If you’re looking for ways to get the kids more engaged in the natural world – and possibly pull them away from a long winter of much time indoors looking at screens – Spring is great time to reinvigorate your relationship with the wonders of nature. The Forest school approach is so effective precisely because it offers a myriad ways of interacting with and learning from nature while having fun in her beautiful environment. 

Take a look at our suggestions for some stimulating opportunities for learning, growth, and fun outdoors as the weather becomes warmer and sunny. Here are 15 innovative forest school activities tailored for different age groups.

puddle jumping forest school activity for kids

1. Puddle Jumping

As adults, we tend to just walk around them but puddles can just as easily be a mirror to our environment. What different ripples do a stick versus a stone make? What can you see reflected in the water?

  • 3-5 years: Encourage splashing and jumping with simple rhymes or songs. Focus on balance and coordination.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce puddle jumping challenges, such as jumping over or through puddles. Encourage them to measure the depth of puddles or estimate how far they can jump.

2. Nature Scavenger Hunt

Who doesn’t love a good adventure challenge? By looking for hidden treasures in our environments, children slow down and notice many more small miracles than if they’re just trying to get to the end of a walk.

  • 3-5 years: Create a simple scavenger hunt with pictures of common natural objects. Focus on finding and identifying items.
  • 5-10 years: Create a more complex scavenger hunt with descriptions or clues. Encourage children to use observation skills and problem-solving to find items.
nature scavenger hunt with kids
build a fairy house with kids

3. Build a Fairy House

It’s a marvellous discovery at any age to walk in the woods and come upon a magical fairy home. By creating it with your children you have fun as a family and leave some magic behind for others to discover.

  • 3-5 years: Provide basic materials like sticks and leaves. Focus on building and decorating with their hands.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce more complex structures and encourage creativity. Discuss different fairy house designs and their inhabitants.

4. Plant a Seed

Spring is the perfect time to work with nature’s seasons and begin a small garden. It’s a long term project that invites hours of observation and insight.

  • 3-5 years: Plant large seeds like beans or sunflowers. Focus on the planting process and caring for the growing plant.
  • 5-10 years: Experiment with different types of seeds and discuss plant growth cycles. Encourage children to record observations in a nature journal.
plant a seed with kids in spring
making nature art with kids and found objects

5. Nature Art

The possibilities of creativity with nature is an endless spiral of awe. Once children realise how inspiring but also how conducive nature is to the making process – they will become friends and custodians for life.

  • 3-5 years: Provide basic materials like leaves and paint. Encourage free expression and exploration of textures. Activities like flower pounding are great for little ones and produce beautiful effects.
  • 5-10 years: Create nature mandalas with element found in nature. Explore how many colours you can create from the 4 basic colours, and talk about which seasons have which colours. Make a small tree from rope and sticks and leaves found in nature.

6. Muddy Kitchen

A mud pie seems to be an essential memory of many childhoods along riverbanks and may just form the basis of early sculpture and clay fascinations.

  • 3-5 years: Provide basic utensils like spoons and bowls. Encourage sensory exploration and imaginative play with found nature bits like leaf, bark and clay forming ingredients for soups and muffins.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce measuring tools and recipes for mud pies or potions. Playing with “ingredient consistency” to help things keep their shape and form is also a great way to learn about matter and density which encourage scientific experimentation and problem-solving.
muddy kitchen play with kids
bird watching with kids

7. Birdwatching

The birds, oh the birds, how they delight our everyday environments. There are a myriad of them to learn from and a world of wisdom just waiting to be observed. Birdwatching is a wonderful activity to invite pockets of silence and patience into the awareness of a child.

  • 3-5 years: Make your own bird feeder using pine cones, peanut butter and seeds and use bird books or identifying cards. Focus on identifying common garden or woodland birds by sight and sound.
  • 5-10 years: Use binoculars to observe birds in detail. Encourage children to learn about bird behaviour and migration patterns. Looking out for nest-building habitats is also a great addition to this activity.

8. Build a Fort

It feels like this one is mandatory on every forest school list but only because it is so rich in learning through play. For building teaches kids everything from creativity to construction and collaboration!

