105 Ways to Enjoy Nature With Kids

Enjoying the natural beauty of the world is something I do every single day.  The more time I spend admiring nature, the more satisfaction and joy I get out of it.  It helps me slow down. It helps me to be present.  And it’s always there. I find myself, not only wanting to spend time outdoors, I have a desire to protect our natural resources too.

I see this happening in my children too.  Kids are educated these days to protect the environment, but I believe unless you really experience the wonder of it, the passion isn’t really there.

Value

It starts by the way we value nature as a family.  At some undefinable point, we decided enjoying nature was important to us as a family.

Enjoy

The more you enjoy nature, the more you want to look after it. They have to go hand in hand.

Educate

One of the ways we place value on nature is by educating ourselves about how to take care of it and then making slow sustainable changes to this effect.

Notice

We notice nature as we live life and get excited about it. “Wow! There’s a bird!” It sounds a bit strange but it really rubs off on the kids and they enjoy sharing what they see around them too. Sharing. I like that.

Live

Like most things, once you start noticing a particular thing, it quickly becomes a natural part of the framework for living and opportunities arise effortlessly as you live life.

105 Ways to Enjoy Nature With Kids

I’ve put together a list of 105 ways our family enjoys nature.  Some are teeny tiny things that take a few second and some full-on activities to emerse yourself in the wonder. I guess the big message here is just to notice nature as you live life, no matter where you are or what you’re doing.  Enjoy it, because it’s there, and it’s wonderful.

1. Look at the stars.
2. Go outside and feel the sun on your face for 1 minute.
3. Go on a bushwalk.
4. Collect shells, put into a glass and display in the home.
5. Write on a dark rock with a lighter coloured rock.
6. Look at the clouds.
7. Run on the grass.
8. Go on a picnic.
9. Throw pebbles into water.
10. Listen to the birds for 2 minutes.
11. Swim in the ocean.
12. Pick up rubbish.
13. Make a wild flower hair wreath or a daisy chain.
14. Draw pictures in the dirt with a stick. And guess.
15. Make a sand castle.
16. Look for butterflies.
17. Walk through a shallow stream. Watch the water dance over the rocks.
18. Watch where the wind moves for 2 minutes.
19. Visit a flower show.
20. Take photographs of nature and make them into a photo book.
21. Go on a road trip.
22. Bird watching.
23. Watch water drops slide down a glass window.
24. Notice the reflection of the sun on water.
25. Smell flowers.
26. Look up on the internet or in a book, some of the places or things seen in nature.
27. Listen to natural running water for 5 minutes. Concentrate on how it sings.
28. Climb a tree.
29. Do a nature scavenger hunt. (Use something like an empty egg carton to collect things).
30. Find a pet rock.
31. Set toys up outside in a shady spot on a mat.
32. Eat outside.
33. Watch a sunset.
34. Visit an environmental centre.
35. Walk along the beach at dusk.
36. Press flowers between a book.
37. Go camping.
38. Walk across a fallen log.
39. Fly a kite or blow a pinwheel.
40. Play in the backyard.
41. Lay on the grass for 1 minute.
42. Chase a rainbow in the car.
43. Go outside and sketch something with a pencil.
44. Look outside the window for 5 minutes.
45. Sit under a big tree and look up into the branches.
46. Read a book outside.
47. Visit a national park.
48. Look at the full moon.
49. Feel the bark of 5 different trees.
50. Arrange flowers inside the home.
51. Take a deep breath. Do it again.
52. Colour sand and display layers in an empty jam jar.
53. Create a colour pallet with pencils from items you can see in front of you in nature.
54. Play in the rain.
55. Notice how the raindrops look on a flower, leaf or go outside in the early morning and look at dew on grass.
56. Visit a natural waterfall.
57. Go Geocaching.
58. Visit an aquarium.
59. Watch how a beetle moves for 2 minutes.
60. When leaving a special destination, look at it like it’s the last time you’ll see it. Drink it in.
61. Rip a leaf (like a eucalyptus) and smell it.
62. Go for a walk outside.
63. Grow herbs in a small pot.
64. Climb on rocks.
65. Count birds.
66. Buy a landscape photography coffee table book.
67. Rake autumn leaves in a pile and jump in them.
68. Skim a rock on water.
69. Write names in the sand of every one in your family.
70. Go for a drive and to look at the scenery.
71. Strawberry picking.
72. Slide down a grassy hill on a cardboard box.
73. Visit a farm. Milk a cow. Collect eggs from a chicken.
74. Make craft from something you collected from nature.  Stick leaves on a piece of paper, decorate pine cones, create a collage from sticks, add nature items to a drawing.  More ideas here.
75. Get the kids involved in backyard maintenance and make it a family fun day.
76. Squeeze your own orange juice. Or make lemonade.
77. Visit a nature museum.
78. Browse the internet for pictures of the wonders of the world or current environmental issues. Great dinner conversation.
79. Collect rocks, gem stones or crystals. Keep in a special tin.
80. Pan for gold.
81. Google the oldest tree in the world today.
82. Watch silk worms.
83. Borrow books about nature and wildlife from the library.
84. Go for a walk in the rain with umbrellas.
85. Visit a planetarium.
86. Cook on an open fire.
87. Look for crabs.
88. Make a nature inspired imaginative play scene.
89. Watch ants carry food to their nest.
90. Visit glow worms.
91. Visit a wildlife sanctuary.
92. Go for a family night walk with a torch.
93. Watch a wildlife documentary.
94. Look for a bird’s nest in spring.
95. Go for a hay ride.
96. Visit the snow and make a snowman.
97. Go fishing.
98. Listen to nature sounds on a CD.
99. Bike riding.
100. Sailing or boating.
101. Grow your own vegetable garden.
102. Make an outdoor cubby house with sticks.
103. Look for animal tracks in the ground.
104. Snorkel on a reef.
105. Slow down.

Print the List

Print the list by clicking the picture below.

A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.

— Lou Holtz

 

How do you enjoy nature as a family?  Do you have any more to add to the list?

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