5 Fun Outdoor Activities For Toddlers

Toddlers are energetic, and they keep busy parents busy. When the weather is beautiful, it's ideal to provide lots of outdoor time for your toddler, as this is a place where an energetic nature is a plus. Whereas indoor activities require caution, because of potential for bumps, bruises, and accidents, the out-of-doors provides ample space to move freely.

If you find yourself challenged by the energetic nature of your toddler, making a point to spend active time outside is a great benefit, as the expense of energy in playtime often leads to good, long nap-times. If your youngster doesn't nap well, you can try helping that process by making sure that he gets good exercise. Don't forget the sunscreen, though, especially if you have a little lobster, as I did!

A nature walk is a fun way to combine learning with physical activity. You can make the walk an impromptu one, or you can plan. It can be as simple as exploring your back yard, or walking down the street. It can be as involved as visiting the walking path of a local park, or visiting a popular hiking area. Nature walks work for children of all ages, and are fun for the family to do together.

The simple objective in a nature walk is to make observation about the things you see. Depending on your toddler's verbal skills, this can be simple, or sophisticated. Look at bugs, birds, and other animals, and talk about them. What color is the bug? Is it a good bug? What is it doing? Where is it going? How does it get there? Take as long as you like, to walk, watch, and observe.

Follow your walk with some nature art. When you are back home, take time to draw, or color pictures, of some of the things you've seen. Toddlers don't have refined manual skills, and won't draw very detailed pictures, but they can often manage a crayon. Find a printout of a coloring page for one of the critters you've seen, and color it together.

Look through a magazine, or book, to find similar things, and make a nature walk poster. As the parent, you will be doing most of the work, and your toddler, most of the directing. However, this is a reinforcement of things your child may have seen on the walk, and therefore, is a valuable pursuit.

If you tour the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, or another well known nature site, check out the gift shop for follow up activities to do with your toddler.  We picked up a "Grow Your Own Bristlecone Pine" kit.

Once they are mobile, it's tough to keep toddlers still. Outdoor activities for toddlers are perfect for making the most of that movement. A toddler field day doesn't need to be a planned event, but rather, can be an informal assortment of races and games. Toddlers love to attempt somersaults, for example. Out in the grass, they can refine the skill. Running and chasing can become purposeful, when there is a race involved. Whether you are working with one toddler, or more, you can think up your own field events, or you can use some traditional ones.

Tag, Hide and Seek, and Duck Duck Goose, are some old favorites for a group. Crazy races are one of my favorites, and my toddlers love to suggest their own ideas. We do frog races, where the participants move like frogs. With snake races, the kids slither. With butterfly races, they flutter. This is a great imaginative endeavor.

Try obstacle courses, setting up markers for the kids to run around, or jump over. Use boxes, toys, or other household objects as markers.

Picnics are fun, at any age, and for a toddler, it doesn't have to be fancy to be fun. Whatever you are making for lunch, make it mobile, and take it out back. Whether you use a towel or blanket, or a beach mat, you can create a great picnic area on the grass.

If you have a children's picnic table, you can use that, or set up a card table. Bring a story book outside, and have fun reading, and acting out the action of the tale. Incorporate your child's favorite theme for the picnic, whether it's a favorite animal, or fictional character.

Picnics on the road are fun, too. If you have a favorite park, or a mountain recreation area, this is the perfect way to provide fun outdoor time for your youngsters.

When the weather is nice, the first place my youngster want to be is in the sand pile!  We truck in a load every few years, as the local poof dirt is silty.  However, the kids split their time between poof dirt, and sandpile.  You can find some really cute, themed sandboxes, and these make for great imagination adventures.  However, you can also just let the sandpile be their place for fun! 

If you live in an apartment, or in a home with minimal yard space, don't discount the thrill your toddler will have at the local park, digging in the sand.  Whether at home, or the park, a pail and shovel are fantastic fun, as are simple implements from your own kitchen.  Just make sure your spoons get back to the kitchen, when you are done digging!

Toddlers don't have refined manipulative skills, but chunky sidewalk chalk is great fun, especially if a parent helps in the artwork.  Draw letters and numbers together, or make a hopscotch grid.  Do some free drawing, as well.  Sidewalk art is temporary, so take pictures, if your child makes something brilliant!  It may be valuable, one day, when the artistic talent becomes renowned!

There are plenty of ways to entertain your toddler outside...and you might find that you are entertained, in the process!  When the weather is suitable, this is a fantastic way to promote an active lifestyle, one which will serve your child well, years down the road!