Fall and winter outside

Fall and winter stand in stark contrast to each other when it comes to outdoor adventuring. Fall-time is full of more adventures and activities than most of us have time for. There are farms to visit, hikes to enjoy, harvests to be fulfilled, and explosions of color everywhere. In winter, life slows down significantly. Our kids may want to stomp and play in the snow or cuddle up with warmth and rest during the darker months.

In both seasons, we want to help our kids have fun! For some of us, this could be easy, and for others, there is a struggle to find the right activities. This is where books can come into play (literally!). Books can help encourage our kids to get creative and explore new perspectives and aspects of outdoor adventuring.  

Where to find these books

If you would like to buy these fall and winter books through the affiliate links provided, RWMC receives a tiny commission. Our small business appreciates your support! If you would like to support small and independent bookstores in your area, try bookshop. I will also always recommend frequenting your local libraries and checking the books out as well.

How to use these books

In my spring and summer books post, I detailed the ways to use these books before, during, and after your adventures. The same ideas apply to the fall and winter books I have curated here. Make sure to refresh yourself on the benefits and how-to of pairing books with adventures from that post! 

All of our kids are unique and will connect to different aspects of outdoor adventuring. While reading books, we can parse out what our kids will be most excited to experience. We can prepare them for new adventures or refresh their knowledge of family favorite adventures. And we can help them awaken imaginative play in new ways.

Diversity in books and reading level

Children of all ages will be able to read and understand different things that will support their uniqueness and their personal interests. And for that purpose, I have made sure to include diverse books that will help all kids feel included and excited about outdoor adventuring.

Kids may not pick an activity or adventure for themselves if they do not first see themselves represented in that arena. There is also a range of reading levels represented in the books I chose for this post. And while some books are more advanced than others, the vast majority of them will work for all ages. Personally, I would have no issue reading picture books with my middle-schooler (or even high-school-aged kids). They can still get so much enjoyment from being read to and flipping through picture books. But, no matter what age your kids are, you will have multiple options here that best fit your family and kids’ interests. 

Seasonal weather and using these fall and winter books

I have not met many people who do not enjoy some aspects of autumn. It can be a nice reprieve from hotter days, and there really are so many activities available to us that automatically get our families outdoors. More often, I meet people who do not slow down enough to find deep appreciation and enjoyment of fall because they are busy preparing for winter. I hope that the books I have chosen to include here will help you find ways to connect to the earth and all the awe this season has to offer.

Once wintertime is in full swing, I have met a lot more people who pull back on their outdoor adventuring in favor of hunkering down and staying inside. The books that I have included are meant to inspire us to fight that urge. Winter, while cold and dark in many areas of the world, can be a time to refocus our habits on what really matters to our families. There is plenty of family adventuring and play to be had outdoors in the winter. If we have resources like these books to show us the possibilities, we will be able to pass encouragement on to our children. 

Favorite fall books for kids

Books about fall leaves and hikes

1. Forest Baby by Laura Elmquist
2. Hiking Day by Anne Rockwell
3. An Autumn Treasury by Angela Ferraro-Fanning
4. Fresh Fall Leaves by Betsy Franco
5. It’s Fall! by Renee Kruilla
6. Taking a Walk: Fall in the Country by Sue Tarsky
7. Thank Fall by Ciara L. Hill
8. Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn by Kenard Pak
9. The Wilderness by Steve McCarthy

These books capture the wonder and awe of autumn colors. While the natural world is beginning to wind down, we get to enjoy the changes in real time! This can be fascinating to children if we are willing to slow down and examine it with them.

You may think ‘autumn leaves’ and immediately connect it to a walk or hike or jumping in leaf piles. These are brilliant options, but what about leaf crafts or forts as shown in An Autumn Treasury or Fresh Fall Leaves? What about connecting it to daily gratitude with Thank Fall? The Wilderness is simply gorgeous and centers on bravery, friendship, and exploration.

Each of these books will give you and your family new ideas about how to engage with leaves and colors all season. 

Books about farm visits, harvest, and fall festivals 

1. Harvest Days by Kate DePalma
2. Marya Khan and the Spectacular Fall Festival by Saadia Faruqi
3. Farm Boots by Lisa H. Detlefsen
4. Amara’s Farm by JaNay Brown-Wood

I am a top-tier fan of agro-tourism. I shamelessly seek out the local farms with pumpkins, apple cider donuts, games, tractor rides, animals, and corn pits and mazes. Behind these fun seasonal attractions is a lot of effort from the farmers and even the animals! These books will give your kids a window into that work. Amara’s Farm introduces foods that are harvested this time of year and helps kids find characterizations as they wander the farm. Marya Khan is a new release chapter book following a third-grade girl while preparing a fall festival. 

Each of these fall books will excite kids to visit farms with you and instill an appreciation for harvest and gathering. 

Best winter books for kids

Winter sports

1. Goodnight, Chairlift by Libby Ludlow
2. The Little Book of Skiing by Orange Hippo!
3. Goodnight, Snowboard by Kristen McCurry

A great way to get kids outside in the winter is by taking up a winter sport. You may already be a skiing family, or you may want to try it out for the first time. Either way, there is a lot of gear and mountain-side etiquette and safety involved. Even sledding, there are things for which to prepare your kids. The Little Book of Skiing is not strictly a picture or chapter book, but I have included it because there are pages with only one sentence, some with paragraphs and others with infographics. All of which add to a deeper understanding and appreciation of a very involved but exciting winter sport.

All of these books introduce the information to kids while also capturing the true spirit of adventure that is going fast down the snow! 

