Childhood101

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25 Ways to Have Fun Outdoors

Following on from last year’s popular post – 25 Ways to Have Fun, I present to you 25 Ways to Have Fun Outdoors. Why not try something from the list this weekend or over the Easter holiday break!

Head to the coast for a rockpool treasure hunt and a spot of beachcombing.

Climb a tree.

Throw a frisbee.

Spend time together on an evening family walk or ride.

Fill a tub or a paddle pool for some water play.

Paint a fence or a window.

Head to a National Park for a bushwalk.

Grab a magnifying glass and hunt for bugs!

Swing your hips in a hula hoop.

Get busy in the garden and pull some weeds or plant some vegetables.

Play a game of chasey or hide and seek.

Try catching dinner with a spot of fishing.

Draw a hopscotch grid with chalk on the pavement and get jumping.

Scramble up a hill. And roll back down again.

Bounce on a space hopper, pogo stick or trampoline.

Build a blanket cubby house and ‘camp’ at home.

Throw or kick a ball around.

Set up an obstacle course in your back yard.

Pop on some gumboots and jump in puddles.

Head to the park and fly up high on a swing. Adults too.

Have a game of marbles.

Take your percussion instruments outdoors and have a sing along. Or form a marching band.

What are your favourite ways to have fun outdoors?

For another great list of ideas for getting outdoors, check out this list over at Montessori Moments.



Christie Burnett is an early childhood teacher, presenter, writer and the editor of Childhood 101. More importantly, she is a Mum who believes wholeheartedly in the value of children learning through play, the importance of quality early education, and the togetherness of family.

Read more of Christie's adventures at https://childhood101.com.

Read the comments or scroll down to add your own:

  1. Kate from An Amazing Child says

    April 16, 2011 at 11:28 AM

    My 2yr old son loves to collect sticks. Everyday we take a walk and he always comes home with at least 5 new sticks. Yesterday, the park across the road was mowed so we went and played in the grass cuttings then laid down and watched the clouds. It had been a long time since I had just laid down on the grass. So nice :)

      • Marnee says

        April 16, 2011 at 9:03 PM

        Our afternoons are full of lying in the grass watching the clouds at the moment must be the season for it

      • Karina Poe says

        October 16, 2015 at 2:33 AM

        My little sister loves to sit in front of the fire place and watch's Elmo and Big Bird with her a "Tea and Milk" when she is very fussy. I love this site to help my fav kids ( Brooklynn)

    • Lori@montessori MOMents says

      April 16, 2011 at 10:03 PM

      My son LOVES to pick up sticks. We have a collection right outside our door! We also did a nature scavenger hunt which we ended up keeping all of those items as well. Here's the link to our nature walk: http://mymontessorimoments.wordpress.com/2010/09/17/nature-walk/

  2. Debi says

    April 16, 2011 at 12:27 PM

    My kids love to get wet - whether running through the sprinkler, playing at our water table or while watering our plants & veggies. Best of all is playing in the mud they make after!

  3. jenny says

    April 16, 2011 at 6:48 PM

    Perfect timing - these school holidays I am determined to get us all outside and playing and experiencing our local natural environment everyday so I am definately in need of tips!

  4. Dawn says

    April 16, 2011 at 9:21 PM

    For my daughter's 9th birthday this past weekend we made a human sized board game with sidewalk chalk on our driveway. We did the shape of a 9 but you could do anything - square, circle, figure 8, snake or whatever you wanted. Each space had something to do in it - spin in a circle 3x, sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes until your next turn, the quiet corner, hop ahead 3 spaces, draw a monster, stopped to smell the flowers miss a turn, stand on 1 foot til your next turn. This was a huge hit! Over the next few days we had friends over from out of town and others come to visit and everone played this game - over and over. Ohh, I put numbers on the sides of a large diaper box as the dice. Rolling this large dice was a huge fun factor.

  7. Danielle Scribner says

    April 18, 2011 at 1:44 AM

    We are doing a 30 day outside play challenge for the month of April! Here are some more fun ideas to do outside! http://canyoucomeoutsidetoplay.blogspot.com/2011/03/favorite-outdoor-activity-linky.html

  8. Karina Poe says

    October 16, 2015 at 2:38 AM

    I think a good way to get your kids to go outside is to tell them can have candy if they go outside

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