Looking for fun things to do with your kids that don't require a lot of prep work or a trip to the store?
It's that time of year, the time when our kids are home from school and we are often trying to find ways to keep them entertained. Here in Colorado, the leaves have mostly changed and are in the process of dropping. It's the perfect time to get them outside. Here are some activities we did this week that take advantage of this season and used things we already had at home.
First, A Scavenger Hunt
The first thing we did for these fall activities was grab g a box and head outside to gather some fun natural elements. This time of year there are tons of things kids love exploring and gathering. My kiddos particularly love the variety of leaves and colors, sticks, pinecones, and even dried grass. My toddler found all of the different textures fascinating and had a great time touching everything.
Activity #3: A Science Experiment Exploring Why Leaves Change Color
Activity #1: Fall Sensory Bin
Sensory bins are one of my favorite things to do with kids. They allow kids to play and explore, often engaging all of their senses. I also love them because you can assemble them with almost anything you find around the house. Make sure you include things they can use to scoop and pour. I always throw a cup of some sort in there and this tends to be what my 2 year old gravitates towards.
For a fun fall themed sensory bin, I took inspiration from Happy Toddler Playtime. I love their wide variety of sensory bin ideas. This is the sensory bin I put together using leaves, pinecones, and dried needles we found on our nature walk. To add a pouring element, I added some wild rice we had in our house. The pinecones and tweezers added a challenging pinching activity for my toddler (a skill we have been working on lately).
Activity #2: Sensory Bags
Sensory bags are a fun, less messy, alternative to the bins. These sensory bags from Kids Craft Room were a particular hit with my kids. For this one, I didn't have any clear cooking oil on hand, but I did have vegetable glycerine from some previous craft projects! This allowed the food coloring to mix instead of staying separate, but my toddler loved it. She ended up carrying the bag around all night and loved the squishy feel of it.
Activity #3: A Science Experiment Exploring Why Leaves Change Colors
I really wanted to find an activity that was fun and engaging for both my 2 year old and 11 year old. That's when I stumbled across this cool science experiment from 123Homeschool4me that explores why leaves change color. I was able to talk to my 11 year old about all the cool science behind leaves and their colors. Although my 2 year old did not understand this, she really enjoyed watching the experiment throughout the day. I caught both kids constantly checking on the filters to see if they had changed. Even though our filters didn't change color as dramatically as the ones from the website, it was a great way to engage both age levels in one activity.
Finally, Art Time!
When we were finally done playing with and exploring all of our materials, I decided to let our toddler do one more exploration. I gave her some paint and the materials from our sensory bin and let her go wild! It was messy, but she really enjoyed it. Plus, it ended with a great piece of artwork I know the grandparents will love when we visit later this week.
Commentaires