Books about playing in the snow

1. Ten Ways to Hear Snow by Kathy Camper
2. Goodbye Autumn, Hello Winter by Kenard Pak
3. A Day So Gray by Marie Lamba
4. Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner
5. First Snow by Nancy Viau
6. Walking in a Winter Wonderland by Peggy Lee and Tim Hopgood

If you and your family are not as enthusiastic about snow sports, you may be looking for ideas closer to home or slower-paced. Playing in the snow in your own backyard or local parks and fields can be exciting as well. I’m sure I’m not alone in wondering how to get our kids to play outside a little longer in the winter. Besides quality gear to keep them warm, we can encourage them by showing them the true beauty of winter, as in A Day So Gray. With books like Ten Ways to Hear Snow and Over and Under the Snow, building a snowman or throwing snowballs can be just the beginning of our kids’ snowy play.

These books are sure to help your kids find ways to extend their time in the snow and build imaginative winter worlds right outside their doors. 

Books for enjoying fall and winter holidays outside

1. Pick a Pumpkin by Patricia Toht
2. Halloween in the Orchard by Phyllis Alsdurf
3. We’re Going on a Pumpkin Hunt by Goldie Hawk
4. Pick a Pine Tree by Patricia Toht
5. Thanksgiving in the Woods by Phyllis Alsdurf
6. Little Red Ruthie: A Hanukkah Tale by Gloria Koster

This time of year is often called the holiday season because there are at least a dozen cultural and religious holidays that take place. We may automatically think of Halloween as a largely “outdoors” holiday. But we may not think the same for Hanukkah or Chinese New Year. These books bring those holidays outside in both small and large ways.

Holidays are not the main focus of this post, but I do think it is important to consider them. We can use our cultural and religious celebrations as opportunities to get outside and create new and lasting adventures or experiences. We do have a nature-holiday post with more books if you are looking for other suggestions!

Nature books enhance our adventures

Books can bring wonder and learning to our lives. When we take time to read nature books to our kids, we are helping them gain more appreciation of what this earth has to offer, which can lead to life-long understanding and habits of adventure. We know the benefits of early literacy, and we know the benefits of nature play. We can overlap these two aspects of physical and mental growth/health in beautiful and meaningful ways that benefit the whole family. 

How will you use these books to adventure in the fall and winter months?

About the author

Emily and her family have moved across the US multiple times, and the best things about each state have been the outdoor adventures and the public libraries! Now living in Utah, Emily has continued her love for both. She explores both mountain and city outdoor spaces weekly with her three kids and friends and attends library story times, as well as leads a local story time. Emily has a passion for children’s literature. She uses books to educate, promote inclusion, understanding, and justice, and inspire adventure and creativity. Emily loves how reading and being outdoors overlap in so many exciting ways!

You can find Emily online in the following locations:
Instagram: @inclusivelibrary
RWMC Posts: Emily Liebel

The post Favorite Fall and Winter Books for Outdoor Adventures appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

“Mud is the most poetical thing in the world.” ~ Reginald Horace Blythe

Gardening with kids for connection

Gardening with kids is a wonderful way for families to cultivate a deep connection with natural spaces that are well within reach. Children, like plants, need sunshine, rain, fresh air, and mud to thrive. By spending time with them digging in the dirt, placing seeds just so, and observing their growth, children learn a sense of responsibility for a piece of Earth they call their own.

Children who grow up connected to and feeling responsible for nature become stewards of the planet. Gardening is a great way to establish that connection. It’s also an amazing time for kids to connect with their big people.

And let’s face it, children aren’t the only ones suffering from nature deficit disorder. We could all use a little more time outside nurturing plants and nurturing our own souls. 

Climbing and swinging helps build trunk strength and are fun backyard activities to include when gardening with kids.

Benefits of gardening with kids

There are loads of benefits to getting kids in the garden beyond taking in the ample fresh air. Kids learn through experiencing the world around them. Botany, zoology, ecology, and environmental science are much more effectively taught in the garden than behind a school desk. It’s incredible how sophisticated our little learners can be when the learning is done in the correct context.  

Child health and physical development

Children who learn to grow their food are much more likely to eat it, as well. Have a picky eater? Get them to grow something and watch their innate curiosity trump their skepticism of all things green. But, the health benefits go beyond the dinner plate.

Our bodies move differently in wide-open spaces. Children develop best when learning to navigate unstructured environments like those that can only be provided by the outdoors. Swinging and climbing build strong trunks. Balance is fostered by log hopping. Raking and digging yield upper body strength. 

Perhaps best of all, time spent outdoors is not time spent behind a screen or *cough* time spent fighting about being behind a screen. 

Log hopping is great exercise, and logs add a little whimsy to an outdoor garden space.

Problem-solving and life skills learned through gardening

Gardening teaches life skills. There isn’t a gardener in the world who hasn’t at least once in their life encountered a problem that needed solving. Gardening with children teaches problem-solving, teamwork, observation skills, and organization. 

Kids encounter various challenges in the garden, from dealing with pests and diseases to deciding on the right amount of water and sunlight for their plants. These challenges require them to think critically, come up with solutions, and adapt their strategies as needed.  Additionally, gardening teaches kids the value of teamwork. Whether they are gardening with family members, classmates, or friends, they must collaborate to achieve common goals. Tasks such as planting, weeding, and harvesting require coordination and cooperation. Working together in the garden not only fosters a sense of shared responsibility but also helps kids understand the significance of teamwork in achieving success.

Gardening teaches patience 

Want your child to grow up to be successful? Have them grow alongside a garden!