  • 3-5 years: Provide basic materials like blankets and branches. Focus on cooperative play and imaginative building.
  • 5-10 years: Use string to tie around logs and sticks and create more complex structures and design challenges. Encourage teamwork and problem-solving.
build a fort in nature with kids
leaf running and flower pounding

9. Leaf Rubbings

The many varied leaves are a detailed world unto their own. Not only do kids learn about the variety of trees but they also begin to connect with sibling species with whom we as humans could not live without. 

  • 3-5 years: Provide crayons and paper. Focus on the sensory experience of rubbing the crayon on the paper over the leaf textures to reveal their shapes through paper.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce different types of paper and explore different rubbing techniques or even printing techniques by applying an eco paint directly on the leaf. Encourage observation of leaf patterns and textures and identification of various tree species..

10. Nature Sound Hunt

Multi sensory engagement in nature is crucial for immersive experiences. We don’t only see the world, we hear her, smell her and feel her on our skin.

  • 3-5 years: Listen to common nature sounds like birdsong and wind. Encourage imitation of animal sounds.
  • 5-10 years: Use recording devices to capture and analyze nature sounds. Introduce concepts of sound waves and acoustics.

In any new nature environment we take children, asking them to sit and listen with owl ears to what their landscape can teach them is always very enriching as children take in the interconnectedness of even just a meadow for example.

nature sound hunting with kids
water play

11. Water Play

As Spring heats up into summer, this one becomes ever more invigorating!

  • 3-5 years: Provide simple water play tools like cups, strainers, and spoons. Focus on sensory exploration and motor skills.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce water experiments like building dams or rafts or measuring water levels. Encourage inquiry and problem-solving. We can even begin to notice water life creatures like tadpoles and frogs, fish even if there are any present.

12. Bug Discovery

The teeming world of mini beasts is one of endless fascination. Most adults don’t even spend enough time taking in the complexity of insect anatomy. Don’t forget your magnifying glasses for this activity!

  • 3-5 years: Use magnifying glasses to observe insects safely. Focus on identifying common insects by sight and start collection box for nature treasures  for when they find dead beatle bodies, dragonfly wings and moths.

5-10 years: Use insect identification guides to learn about different species. Encourage children to observe insect behavior and habitats. Drawing our own made up insects after a day of observing insects is another way to consecrate the observations into creativity.

nature scavenger hunt
forest obstacle course

13. Forest Obstacle Course

Need an activity for a bigger party? This one is heaps of fun. Think nature bootcamp for tots and tweens.

  • 3-5 years: Create simple obstacles like stepping stones or logs to climb over. Focus on balance and coordination.
  • 5-10 years: Create a more challenging course with obstacles of varying heights and difficulties. Building bridges, ladders and rope swings is all a great big adventure. Encourage problem-solving and teamwork.

14. Nature Storytelling

This one can easily be added on to a family picnic to turn a casual afternoon into heaps of laughter. Children love to act out their made-up stories. All we have to do is be present to their show. Sometimes even reading our favourite books outside under trees can be a wonderful afternoon.

  • 3-5 years: Encourage imaginative storytelling based on observed natural elements. Focus on vocabulary and language development.
  • 5-10 years: Introduce storytelling techniques like character development and plot structure. Encourage collaborative storytelling.
story telling in nature
eating outdoors with kids is a forest feast

15. Forest Feast

Eating out in nature can be very relaxing and invigorating. While we eat our human foods we can talk about what we think all the different animals who live in the forest eat for their lunches and breakfasts.

  • 3-5 years: Pack a simple picnic with familiar foods. Encourage sharing and social interaction.
  • 5-10 years: Involve children in food preparation and planning in the outdoors. It’s a less manicured environment than our home kitchens and often sparks creative ideas for tables and chairs.

Remember, adaptation is key. Observe your children’s interests and adjust activities accordingly. The goal is to foster a lifelong love of learning and nature.

Our daily Forest House Playgroup and weekly sessions contain many of these (and many more) nature-based activities. If you think this is something your children would benefit from, get in touch at hello@natureplays.com or check out our sessions or holiday clubs to experience them for yourself.