45 Fun Outdoor Activities For Kids

It’s time to start getting kids outdoors! Even if it’s in the backyard, or in the courtyard of your apartment complex, there’s so much to do! In fact, I would encourage parents to do these activities with their kids because, quite frankly, this is all a wonderful learning experience for everyone, not just for kids.

When we get kids outdoors, they learn things that they would never learn in a classroom or through a book. While those might be good primers, getting hands-on and playing are the best way for kids to learn. And really, it’s the best way for most people to learn.

Truly, these can be done at any age. There’s no age limit for getting outdoors! Some of these may need assistance or strong supervision from adults, but really, kids are a lot smarter and more capable than we give them credit for. Teach them, have patience and have fun! These are specific outdoor activities, you won’t find any ‘go hiking’ or ‘go camping’ here. Because while those are amazing activities, we can expand on those a lot more.

Many of these ideas will use less conventional toys and tools and try to expand on using what’s in nature, though some of these will involve using minimal tools.

So let’s get right to it.

Here are 45 outdoor adventure ideas for kids:

1. Go on a scavenger hunt for bugs, plants, sticks, rocks
2. Make “sand” castles out of dirt, mud, and sticks
3. Make a fire using only what’s found in nature (including the fire starter!)
4. Create a mini primitive shelter for ants (or some other small, imaginary animal or bug)
5. Make cordage from grass, yucca or another local plant that would make great cordage
6. Carve a spear (smaller kids will do with adult supervision at all times, or an adult will do it while the child watches)
7. Make an arrow from a stick, feathers, and a rock
8. Collect water and purify it (through boiling or with tablets or through a water purification straw)
9. Positively identify wild edibles and give them a try if you feel comfortable
10. Learn to whistle with grass
11. If it snows, melt snow down for drinking water
12. Again, in the snow, create a small igloo
13. Find animal tracks, identify what kind of tracks they are, and try to follow the tracks for a bit
14. Climb a tree
15. Skip rocks
16. Climb rocks
17. Make furniture from rocks or trees (no tools required, just move things around)
18. Collect tree pitch, attach it to a stick and create a fire starter
19. Learn to weave and make a basket (or bowl) with natural materials in your area
20. Carve a spoon or bowl (smaller kids will do with adult supervision at all times, or an adult will do it while the child watches)
21. Practice feather stick technique (smaller kids will do with adult supervision at all times, or an adult will do it while the child watches)
22. Cook a meal over a fire (can be done in a BBQ)
23. Find a chalk rock and write with it on the sidewalk or on other rocks
24. Squish up some wild berries and paint with the mashed berries
25. Hunt for dinosaurs (or dinosaur bones); whatever they can find that might look like a bone, is a bone, just for fun!
26. Plant vegetables or flowers in the garden (make sure to get out and water it often)
27. Make a bird feeder out of pine cones and peanut butter
28. Build a big primitive shelter made for people
29. Clean up litter (my oldest just loves to do this because she’s seen me do it dozens of times)
30. Make a necklace, crown or bracelet out of leaves, grass or flowers
31. When it’s dark outside, play hide and seek with flashlights
32. Play in the rain and jump in puddles
33. Go geocaching, there are many apps you can download, then go have fun
34. Walk around an urban area and spot things like a train, graffiti, broken down cars, etc.
35. When it’s dark, lay outside and gaze at the stars, make up your own constellations
36. Plant a tree (make sure to get out and water it every day)
37. Go fishing, either bank side or in a canoe or boat
38. Grab some binoculars and search for birds and other interesting things in nature
39. Roll or run down hills, or when it snows, slide downhills
40. Head to your local river and see if you can spot any fish
41. Have a mini Olympics (who can find the most rocks, who can lift the biggest branch, etc.)
42. Create a sundial from a stick, mud and cardboard
43. Make raisins; place grapes on a baking tray, cover the grapes up with kitchen towel or a pillowcase, you might need to weigh it down so it won’t blow away. Take the grapes outside and leave them for at least three days. If the nights are damp, take the grapes inside in the evening and put them out again the next day.
44.  Make a solar oven
45. Draw a map of your backyard or local park

The great thing about getting outdoors is that our imaginations will run wild with us. Sometimes the best thing for us to do is to simply get outside with no intentions at all. Just walk outside and ignite our imaginations.

Getting outdoors teaches kids about self-reliance, gives them courage, expands their creativity, and offers them the tools to learn how to do things on their own.

What are some other fun outdoor activities for kids?