Foundational research at Stanford by Walter Mischel and colleagues has shown that the ability to delay gratification is strongly correlated with success later in life. All gardeners know that gardening requires patience and persistence. You can nurture your child’s ability to delay gratification, and they will reap the benefits throughout their entire lifetime through gardening. 

Adding a sliding board to a raised bed can go a long way in increasing the fun factor!

The ultimate guide to gardening with kids

Have I persuaded you to get outside with your kids? Leave perfection at the door (there’s no place for it when kids are involved). Just get messy and have fun. You may even learn a thing or two along the way! 

But just in case you aren’t sure where to begin, here’s a guide about all the ins and outs of gardening with the little ones in your life. You’ll learn how to add whimsy and magic to outdoor spaces, how to design garden spaces with kids in mind, basic gardening know-how (e.g., finding your zone, choosing plants that will grow, soil preparation, and all about compost), teaching moments that can be had along the way (STEM in the garden anyone?), and arts and crafts for the colder winter months (you can take a gardener out of the garden, but…). 

So let’s dig in, get dirty, and grow something.  

Select a garden spot and get started 

The right garden space can make or break a garden. That said, gardening can be accomplished nearly anywhere and everywhere. I’ve had tiny balcony gardens in the heat of Arizona, to raised beds in the Pacific Northwest. I rarely have the perfect South-facing plot with amazing sun and good drainage.

If you have a spot like that, by all means, get digging, but don’t let a lack of the “ideal” spot stop your gardening dreams from being realized. Truth be told, plants are tough and life finds a way. Plus, a good deal of the fun with gardening comes from experimenting and observing the results. You may be surprised, and that learning will not be lost in next year’s garden.

Companies like Vego Garden make modular raised beds that can be configured in loads of different ways. This gives so much more flexibility for garden spaces that are tight or awkwardly shaped. They even have kids’ beds and in-ground worm composters to add the good stuff back into your soil. They get bonus points for being so beautiful!

Modular beds grant extra flexibility in the garden space. Of course, don’t expect squash to be contained by anything unless you’re growing vertically.

Consider hardiness zones

When choosing the right spot for your garden, keep some basics in mind. For instance, you can find your hardiness zone here. Use your hardiness zone to choose plants that can survive year-round in your area. Hardiness zones are most important with perennial plants, though, as many plants that you place in a spring or summer garden shouldn’t be expected to survive the winter months. Still, it’s nice to have some plants come back year after year! Using native plants is also a safe bet, as native plants have already evolved to thrive in their respective environments. 

Growing seasons

When choosing annual plants, like many of the vegetables that grow in summer gardens, you’ll want to pay attention to your area’s growing season. That is the length between the typical dates of the first and last frosts. Use these as a guideline for what you can grow, as each plant has a number of days from the time the seed is planted before it can be harvested (you can usually find this right on the seed packet). If your growing season isn’t long enough, you’ll never get to harvest before the first frost sets in. Don’t let all the charts keep you from taking chances or experimenting, though! So much of gardening is learned only through trial and error. 

Accessible spaces for children

Probably the most important factor to consider when choosing the right spot for your garden is ensuring that your garden space is accessible to your children. Involving them in selecting the growing space gets immediate buy-in from them and sparks enthusiasm for the project. 

Keep your garden accessible to children, and everyone will reap the benefits.

Getting kids involved in plant selection

Consulting kids about what to garden is as important as where to garden. Beyond hardiness zones and growing seasons, certain plants are better than others at keeping kids engaged. For example, creating a foraging garden that includes plants that are good for grazing, like snap peas and cherry tomatoes, as well as herbs like mint and superfoods like moringa, encourages children to sample what they’ve grown and gets them excited about the prospect of harvesting. Let your kids each pick a type of plant to try growing. They’ll be much more invested in the outcome (and likely to eat it), if they were involved in the process.

Afraid your thumb isn’t green enough, but want an easy win? This post will give you a great start with five veggies that are easy for kids to grow.

Consider creating theme gardens 

Theme gardens can be a lot of fun. Below are some examples of types of gardens your child might be interested in growing.

Pizza garden 

What kid doesn’t love pizza? Have them grow their very own toppings and watch their green thumbs and their palate take off. Pizza gardens might include tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, onions, garlic, artichokes, spinach, basil, and oregano. 

Salsa garden

Salsa is my favorite food group so this one might be more for me than my kiddo. A salsa garden might include cilantro, garlic, hot pepper, onion, sweet bell pepper, tomatillo, and tomato. 

Soup garden

Soup gardens are great for when the seasons start to change. Luckily, most of the contents are ready to harvest just when you might be craving a hot pot of it on the stovetop. A basic soup garden may contain garlic (basically every garden contains garlic), green beans, kale, chard, sweet corn, potatoes, onions, winter or summer squash.

Salad garden

Want your kids to eat the green stuff? Have them grow it! Salad gardens may contain beets, carrots (root veggies are especially fun to harvest since it’s like digging for buried treasure!), cucumber, lettuce, nasturtium (pretty edible flowers make magical fairy salads), radish, spinach, sweet bell peppers, and tomatoes.  

Gardening with kids can take place in all kinds of spaces. Here a child tends to a small balcony garden.

Three Sisters garden

This is a great garden to grow and can be coupled with storytelling!  Corn, beans, and squash are known as the Three Sisters and are central to Native American agriculture and folklore.  The corn provides tall stalks for the beans to climb.  Beans, like other legumes, are nitrogen-fixers adding it to the soil. The squash plants grow as a ground cover, keeping the soil moist and controlling weeds. All three store well and can be used as food year-round. The book “In the Three Sisters Garden” by JoAnne Dennee contains some beautiful stories to pair with planting a Three Sisters garden.

