Clever Ideas That Will Get Your Kids Outside

How to encourage your kids to play outdoors

Avoid detrimental effects on your children's health and get them to spend some time playing outside, instead of always being indoors. (Image found on Flickr)

Many children today often don’t spend as much time outside as their parents did when they were their age. This is partly due to the increase in smartphones, TV’s and games consoles. While kids can learn a lot from these devices, too much time using them can be detrimental to their health. Outdoor play can keep them active, boost their imagination and stimulates creativity. So it’s vital that you encourage your kids to spend more time outside. Some children will not do this willingly, so you need to make it as exciting as possible. Here are some bright ideas to help you achieve this.

Build an assault course

You can use absolutely anything to create a kid-friendly assault course and it’s an ideal way to get your kids moving. You can use skipping ropes, boxes, chairs and balls that your children have to use, crawl under or jump over. They don’t take long to set up but can produce hours of fun. Turn your assault course into a competition where you all race each other. Or you can help your kids pretend they are running away from a monster. This is such a versatile activity that you can change at any time to keep it fresh and new. Get inventive with your course and your kids will adore every second.

Create an art zone

Your children don’t always have to be running around to enjoy being outside. If they love to paint and draw, why not create a special art zone in your garden. You can use your aluminium garden furniture or create a fort on your patio to be base of this creative area. Buy some fun and age appropriate art supplies such as card and crayons and place these item on the table or floor. Open the packaging so your children can get drawing or making straight away. You can even set them daily projects that they need to complete, such as making a fairy door or drawing their favourite animal. It will be hard for your children not to want to create when they have their own outdoor art zone to use.

Whether you buy or build a bird box, it can be always a focus of attention for your kids, to do some birdwatching. (Image found on Flickr)

Buy a bird box

A bird box is another way to get your kids outside, while also encouraging them to take an interest in wildlife and animals. They can track which birds go into the box using a pair of binoculars and a notebook. A child-friendly wildlife book will also tell them the names of each type of bird and what they enjoy eating. In addition to this, you can also buy a feeder for them to fill up each day. This will attract plenty of different birds for them to see, particularly during the summer. They will soon get to know which bird is which and who visits your garden most regularly.

These ideas are just a few ways you can encourage your children to enjoy spending time outside. Think about outdoor games you used to play and find activities your whole family can get involved in. It will be hard for you to get them back inside when they are having so much fun.

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