50 Ways to Play Outside - Autumn/Winter

“I know it is wet and the sun is not sunny, but we can have lots of good fun that is funny.”

― Dr. Seuss, The Cat in the Hat

Yep, it's Autumn. It's getting cold, the days are shorter, and it rains ALL.THE TIME. But that is no reason to stay inside and bounce off the walls! There is SO much to do outside at this time of year, and you know what, the rain can actually make things a whole lot cooler, and open up a whole lot of new possibilities for play.  Who knew you could make art in the rain!?

We have come up with a list of 50 Ways to Play Outside - our special edition for Autumn, Winter, and rainy days. All ideas are either free, or cheap! And most are easy to do around the home, but feel free to get down to your local park or enjoy some new surroundings! 

Hopefully these ideas will be enough to keep your gang busy, get you through this last week, and spark some new reasons to get outdoors. Then print it out and keep it on the fridge for the next rainy day.

Scroll down for the full list with links included! 

50 WAYS TO PLAY OUTSIDE

1. Catch raindrops on your tongue
2. Make rainbow art in the rain
3. Take pictures of nature
4. Jump in leaves
5. Look for worms in the mud and make a worm farm
6. Pick up rubbish
7. Make leaf prints with autumn leaves
8. Play eye spy in nature
9. Make a terranium
10. Make stick boats and have a race
11. Play hide and seek
12. Make pine cone owls
13. Make bark and leaf rubbings
14. Make leaf butterflies
15. Jump in puddles
16. Take a walk in nature
17. Make a bird feeder
18. Look for and identify the deciduous trees in your neighbourhood
19. Make mud pies
20. Go geocaching
21. Look for bugs and make a journal
22. Build a dam
23. Make a rain gauge and measure the rain
24. Make rain music with pots and pans
25. Paint with mud
26. Plant a winter vege garden
27. Colour puddles with chalk
28. Roll down a muddy hill
29. Make and decorate mud pies
30. Be helpful
31. Ride a bike through puddles
32. Go on a nature scavenger hunt
33. Make a leaf maze
34. Draw something from nature
35. Make a mud pie target
36. Jump in the mud
37. Make a nature sensory bin
38. Look at the stars and spot the constellations
39. Make pine cone barometers
40. Toast marshmallows
41. Look for acorns and conkers
42. Fly a kite on a windy day
43. Go for a bushwalk and take a thermos of hot milo
44. Walk on the beach on a stormy day
45. Catch falling leaves (harder than it sounds!)
46. Find 10 different coloured leaves
47. Look for mushrooms and toadstools
48. Make an Autumn fairy garden
49. Jump in bubbles on a wet trampoline
50. Race toy boats in puddles