This guest post was written by Isaac Atia, Head Editor at 10BestRanked.com, where he reviews the top home and outdoors products. Read his latest review guide about drones for kids on his site.
Most children live in a computerized world today, which makes their entertainment considerably limited. The kids spend 30-45 minutes outside on average and several hours sitting in front of TV or computer screen. That drastically affects their physical and mental growth.
Outdoor activities aren’t only amusing but also healthy. As a parent, you must find a way to motivate your child step out of the house and enjoy real actions instead of playing virtual games indoors.
Read on for 25 amazing outdoor activities for kids.
1. Gardening
Gardening is an excellent way to help your children develop some new skills. They’ll be able to learn about flowers, plants, bugs, and so on. Moreover, they will have their own organic garden just for themselves. Let them create a garden from scratch and do the work by themselves, including planting, weed pulling, and watering.
2. Painting a Poster Board
There are different ways to make painting experience more fun for your kids. Get spray bottles and add a few washable paints to them. Then ask your kids to use their imagination and make a big, vibrant poster board.
3. Paint Party with Water Balloons
Another way to provide your kids with a fun painting experience is to make a paint party with water balloons. Fill the balloons with water and washable paints. Let your kids put on all-white T-shirts so that you can easily assess who is more covered in paints at the end of the game.
4. Foaming Car Wash
This messy, fun activity for young kids involves a few household items and water table. The kids should create a fizzy, foamy car wash through a few simple steps. They need to make a foamy soap first, then make a powdered dry soap, and treat the cars with these two soaps on the water table. That will keep your children’s hands busy for an hour or so.
5. Car Races
Make a racetrack in your yard and trigger your child’s need for speed. All you need to do is draw a long racetrack in your own backyard and add a couple of little tunnels. You can also add a few obstacles along the track to make the race more challenging. Then ask your kids to take their favorite cars and the race can start!
6. Hanky Game
Make a big circle with your children and their friends. All the players need to sit down in the circle, except the child with the hanky. That kid should stay out of the circle, trying to run around other children and put the hanky down behind somebody at some point. He shouldn’t let him know where is the hanky. Then these two players should race around the circle. If he gets to that player’s position first, the new kid needs to get his turn. If he got caught, then he should try again.
7. Soccer
Soccer is a perfect outdoor game for of all ages, which engages the kids in catching and kicking the ball. That way it keeps youngsters physically strong and fit.
8. Hide the Ball
You will need a ping-pong ball for this game. One of the players needs to hide that small ball while others should search for it. When someone gets close to the place where the ball is hidden, the person should say “close.” If he’s getting away from that place, you need to say “far.” The player who finds the ping-pong ball is the next one to hide it.
9. Pass the Ball
While sitting in a circle, the players should pass a pillow till the music stops. A kid who holds the pillow at that moment is out. Other children should continue the game till one of them is left. That player is a winner!
10. Collect Leaves
Lay different leaves on paper and create their silhouettes with a pencil. Cut these contours to draw various shapes with a crayon in a face.
11. Make Sunflowers
Buy a few styrofoam balls in different sizes. Slice them in half and cover the rounded sides with the sunflower seeds by using tacky glue. Then take a yellow tissue paper and cut a lot of small petals from it. Cover the flat sides with these petals. Also, cut a circle from yellow paper and attach it to the backsides of the styrofoam balls. At last, add a tie and ribbon to the stalk.
12. Bug Safari
Let your kids get in touch with small harmless animals. Scout for lizards, dig for worms, chase butterflies, hunt tadpoles and frogs. They will marvel at the ants carrying oversize crumbs.
13. Chalk it Up
Both girls and boys love sidewalk chalk. That said, give your kids the glow in the dark chalks to make artwork on your driveway. They will like watching the gleaming drawings from the window in the evening.
14. Cycling Around
Despite being a simple activity, cycling is a good exercise for kids. It provides them with self-confidence and freedom to roam around and explore the neighborhood. Plan a cycling journey with your children in a tranquil place away from the city to make this outdoor activity more adventurous.
15. Swimming
This is one of the best ways to relax and refresh the body in summer. Besides, swimming is a great fitness regime and life skill alike. So let your kids swim to their heart’s content and enjoy the moment to the fullest.
16. Hula Hoop
Put a few hula hoops in a playing area all around. At your signal, one kid will start to chase other children and try to tag them. To avoid being tagged, children can get inside any hoop. However, they can’t stay inside more than ten seconds. Note that only one child can stand inside each hula hoop at a time.
17. Tail Tag
Find or buy a few handkerchiefs for each of the kids so that everyone can loop it through either their belt or pocket. These handkerchiefs will actually act as the tails. The goal of the game is to steal tails of other players while defending your own. A kid who collects the most tails is the winner.
18. Snow Graffiti
Here’s a fun activity to do with your kids in the snow. You’ll need a few spray bottles and food coloring. Fill the bottles with water that is tinted with a color additive. Let your kids decorate the snow in different colors and make your backyard more vibrant.
19. Build a Snow Fort
This is another awesome outdoor activity to do in winter. Build a cool castle from the snow by using loaf pans, sand buckets, and some cut-up milk cartons. That will be your child’s favorite place to play.
20. Practice Your Child’s Pitch
Do you need more snowy ideas? Then check this out! Take a piece of cardboard and paint a bullseye target. Make sure that each ring is colored differently so as to have a certain point value. Then attach the cardboard to a tree or wooden pole. Keep your children’s score as they are hitting the target with snowballs.
21. Find Your Friends Blindfold
Blindfold your little ones and ask them to try finding each other. When a kid manage to tag somebody, these two children will need to link their hands and find other players. The parents need to keep an eye on their children while playing this game to prevent them from getting injured.
22. Paper Plate Balloons
Give an inflated balloon and a paper plate to each kid. They need to keep the balloons afloat as long as possible by pushing them up with the paper plates. As you might assume, the winner is the kid who manages to keep his balloon in the air for the longest time.
23. Create Obstacle Courses
Do you have a large backyard? If not, you can go to the nearby playground to build an obstacle course. For this purpose, you may use jump ropes, hula hoops, hoses, bicycle tires, etc. Put the kids in sacks up to half to make the game more interesting.
24. Volunteering
That can teach the kids responsibility and compassion while keeping them busy at the same time. There is plenty your children can do outdoors, such as collecting canned goods and cleaning up a local park.
25. Unbirthday Party
If it’s nobody’s birthday that doesn’t mean you can’t make a party. Send out invites, bake a cake, hang streamers, blow up balloons, and make an unbirthday party in your backyard. Engage all the kids in blowing out the candles. Happy Unbirthday!