In the Haudenosaunee tradition, all three types of seeds were planted together in a mound. Planting a Three Sisters garden is a great introduction to companion planting, which is when plants are grown near together for the benefit of one or more. Companion planting can be a natural way of pest control, can help plants grow bigger and stronger and increase pollination, and can even make certain fruits and vegetables taste better. Here’s a great resource to learn more.

Potion garden

This one is as useful as it is magical. Your little witchlings will appreciate a space where they can harvest ingredients for any magic they may be conjuring. And you’ll be able to create an apothecary for your family at the same time. Some great medicinal plants to include are calendula, chamomile, comfrey, horehound, lavender, lemon balm, peppermint, and sage. Lemon balm and lavender make a child-friendly and soothing tea to have before bed. Calendula is amazing at healing diaper rash and other minor skin irritations.  

A butterfly or pollinator garden

Vegetables shouldn’t have all the fun! Creating a garden with pollinator-friendly plants will increase the presence of beneficial insects in your yard and garden space. A pollinator garden is also great for any fruits and veggies that you do have planted, as it attracts pollinators to your yard where they can find your vegetables and pollinate those as well.

But, pollinator gardens are fun in their own right. Butterflies are beautiful and honey and bumble bees are fun to watch. Kids love observing insects. This is a great opportunity to witness an entire life cycle in the backyard! Hummingbirds may even stop by. Most of all, creating a pollinator garden helps creatures that we depend on by giving them a safe food source.  

This calendula patch is perfect for creating soothing ointments and yields ample ingredients for kids’ potion-making.

Soil preparation

Preparing the soil is a crucial step when gardening and sets the foundation for a successful and enjoyable experience. Well-prepped soil provides the necessary nutrients, aeration, and drainage that plants need to thrive, offering children the opportunity to witness the direct correlation between soil health and plant growth. Moreover, involving kids in the soil preparation process is a valuable educational experience, as they learn about the importance of soil composition, organic matter, and pH levels, all of which are fundamental concepts in the world of agriculture and environmental science.

Composting

Gardens need nutrients, and that’s where composting comes in! Kids are inherently interested in the transformation of things. Teaching kids about compost is a great way to capitalize on these interests. Start by setting aside a second compost bin next to yours that is just for them. They can add their own food scraps to it and observe how it changes over time. Your little scientists may even want to record their observations.  

Kids love playing in the dirt, and will likely be equally as fascinated in the process of how dirt comes to be. Try a composting experiment to bring the transformation front and center. Replicate a small compost pile inside a plastic bottle to create a compost soilarium (instructions can be found here).

Here’s a fantastic list of children’s books all about composting to read more. 

Build a worm farm

Want to take composting and your garden’s health a step further? Consider creating a worm farm! The only thing that kids may love more than dirt are the things they find in it, including wriggly worms. And the worm castings they create are amazing soil amendments. All you need is a plastic storage container with a lid and some basic things that can be found around the house. 

Drill 10 or so small holes in the sides and bottom of the container. The holes allow air in and excess moisture out. Worms like to be moist, but not soaking. Make sure to cover the holes with a screen so your worms don’t get out. Fill the container halfway with strips of newspaper (children can cut the paper into strips), which serve as a comfy bed (and a snack) for your worms. Moisten the newspaper with a spray bottle. Add red wriggler worms.

Add food scraps to the newspaper (fruit and veggie peels, coffee grounds, pasta, tea bags, and foliage trimmed from the garden make great additions, but don’t add dairy, oil, or meat). Place the bin on a tray or pan in a warm spot out of direct sunlight. Add food and check on it regularly. 

Eventually, worm castings will start to build up, though it can take a while. Once you have enough castings, use a spoon to scoop them out and add them to the soil around the plants in the garden. An indoor worm bin (using red wrigglers) can be started at any time of year and is a great winter activity to get soil amendments ready for use in spring and summer planting.  

Create a soil horizon

Learn about the native soil in the areas you wish to plant by doing this educational activity with your kids. Creating a soil horizon provides information on how often you will need to water your garden and what kind of plants will grow best there. It’s also super easy!

All you need is a glass quart-sized jar with a lid, a hand trowel, soil, water, and a soil-type chart for making observations and comparisons. 

Start by filling the jar 2/3 full with water. Take a soil sample using the trowel to remove the top inch of soil from a small area where your future garden will live, then dig out soil from underneath and fill half the jar with soil, topping it off with water. Seal the jar and have your kids take turns shaking it vigorously. Then place it somewhere it won’t be disturbed for at least 24 hours. 

Encourage your kids to peek at it every once in a while and to observe any changes while using their eyes and not their hands. After 24 hours, you should see different layers of soil at the bottom of the jar. The very bottom layer is sand, with silt on top, and clay on top of that. Compare your soil horizon to a soil chart to identify what kind of soil you have in your garden. Feel free to repeat this experiment in other areas of your yard, or wherever you wish to grow something. 

Having kids water plants is a great way to involve them in age-appropriate garden tasks.

Getting kids involved in garden tasks

Involve children in soil preparation by having them use their tools to loosen it, adding their own compost for nutrients, and creating holes where tiny seeds will go. Guide them in planting seeds at the right depth and spacing, but don’t be a perfectionist about it!

If you are transplanting seedlings, teach them to be gentle with the plants. Let them give the plants a drink and encourage them to monitor their growth on a regular basis.

