I know they enjoy.
If you are still trying to rack your brain for activities that are not behind a iPad screen or tv. Check out these 5 Fun Ways to Replace Screen Time with your kids.
The best part is that all of these activities are also targeted at teaching your kiddos something; giving you the peace of mind that they have not only had fun, but also that they used their imagination and skills to create masterpieces that we get to treasure forever.
