5 Fun Ideas to Get the Kids Outdoors this Autumn

The last days of summer are here, and that means soon the mercury will start to drop and autumn will be here in all its glory.

And, sometimes, after those long days of summer, it’s hard to get your kids out and enjoying the great outdoors with the same enthusiasm. It may be too cold for paddling pools and water balloon fights, but Autumn brings its own awesome and engaging activities that can keep kids entertain and help them learn along the way.

So, if you’re struggling for some ideas of how to ensure your kids get the most out of autumn, read on!

Get Collecting

As autumn gets into full swing, nature provides a massive range of natural objects that beguile, fascinate and intrigue children. From the differently shaped leaves of various trees to pinecones to acorns, nature gives everything you need to encourage children to start collecting and saving whatever they find. They can even put together a labelled collection of their findings, as a sort of ‘Autumn Journal’.

This is a great way to help kids learn about nature, but it’s also a great, tactile experience. We all know that children love nothing more than exploring, and a nature-inspired treasure hunt is an ideal way to get your kids engaged with nature and help them burn off some energy at the same time.

Colour Journeys

If you’re looking for a way to combine some outdoors nature time with an activity that will keep your child engaged, a colour journey is a perfect activity.

All you need to do is designate a specific colour and then – perhaps providing your child with their own, inexpensive camera – say that they need to snap and record every instance of that colour they find.

Combine Nature & Art

There’s no shortage of wonderful colours during autumn, and the many copper, brown and golden hues of the season can make an excellent foundation for some art that’s a little bit different.

Help your child find some autumnal leaves to their liking, take them home and glue them to a piece of paper. Then it’s time to let your child’s imagination run rampant and ask them to create art around their found foliage.

Make a Leaf Maze

This might appeal more to younger children, but the beauty of the activity is that they’ll have a much fun devising and creating the maze as they will navigating their way around.

All you need to do is collecting a few good bags of dried leaves and then ask your children to design a maze. This is a great activity because it also gets kids thinking creatively and laterally while they’re having fun. And anytime you can secretly shoehorn in some brain exercise is always a bonus!

Leaf Rubbings

There’s something very satisfying and tactile about making rubbings, and autumn provides an excellent opportunity to collect some big, beautiful leaves and get creative.

All your child needs are some leaves, paper and crayons, and they can get to work making rubbings in traditional – or non-traditional – autumn colours. And, as a bonus, stringing these rubbings together can make for a lovely Christmas decoration!

Tags: Autumn, kids, children, activities, fun, outdoors, leaf maze, art, nature, colour journeys, tips