The best way to avoid garden pests is to catch and remove them early, and little gardeners can use their eagle eyes to find them. Introduce ladybugs in the garden to naturally control pests like aphids. Planting flowers for pollinators and parasitic wasps can also control pest populations naturally.  

Connecting with nature

Remember that one of the overarching goals of getting children in the garden is to cultivate a connection with and stewardship of nature. Choose garden chores that align with specific children’s ages and guide them as they take on new skills. But leave lots of room for unstructured play in the garden.

All work and no play will result in your child quickly losing interest. Kids were created to play and this medium fosters the most effective learning. So incorporate plants that can handle some foot traffic in play areas. Use borders to protect delicate saplings and to remind your own little saplings where their feet belong. And let loose in the garden a bit. Gardening is supposed to be a stress reliever after all! 

Quiet your inner gardener and let your child guide you in taking chances. I let Remy plant any seeds or seedlings he wanted to in his plot. Some of the seedlings looked quite scraggly (which is why they didn’t make it into my raised beds), but low and behold, they all took off when he got them into the ground. So take some chances and quiet the critical gardener who “knows best.”

A lightweight child-sized garden rake is perfect when little hands need to push mulch and soil.

Adding whimsy and magic to your outdoor garden space 

Adding a touch of whimsy and magic to outdoor spaces can transform them into inviting realms for children to play and explore. Incorporating elements like colorful, oversized garden ornaments, fairy lights, and hidden nooks can stimulate their imagination and create a sense of wonder. Enchanting pathways, secret garden doors, and miniature fairy houses can turn a simple garden into an enchanting world where kids can embark on exciting adventures and imaginative quests. These elements not only encourage outdoor play but also foster creativity and a deep appreciation for the natural world, allowing children to connect with the magic of nature in their own backyard.

All things mud

 If your child loves to dig (*enthusiastically raises hand*), create a digging-only bed where they can dig and play in the mud without harming seedlings. Add some earth mover toys and a pile of rocks and sticks for additional textures and to create mud gnome homes (note:  larger rocks are better for staying out of little mouths).

A mud kitchen is a great place to mix potions and make mud pies. Check out the book “Mud Pies and Other Recipes” by Marjorie Winslow for inspiration. Encourage your little ones to build fairy houses with natural objects so the pixies will help care for the garden.  

Mud kitchens allow kids to make messes in all the right places!

Places to hide

Incorporating living structures like squash tunnels, sunflower houses, and bean teepees into your garden can transform it into a captivating and imaginative haven for children. These living structures not only add a sense of enchantment to the garden but also provide fun places to hide, play, or curl up with a book. Squash tunnels create cozy hideaways where kids can explore the lush foliage and vibrant blooms while staying shaded from the sun. Sunflower houses offer a natural, sun-dappled retreat where young readers can immerse themselves in books amidst towering, sunflower walls. Bean teepees, with their climbing vines and leafy canopies, provide secret alcoves for imaginative play and offer a sense of seclusion within the garden’s green embrace. These living structures not only inspire a love for gardening but also nurture a child’s sense of adventure and wonder in the great outdoors.

Creature features

Include bird houses, bat boxes, feeders, and bee baths for lots of creature viewing and additional connecting with nature. You may wish to create a sit spot where your child can engage in the mindful practice of sitting quietly and observing. Have them select the spot, but it should be in a location that is good for observing nature with varied and interesting things to watch. Your child can return to the same spot as frequently as desired and note how wildlife changes throughout the year. This is a great practice to couple with nature journaling.   

Squash tunnels are space-efficient and a fun place for kids to hide.

Garden safety tips for kids

Don’t forget about safety! Always supervise children when they are in the garden, especially younger ones. Keep a close eye on them to prevent accidents and ensure they are following safety guidelines.

Teach kids how to use garden tools properly. Better yet, invest in small, lightweight child-sized versions of trowels, rakes, and watering cans to make gardening more fun and to get your kids invested as well. Ensure that any chemicals or fertilizers are stored out of their reach. This is a great time to go over proper hand washing, too. 

And finally, teach children not to touch or ingest any plants without your guidance. Some plants can be toxic if ingested or cause skin irritation upon contact. Familiarize yourself with the plants in your garden and educate your children about any potential hazards.

Sunflowers are beloved by children and pollinators alike!

Garden arts and crafts 

Crafts are a great way for your artsy child to put their mark on their garden. Have your child plant seeds in the shape of a design in the garden and watch their artwork literally come to life!

Let your child paint the sign for their garden to instill a sense of pride and ownership. Kids can create plant markers by painting river stones. Garden games can also be created with the use of river stones and acrylic paint. For instance, paint rocks as ladybugs and bumble bees for a fun game of tic tac toe on a tree stump.

When it’s especially cold and wet outside, inside garden crafts abound. Create mosaics by using a piece of cardboard, some glue, and some randomly- (or carefully-) placed seeds of different shapes, colors, and sizes. Envelopes can be decorated and labeled to collect seeds from the garden for planting the following year.

During the winter months, your budding artist can create a plant collage using an old seed catalog, scissors, glue, and poster board, to use while planning and dreaming up spring’s garden.

Seed mosaics and garden-themed books bring the outdoor learning inside when the weather is inclement.

Live your garden

Weave gardening into your everyday life, much like brushing your teeth. Collect some flowers for a small vase on your child’s play table. Let them pick the lettuce that will go on the sandwiches you make for lunch. Grow a pumpkin that will be carved for Halloween or made into a pie at Thanksgiving. Create a pizza garden that is utilized on Friday movie nights. When the garden is dormant in the wintertime, spend that time cozy in front of the fire with a seed catalogue dreaming about what will go in your plots in the spring. Have a garden party. Find garden-themed books and read them all year long (this list has some amazing titles, as does this one). 

