Outside play has numerous benefits for babies and toddlers. From physical development to understanding the world, allowing your little one to explore the great outdoors can significantly boost their well-being. Young children possess an innate curiosity and are always eager to engage with the world around them. If you have a garden, there is no better place for your child to thrive. Here are a few enjoyable and educational garden activities you can set up for your baby or toddler this summer.
Safety
A pleasant day in the garden with your baby should always start with some straightforward safety precautions, as the garden poses multiple risks. Check for hazards before taking your baby outside – remove sharp objects such as twigs and gardening tools, and remove harmful plants like stinging nettles, foxgloves and poison ivy. It is also a good idea to inspect your garden for animal faeces. Lastly, ensure your garden is secure by locking your gates and ensuring there are no gaps where your curious baby might try to escape.
Bubbles
Arguably the easiest and cheapest outdoor activity for you and your baby to have some fun with bubbles. This is an excellent sensory experience for your little one, who will love the gentle floating motion of the bubbles, as well as the popping sensation on their skin. Playing with bubbles benefits a broad range of developmental areas, such as fine motor and cognitive development. Simply grab some cheap bubble mixture from a department store or make your own using diluted dish soap.
Chalk Painting
Allow your little one’s creativity to flourish by giving them some pavement chalk to decorate your patio. This mark-making activity allows your baby to develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills through self-expression. It also gives them a head start with early handwriting skills – something that will be crucial once they start preschool. Furthermore, you can help them explore how the vibrancy of the chalk changes by dipping it in water, introducing them to the concept of physical change.
Water Play
Water play is another exceptionally cheap and easy garden activity that keeps your little one cool on warm days. Simply fill a paddling pool or tuff tray with water and allow your baby to splash around to their heart’s content. The beauty of water play is that you can enrich it in so many ways. For instance, you could freeze bath toys in ice for a wonderfully refreshing sensory experience.
Another excellent water-based sensory activity is to add flower petals to your pool or tray, along with cups and spoons, so your baby can make beautifully fragrant ‘fairy soup’. You could even set up your own back garden car wash by providing your little one with sponges so they can wash their toy cars and bikes.
Of course, it is worth noting that you should never leave your child unattended whilst they are playing in any volume of water.
Gardening
Gardening is always a fantastic family activity. Inviting your toddler to help you sow, prune, weed, and harvest promotes curiosity, motor skills, self-confidence and much more. Assisting in the garden may also encourage your child to try a wider variety of fruits and vegetables, promoting a healthy lifestyle from a young age. Gardening is also an excellent opportunity to teach your child the importance of protecting the environment. If your little one is too young to help you out, they’ll love simply watching from the comfort of their baby bjorn bouncer.
Scavenger Hunt
A scavenger hunt is a great last-minute activity for older babies and toddlers that require little-to-no set-up. Consider the different items your little one might be able to identify around the garden, such as plants, wildlife and scenery and challenge them to find a list of things. You could also include numbers to encourage numeracy skills. For example, you could write your list as follows:
- One flower
- Two leaves
- Three twigs
- Four blades of grass
- Five pebbles, and so on.
Mud Pies
The garden is the perfect place to get messy, and what better way to make a mess than to bake some mud pies? You can create your very own mud pie kitchen by using old pallets, shelves or planks of wood. Add some pots, pans, bowls and mixing utensils, and you’re ready to go. Your little one will love experimenting with texture as they add water to alter the consistency of the mud. They could even decorate their creations with garden flowers.
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