Outdoor Activities for Kids (2024)

If you’re looking for things to get you through the year, then do not fear – we’re here with ideas for how you and the kids can enjoy some outdoor fun and some well needed fresh air! So if you’re looking for outdoor activities for kids, these ideas are great for weekends to help break up the routine of homework and your work!

Or it’s perfect for those of you with preschoolers looking to make the most of any good weather. But if it is raining, we have a solution to occupy your kiddies too. Whether it’s making a trip to a kid’s museum or trying a new board game!

Outdoor Activities for Kids

The beauty of the great outdoors is that everyone can enjoy it, right on your doorstep! From your local parks and playgrounds to woods, forests and even your own back garden, these activity ideas can be adapted to suit you. Plus, with spring on your horizon, the weather should hopefully be warming up soon…

One of the core memories from my childhood was gathering my friends on my road and drawing on the pavements. Whether we drew a hopscotch game or just pictures that made us happy, our creations were fun and lasted for a while…until it rained.

We need to bring back the moments of childhood that had us outside and having fun just with each other and not technology…and one way to do that is to get creative and imaginative! So, let’s start with something colourful, that will get all over our clothes, because that’s what being a child is right? Getting messy, but having fun doing so!

Buy your chalk here

Rain, rain go away? No way, it’s time to play! Long before Peppa made it cool, kids have loved jumping in muddy puddles. How many amazing puddles can your kids find? Just remember to pack your wellies and waterproofs…

Whether you have big kids or little kids, jumping in puddles makes for a perfect rainy outdoor activity for toddlers.

Now, this is a super fun outdoor activity that your kids will absolutely jump for joy to do! All you need is poster paint, water, water guns (for each colour) and a large blank canvas.

Simply water down your poster paint with some water (50% paint and 50% water), then add that to your water gun. Repeat this step for other colours you may have.

Then set up the blank canvas outside in the garden, layout the water guns and let your kiddies squirt and aim the water guns at the canvas and witness the colour explosion! It’s best to use fewer colours so they don’t merge together and become brown on the canvas!

It’s super fun and it’s an engaging outdoor activity that your kids will remember!

Ready? Aim…fire!

Have your kids got too many cars than they can count? Are they bored of just whizzing them around their rooms? Then this outdoor activity will reimagine their love for car games!

Just take their cars outside and have them find a bunch of rocks (lots and lots of rocks or pebbles). Then create a maze out of the rocks, and have them try and navigate their toy car out of the maze! It’s a simple game that can lead to hours of fun as they attempt to release their car out of the maze! Can they do it?

Make it more fun and put a timer in, can they get the car out in time? Let’s find out!

A simple outdoor activity that promotes sensory and fine motor skills. It’s also another activity to help your kids connect with nature and to understand its smells and textures.

You’ll need:

• A bunch of different sized and coloured leaves
• A few sticks
• And some twine string
  

1. First, have your kids head out into the garden and gather some leaves – all different sizes and colours (if they can find any!). Don’t forget to find a couple of sticks too.
2. Once they’ve done that, have them gently wash the leaves and sticks so they’re not dirty and quickly dry them.
3. Break the sticks into about 6cm sized sticks and tie a piece of twine string on one end to a stick and the other end to another stick.
   
4. Then your kiddies can start threading their leaves onto the string! It’s a great outdoor activity that encourages fine motor skills as they use their fingers to thread and it’s fun, interactive and innovative!

A fun outdoor activity is to race snails…see whose snail reaches the finish line first.

Draw a straight race track on the pavement with some chalk. Find some snails and gently place them at the start of the race and then sit back and see which snail finished first!

A quick and simple outdoor activity that is fun and enjoyable! Just make sure your kids are gentle with the snails!

With so many National Trust parks, gardens and countryside sites to visit, the world is your oyster! You could find any kind of outdoor area you and the kids would like to visit and get your dose of outdoor fun. It is recommended to book online in advance as capacity is still reduced, so every Friday you’ll be able to log on and secure tickets for the following weeks!

Visit their website for more info!

The Forestry England forests are always the best places to visit on your outdoor adventures. They help families to enjoy some time outdoors, encourage them to get physical and breathe in the well needed fresh air. There are so many to choose from, you’ll be spoilt for choice and the best bit…Superworm is in attendance at Forestry England! Can you find him and all the other small but mighty creatures?

Locations include Wyre Forest, Wendover Woods, Moors Valley, Alice Holt, Bedgebury, Delamere and Dalby Forest, but you can find a full list here.

The Royal Parks group is home to 8 beautiful London parks, offering 5000 acres of outdoor space that’s open and free to be explored all year round! Most have outdoor playgrounds for kids that want to have some fun, but they’re also just perfect for your afternoon strolls if you live in or around the capital.

See if you can spot herds of deer at Richmond Park, find the Peter Pan statue in Kensington Gardens, spot Hampton Court Palace from Bushy Park or explore four playgrounds at The Regent’s Park and Primrose Hill. Hyde Park, Greenwich Park, St James’ Park and Green Park are also included. There are so many! Where will you go first?

If you’re based in or near Wakefield, then Yorkshire Sculpture Park is a great outdoor place to visit! With 500 acres of land dedicated to art, it’ll leave you in awe. With around 100 sculptures to stop and gaze at, you’ll be transfixed, but your kids will also learn new things and there are still plenty of other reasons to visit. Outdoor activities that evoke thoughtful thinking and eye-catching sightseeing.

Book tickets here

What better place to plan your outdoor activities for kids than at Chatsworth Garden? This hidden gem in Derbyshire is here to dust away your winter cobwebs and welcome you to Spring!

With so many new and upcoming attractions for the 2022 season, you’ll be silly not to visit. Whether you come for the art exhibitions, explore the beautiful gardens, have some family fun in the farmyard or have a bit to eat. There are plenty of exciting outdoor activities here for your kids to get up to! The stunning 105-acre gardens have everything from waterworks to sculptures, and there’s a little explorers garden trail you can download and print before your visit. Tickets for the gardens and car park must be pre-booked online.