Focus on your child’s passion and let them do some leading. What is their favorite thing to eat? Grow that! And don’t forget the very little ones.  Just being alongside you in the garden is enough to feed their interest for the coming years as their abilities allow them to participate more and more. It’s never too early to start!

Above all else, get outside, nurture, and be nurtured. 

Little hands love new textures and gardens provide all that and more!

Do you garden with your kids?

About the author

Jackie grew up in central Pennsylvania but is currently enjoying island life in the Salish Sea with her two teens, a pre-schooler, and identical twin baby girls. She specializes in soul-centered outdoor elopements on wild pieces of Earth, as well as soulful, nostalgic, and cozy storytelling photography for families wishing to reconnect with the Earth and with each other.

Jackie is a former forest preschool teacher with a Ph.D. in developmental psychology who whole-heartedly believes that Reginald Horace Blythe was right when uttering the words “Mud is the most poetical thing in the world,” and loves to spend her time in the thick of nature, usually with bare feet. Her greenhouse is her happy place. She also believes that children are big philosophers in little bodies and that we would all be better off walking through life as they do, with our eyes, ears, and hearts open to it all. To that end, she wishes to share photography as a means to live more fully and intentionally in each moment and in nature. Mostly, she just wants her children to grow up with a sense of wonder, to wander, and to have a strong passion for protecting this planet.

You can find more from Jackie in the following locations:
Instagram: @raising_little_naturalists
Website: Wild Women Wandering
RWMC posts: Jackleen Leed

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Nature books that inspire adventure

Now that you know many wonderful ways to use your public library for outdoor adventuring, let’s highlight some of the best nature books for going on outdoor adventures. In this post, we’ll delve into a handpicked selection of the best 25+ nature books for kids that are tailor-made to ignite the spirit of adventure and foster a deep appreciation for the great outdoors.

These literary companions aren’t just meant to be read – they’re designed to inspire adventure and provide valuable insights, fascinating facts, and imaginative tales that will make every step feel like a page turned in real life. These books can be used to prepare for an adventure or to take along with you to your outdoor activities to enhance nature appreciation and play.

Whether our kids are preparing to try a new outdoor activity, or they are getting excited for an adventure tradition, books can bring joy and fun to the experience. Books can give kids a chance to view an experience from the outside looking in. They can help a child explore how they might feel or act in the situation. Through the lens of the characters, our kids can imagine themselves solving problems, exploring, or jumping in water in similar situations.

Where to find the recommended books

Of course, I love public libraries and will always support them by checking out books. However, if you’d like to purchase any of these recommendations, this post contains affiliate links, so your purchase helps RWMC earn a tiny commission (with no extra cost to you), which our small business really appreciates! Or finally, if you would like to support independent and local bookstores by buying these books, we recommend Bookshop!

Best nature books for spring & summer outdoor adventures

In this post, I have gathered some of the best books that highlight outdoor adventures to be done in the spring and summer. We are enjoying the warm weather and all the unique experiences we can have as a family during this time of year.

I love these books because they are beautifully made and capture exactly what we want our kids to see and experience on our outdoor adventures. There are so many different climates, situations, locations, etc., that nature books can highlight. I have compiled a wide variety of those.

I have also chosen these books because they cover a wide variety of attitudes, emotions, and approaches to nature adventures. There are board books for babies, early chapter and non-fiction books for older kids, and picture books for all. There is problem-solving, appreciation and celebration, sensory processing, and fun.

And finally, there is inclusion. If we want kids with many different identities to enjoy the outdoors, they must be able to see someone like them enjoying it as well. This opens a world of possibilities and thrills they might not have connected with otherwise. 

How to use these nature books

Before an adventure (preparing for an adventure)

Use these books leading up to your adventure to prepare and enhance! Start reading the selected books with your kids in the weeks leading up to your planned outdoor adventure. Make it a family activity by setting aside dedicated reading time. Encourage discussions about the topics covered in the books, and let your kids ask questions and share their thoughts. This shared exploration will build excitement and anticipation for the upcoming outdoor adventure.

When we take kids to an outdoor adventure they have never experienced before, we want to prepare them to know what to expect. Just as you might pretend-play going to the doctor with your kids, you can read books to help kids imagine the experience. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall can help calm your child’s nerves before swimming. And This Beach is Loud! by Samantha Cotterill can help give you and your child some calming tips when sensory overload threatens to derail an adventure. With tools and examples found in these nature books, our kids can feel confident in themselves as they head out to a new adventure. 

During an adventure

Bring the books onto your adventure so your kids can read them on the long drive, while taking a break for lunch, or relaxing outdoors. Give your kids one of these books when they have some downtime on an adventure, and simply observe how they might use the world around them to build off of the story.

During the actual outdoor adventure, encourage your kids to reference the books they’ve read whenever they come across a plant, animal, or landmark they recognize. Discuss the real-world connections between what they’ve learned from the books and what they’re experiencing firsthand. Engage in conversations about the environment, ecosystems, and conservation based on the themes explored in the books.

Incorporate activities and challenges inspired by the books into your outdoor adventure plans. For example, if you’ve read about tracking animals in the wild, make it a game to identify animal tracks during the hike. If a story mentioned building a shelter, try constructing a simple one together during your camping trip. These interactive experiences will make the adventure feel like a real-life extension of the books and encourage hands-on learning.

