Outdoor educational activities are a great way to teach children about nature – plants and animals – and give them some of the exercise that everyone needs. During warmer months, consider outdoor activities for children, befitting the area in which you live. For each outdoor excursion, include hands-on activities that can be fun as well as help children learn.

Pond Life Exploration

A trip to a local pond can be a fun way for kids to learn about pond animals such as: toads, tadpoles, water bugs, butterflies, dragonflies, and ducks. Spring is a great time for visiting a pond, as nature is revived from a long winter. Children will likely find tiny tadpoles in the shallow edges of the pond. They may also watch closely for butterflies with delicate new wings. An activity to match a lesson on pond creatures can be as simple as playing a game of leapfrog.

Nature Walk and Forest Animals Education

On a nature walk, children can watch for and learn about plants and animals in the woods, and in the grass, such as: woodpeckers, blue jays, lady bugs, squirrels, deer, and various kids of trees. Children can learn to watch and listen as quietly as possible to see shy forest animals, like deer. A great accompanying activity for learning about woodland animals and their forest habitat is to have the children write about or draw their favourite part of the nature walk, explaining why it is their favourite.

A Trip to the Beach Field Trip

At a local beach, children can collect seashells or rocks, and learn about water animals and gulls. Moreover, children love to play at the beach, making sand castles and swimming. A craft is always a good activity for kids as it allows them to use their imagination and helps their creativity grow. Seashells are especially fun for creating pictures, sculptures or jewellery. Consider a craft using seashells and rocks to help children remember what they learned at the beach.

These kinds of outdoor excursions are great activities for kids that will help them learn about nature, as well as allow them to have fun and exercise outside during warmer months.  Bring along a camera and you may snap surprisingly great photos of the children’s adventures.