Last weekend there was a small and I say, small hint of warmth in the air!! So much so, it made it far more appealing to be outside our house as opposed to inside for the first time in months!! It got me thinking about how much I am looking forward to Spring, getting back out and about in the warmth, when outside activities with the kids seem far more enjoyable with the warm sun beating its healing rays down on my back.
I do not know about you, but for me if I can incorporate some level of sun… with some kid related fun…I AM THERE!! However I’m not one of those Mum’s who is ever that organised enough to have a bountiful supply of glitter glue pens, wonderful watercolour palette’s or pristine paddle pop sticks to crank out a good old fashioned pot plant holder…oh dear…I have just remembered making one of those in Girl Guides about 1000 moons ago!! I am far more inclined to have the basics, i.e. brown paper bags for wrapping birthday gifts or school lunches, jute string and twine and some random selection of gooey glue sticks and bottles that are so congealed; you are in awe of the strength of the glue that resides within, never to see the light of day again!
Yep that’s me; I’m your average Mum!
I do love all things green and leafy. Our great outdoors consists of our little garden; it’s big enough and filled with enough blooms, bushes and hiding places for the kids to play in happily either by themselves or with my involvement. It’s a space that they can be active and creative. I’m sure you may have this space as well, and if you give it just a little bit of thought you too can enjoy some great activities utilising this space of yours with your kidlets too. The great thing is, that in this blog I intend on doing your thinking for you!! Oh…if only people offered this “think for you” service to busy Mum’s, I truly think they would be onto a winner!
Anyway thinking aside, if you are in need of some fresh ideas for incorporating some garden bits and bobs into your child’s creative works then I have penned a few ideas here that may help you to bring some more outdoor time & exploration into your kid’s world and some hopefully some sun on your back, let’s not forget about that! The best part is that kids will be happily engaged in creative, outside play with a host of easy, fun and enjoyable nature related art activities.
Grab some brown paper bags or empty egg cartons are also a great idea.
Write a list on the outside of the bag or egg carton of things that your kidlets will be able to find in your backyard/garden, some easy some not so easy, there’s a fine line between keeping them on task and bored because it’s too difficult! You need to make them feel successful but challenged in equal parts! (For example, 4 x clover leaves, 1 x pink flower, 2 pieces of bark chip, 1 x wriggly worm and so on!!)
Arm your children with a pencil, the paper bag or egg carton, their imaginations and let them run wild in the garden.
Give them a 15 minute time frame with which to complete their search.
If you have more than one “Hunter” you can get the Tribe to compare their findings at the end (after all who doesn’t want to be the winner when you are a child!!), otherwise you could also complete the Hunt yourself and compare your findings with those of your Hunter.