After the adventure

After the adventure, set aside time to reflect on the experience together. Have your kids write or draw in their journals, documenting the things they discovered, the challenges they overcame, and the moments of awe and wonder they experienced. This reflection process reinforces the lessons learned from the books and helps cement their newfound appreciation for nature.

Nature books for kids of all ages

There are many picture books, some board books, and some early chapter books. Whether your kids are pre-readers, new readers, or venturing into books all on their own, there is something for everyone on this list. Besides, the research shows that reading out loud with kids of ALL ages is beneficial to their retention.

Toddlers and preschoolers

For the youngest adventurers, I’ve included some beautifully illustrated picture books that showcase the diversity of nature. When reading these books with your little ones, point out animals, plants, and landscapes in the pictures, sparking their curiosity and vocabulary. You can also engage with the book through tactile experiences like touching leaves or feeling textures. Let them mimic animal sounds or movements mentioned in the book, encouraging playful learning.

Elementary school age 

For elementary school kids, I’ve included some books that dive deeper into specific nature-related topics like rocks, weather, or animal behavior. If they want to go beyond the book, have them research the ecosystem of the adventure site, making them feel like junior naturalists. Feel free to also utilize beginner-friendly field guides that focus on local wildlife, trees, and insects. Teach them how to use the guide to identify species, and encourage them to make their own nature journal.

This is also a great age to start reading adventure novels set in the great outdoors. These stories can inspire imagination and creativity, while also teaching valuable lessons about teamwork, problem-solving, and environmental awareness.

25 of the best nature books for outdoor adventures

Books about national parks

1. All Aboard! National Parks by Kevin and Haily Meyers
2. The Sequoia Lives On by Joanna Cooke
3. Oliver: The Second Largest Living Thing on Earth by Josh Crute
4. National Parks of the U.S.A. by Kate Siber

There are many National Parks to explore, and these books can provide you and your kids with information about the history and the uniqueness of each one. If you are taking a road trip or flying to a National Park this summer, bring these books along to get ready. The Sequoia Lives On and Oliver both showcase the mystery and awe of trees. All Aboard! Nationals Parks is a board book and contains basic information on National Parks and National Parks of the U.S.A. is a lovely and more in-depth look at each park. 

Books about camping

1. Fatima’s Great Outdoors by Ambreen Tariq
2. The Camping Trip by Jennifer K. Mann
3. C is for Camping by Greg Paprocki

All three of these books can help you are your kids prepare for a camping trip. Camping requires a lot of arrangements, and these books will give your kids the chance to gather and pack their own gear and supplies, as well as prime them for the things they can help with and do once you are at the site. They also highlight the many fun things they might do on the camping trip- like hiking and making s’mores.   

Books about hiking

1. Cece Loves Science and Adventure by Kimberly Derting and Shelli R Johannes
2. Hike by Pete Oswald
3. The Hike by Alison Farrell

We hike weekly with our friends, and each of my kids finds something different to enjoy on these adventures. We can be on a trail for hours and only travel one mile because of the many climbing, stick-collecting, and building stops we make. Other times, we can summit a hike and feel so accomplished as we take in the beauty. These books showcase the wonderful experience of heading outdoors and starting and stopping along a path in order to see the interesting things around you. 

Books about visiting the beach and swimming

1. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
2. The Whale in My Swimming Pool by Joyce Wan
3. Our Pool by Lucy Ruth Cummins
4. Bluey: The Beach
5. This Beach is Loud! by Samantha Cotterill
6. Day at the Beach by Tom Booth

Swimming and heading to the beach are great group and family outings, and each of these books celebrates the joy and confidence that kids can find through water play. Our Pool encapsulates an exciting summer day spent at the pool with games and snacks, and all-around fun. All the other books present problem-solving scenarios for kids to learn from, prepare, and even laugh through with imagination. Every book here would be an entertaining addition to your pool or beach trip.   

Books about collecting and observing bugs, animals, natural objects

1. Look What I Found in the Woods by Moira Butterfield
2. Hank’s Big Day by Evan Kuhlman
3. Howl Like a Wolf by Kathleen Yale
4. Billy Loves Birds by Jess French
5. What’s in Your Pocket by Heather L. Montgomery
6. The Bug Collector by Alex G. Griffiths
7. Zoey and Sassafras by Asia Citro

Do your kids love to come home with pockets full of rocks or watch bugs in the yard? Do they know a lot about different animals or want to keep journals of all the things they learn? Any of these books would thrill your kids! 

Each of these books help kids know how to safely, ethically, and interestingly connect to the living world around them. Look What I Found is a series, and I love that there are non-fiction and seek-and-find pages mixed into the story. Zoey and Sassafras is an early chapter book series that mixes scientific facts and processes with mythical creatures living around Zoey’s house. Howl Like a Wolf even encourages kids to act like animals through games as they learn about animal behaviors.   

Books about exploring different environments (series)

1. Over and Under the Canyon by Kate Messner
2. Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner
3. Over and Under the Rainforest by Kate Messner
4. Over and Under the Waves by Kate Messner
5. Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner

This series highlights multiple environments, from your own backyard garden to the rainforest. The books draw specific attention to sights and sounds above the water or below the dirt of a canyon. Find the book that best fits the environment you will be visiting to help kids familiarize themselves with the unique things they might see on your adventure. 

Nature books enhance adventures

Just as important as gathering all the gear for an adventure is enhancing our kids’ imagination *on* the adventure. If we read books about swimming at a pool or the beach, our kids can imagine themselves there as well. They will have a well-rounded picture of what they could or want to experience. When we read with our kids, we are encouraging their imagination, inspiring creativity, eliminating some apprehension, and helping them prepare for getting outside and exploring. 

