10 Ideas for Outdoor Activities for Kids
The start to another school year is already upon us, but that doesn’t mean the fun of summer has to stop. We still have plenty of warm days ahead. Keep your kids entertained in the evenings and away from the screen. Try these entertaining outdoor games for the whole family.
Idea 1
With an old sheet, you can transform your kids into artists. Stake the sheet on your lawn with tent stakes or long nails driven into the ground until only the head shows. Fill Styrofoam bowls with a variety of colors in acrylic paint. Provide sponge paintbrushes to minimize the mess. Move over, Picasso!
Idea 2
Take the Angry Bird video game outside into the sun. Materials needed are balloons, a permanent marker, and washable sidewalk chalk. Fill the balloons with water and paint “angry” faces on them. It is a good idea to have a safe place to keep the “angry birds” so that they don’t burst on the pavement (perhaps a laundry or utility basket). Draw piggies on the sidewalk. Take aim, bombard those evil pigs, and have fun. Of course, the water will wash away the chalk, but your cleanup crew can make short work of finishing that job by picking up pieces of the balloons.
Idea 3
A great game for evenings is the Firefly Flashlight game. The object of this game is to catch the “Firefly” (one of the players). The Firefly has a colored flashlight (can be made with colored cellophane and a rubber band). The other players carry white flashlights. Good for entertainment and exercise. This and other flashlight games are found here: http://familyfitness.about.com/od/Games-And-How-To-Play-Them/tp/Night-Games-With-Flashlights.htm
Idea 4
This contribution comes from The Happy Housewife. http://thehappyhousewife.com/blog/diy-outdoor-games/ Make your own dunk tank!
- Cut out a target from wood
- Cut out a base for 5-gallon bucket from wood
- Use hinges to attach bucket to tree and to attach target to tree
- Use washers or some other mechanism to hold bucket up
- Use piping as a delivery method to fill the bucket
- Buy/find tennis balls
- Sit victim in front of bucket
- Throw ball at target (give each participant a certain number of shots)
Idea 5
Remember how you loved playing in the sandbox as a child? Did it remind you of the beach? Recreate that feeling for your kids by making a DIY sandbox. The materials for this instant entertainment are a large (74-quart) under-bed storage box, sand, and sand toys.
Idea 6
Open a backyard car wash for the kids to wash their bicycles and scooters.
Idea 7
A DIY sprinkler is just the ticket for warm weather. Poke holes in a 2-liter soft drink bottle. Use a male-to-male adapter to attach the bottle to a garden hose. Toss the hose over a tree branch, allowing it to hang. It’s easy to adjust how the water sprinkles by adjusting the water flow. Presto! Loads of sprinkler fun.
Idea 8
Have a ring toss using a coffee can affixed to a wooden box and washers for rings. Allow your kids’ competitive nature to shine through.
Idea 9
Engineer a robot. Exciting to assemble and useful as a utensil holder or pen/pencil holder. Here are the materials list and the assembly instructions:
The parts of a robot:
- tin cans (2 for feet, 1 for a body and 1 for the head)
- paper for the arms and face
- tape
- hot glue
- Robot decoration: paint, glitter, stickers, etc. to dress up your creation
Instructions for young robotic engineers:
- Select the parts of your robot (which cans will be what part)
- Embellish the cans to create your own special statement
- Make facial features from paper and glue or tape them on the robot’s head (can)
- Cut about 6 – 8 strips of paper, form into a circle, and tape the ends together.
- Tape 3 or 4 of the rings together along one side to form a bendable arm. Tape or glue them to the body can
- With the open end of the leg and body cans facing down, glue the cans together allowing the leg cans to support the body can
- With the open end of the face can facing up, glue the head can to the top of the body.
Who says engineering can’t be exciting!
Idea 10
Looking for something beyond the backyard? Support our neighboring CASA of Liberty & Chambers counties by participating in their SuperHERO Fun Run 5K/10K on Saturday, November 14th at Liberty Municipal Park. So load up the family for a true, quality, day of fun!
Make the most of the remaining warm weather with your kids and get them outside. These DIY outdoor activities are easy to create and a lot of fun.