Looking for ideas for nature activities for kids? We have asked our parent audience for their fun nature activities for kids. There are lots of exciting things to do in wooded areas – here are 15 Fun Nature Activities for kids to do while out and about:

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There are plenty of ideas to turn fun things into kids’ games as you go out and explore.  For a really fun Nature Walk with the kids, the road LESS travelled is your best bet in our opinion!

Fun Nature Activities for Kids

#1. Nature Explorers

Turn your family walk into a “nature explorer walk”.  Bring along a bag or bucket for the kids to collect any interesting nature objects they find on the walk: shells, stones, leaves, sticks, seeds.

#2. Nature 20 Questions

As you go for your walk, each person has a turn, picks something that they see and the others have to guess what it is by asking questions that can only be answered “yes” or “no”.

#3. Tree ID

Try and find as many different species of tree as you can. Take along binoculars if you have them to spot birds in trees.

If you have a tree book such as the Usborne “Little Book of Trees” use it as a guide and see how many different trees you can spot on the walk, or how many different leaves you can find.

Bring home the different leaves or bits of bark to do leaf-rubbing. Using sheets of paper placed over the leaves and a crayon, rub the crayon sideways across the leaf and see the pattern emerge on the paper.

You can use different coloured crayons for different leaves.

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#4. Be a Nature Spy

Find an insect or animal and see how long you can watch it before it notices you :)

#5. Make a Terrarium

Using a large glass or plastic container with a wide mouth, spread some potting soil or dirt on the bottom then add little plants and bits of grass from outside with the roots still on them.

Give them a little water then cover with the jar lid or cling film and an elastic band.  Place in a sunny spot and spray lightly with water every week and watch the plants grow.

You could measure the growth every week to see how quickly they grow.

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#6. Make Shadow Prints

Place a piece of dark coloured paper on a sunny windowsill and leave different objects that you found on your walk on top of the paper. After several hours, the sun will fade the paper leaving silhouettes of the objects.

#7. Make Nature Collages

Using glue, stick leaves, flowers, small shells or seeds onto card or paper. You could make a complete picture or interesting patterns out of the nature things.

#8. Animal Tracking

Search for animal tracks, sketch any you find and try to identify them – keep the sketches and you can make a scrapbook as a memento of the day!

#9. Robin Hood

If you come across some hazel or willow – both of these are really good for making bows and arrows as they are flexible. Cut the bow to be about 2 feet long, make a small groove across either end for the string to sit along, tie the string to one end, tighten and tie to the other end.

Make some arrows from some shorter straight twigs – no need to bother with arrow heads as we don’t want any accidents!

You could organise a fun target practice for the children as they would then be less inclined to aim at each other.

#10. Hide and Seek

If you think of it in advance, go dressed in camouflage and have a great game of hide-and-seek

#11. Tree Races

When walking along, get the kids to race each other from tree to tree – this keeps the momentum up!

#12. Conker Hunt

In autumn look for chestnuts – make hole through centre, thread some string through and tie a knot at the end – conker fights!!!

#13. Nature Scavenger Hunt

Give each child a task of finding certain items in the woods e.g

1. a seed
2. a pine cone
3. animal tracks/droppings
4. wild flowers
5. a feather
6. a burrow
7. a bone
8. a wild animal
9. mushrooms/toadstools
10. a birds footprint

#14. From Tiny Acorns

If you find acorns, take one home and test them in a glass of water. If they drop, they are no good, if they float you can plant them in a pot and watch to see if a baby oak grows.

#15.”Pooh-Sticks”

If you pass any bridges/streams, play “Pooh-Sticks”. This is where you each choose a twig or stick from the ground and on the count of 3, everyone drops their stick at one side of the bridge and runs to the other side to see whose twig or stick wins the race.

Some Useful websites for nature ideas

• Irish Wildlife Trust
• Birdwatch Ireland
• ispynature
• Burren Beo
• Naturerocks
• eekoworld

Do you have a fun nature activity you do with the kids? Tell us about it in the comments below.