I have seen firsthand how reading has prepared my kids for our outdoor activities and adventures. I’ve watched them reenact or extend the story from a book we’ve read while they are outdoors, which is just amazing to see! After reading The Camping Trip by Jennifer K. Mann, we went on a nature trail with friends. My toddler and her friends built pretend fires and “warmed” themselves. And the older siblings dragged logs together to build forts or bed platforms. The information from the story I had read them combined with their own imaginative play led to hours of entertainment and cross-age playtime. They engaged in cooperative and imaginative play that wonderfully included everyone. This led to a more immersive outdoor experience because they were using the nature around them to make the game possible.  

How will you use these nature books?

About the author

Emily and her family have moved across the US multiple times, and the best things about each state have been the outdoor adventures and the public libraries! Now living in Utah, Emily has continued her love for both. She explores both mountain and city outdoor spaces weekly with her three kids and friends and attends library story times, as well as leads a local story time. Emily has a passion for children’s literature. She uses books to educate, promote inclusion, understanding, and justice, and inspire adventure and creativity. Emily loves how reading and being outdoors overlap in so many exciting ways!

You can find Emily online in the following locations:
Instagram: @inclusivelibrary
RWMC Posts: Emily Liebel

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Fall leaf fun for kids

Fall arrives every year and demands our attention and awe with a beautiful display of colorful leaves. Children are particularly drawn to the vibrant colors of individual leaves and the tempting piles of leaves that can be found this time of year. The colors, sizes, and shapes ignite their imagination. Tap into this fascination and help your little nature explorers discover the magic of fall leaves.

Do you need some ideas on how to have fun with fall leaves with your kids? We’ve got you covered. This post is filled with clever craft ideas, science experiments, books, jokes, and more all about LEAVES! 

Fall leaf crafts for kids

One great thing about fall leaves is that there is virtually an endless supply of them! And they’re completely free. That’s right as the beautifully colored leaves fall from the trees, you can gather them right on up and get your craft on with your kids.

There are so many fun fall leaf crafts to do and make with kids. We’ve included a few crafts below, but don’t stop with this list. Let your children’s imaginations run wild and find new and exciting ways to create fall leaves crafts and have fall leaf fun with kids.

Photo credit: @sara_mccarty

1. Leaf crown

Foster some creative play with fall leaf crowns. There are a few simple ways to make fall leaf crowns and because most fall leaves have varying shapes and colors, the crowns are bound to be absolutely beautiful.

Option 1: Upcycle a paper bag or scrap paper and cut a 3-5 inch wide strip in a length that will fit around your child’s head. If your paper isn’t long enough to fit around your child’s head, just cut as many as you need and tape, staple or glue them together to make the right length. Once you have the right length, glue or tape it together to create a paper crown. Then it is time to add all the beautiful leaves you collected. There is no wrong way to decorate these crowns with leaves. We used a stapler to adhere the leaves on the crowns featured in the photo above. Line up the leaves, tuck the bottoms/stems under the crown, and staple to secure! So easy, even kids can do it!

Option 2: Use duct tape to create a crown. To do this, you simply cut the duct tape in the length you need to fit around your child’s head with an inch or two extra to stick it together at the end. Lay it flat on your work surface, sticky side up. Help your child lay their fall leaves on the sticky tape, being careful not to let the tape stick to itself. Make sure to not stick leaves too close to the ends of the tape. Once your child is happy with the number of leaves, take match up the sticky ends of the tape, with the leaves on the outside of the crown.

Photo credit: @unlocking.fun

2. Colorful leaf fox tail

Another fun way to encourage pretend outdoor play is by making a leaf fox tail (pictured above). Our friends at @unlocking.fun say you simply need leaves, some cardboard (upcycling a paper bag would work too), white paint, and string.

To make the fox tail shape, cut the cardboard in the shape you want. Then, paint the tip white, and then glue or tape leaves over the rest of the tail-shaped cardboard. Once it is dried, help your child add a string to the top of the tail and then tie it loosely around your child’s waist.

Photo credit: @discoverwildlearning

3. Leaf dipping with beeswax

Dipping your fall leaves into beeswax is a wonderful way to preserve the colors of fall leaves. All you need is some plain beeswax, a way to melt it, some leaves to dip into it, and a place to let the leaves dry. It really is that easy, though it is also a bit messy when doing it with children, so prepare for a mess. Let the leaves dry on a large piece of wax paper to catch all the drippings. A nice thin coat should work just fine! 

4. Fall leaf wall hanging

Need something to do with your preserved beeswax leaves? Or maybe you just have a ton of fall leaves scattered around your nature shelf or kitchen table. Make a fall leaf wall hanging with them! This is a beautiful way to keep them off the table and shelves, while also displaying them for all to see and admire.

All to need to do to make a wall hanging is to attach your leaves to a piece of string or twine. You can hang them all at various lengths from a longer branch or tie them all together and attach to a pinecone. Or, you could even thread them and make a colorful leaf garland for the mantle. If you preserve your leaves in beeswax, your wall hanging will last a long time. If you prefer to create it without preserving them, it will still last a couple of weeks.

5. Painted leaves and funny face leaves

Painting leaves is a neat way to use up all the fall leaves you collect, while also creating fun holiday-themed decorations. You can create ghosts and pumpkins with ease and oak leaves make excellent Christmas trees and reindeer. These painted fall leaves make excellent decorations and even a fun annual activity to add to your holiday decor.

You could also make funny faces on your leaves. Add expressions with paint or use stickers or googly eyes. Funny face leaves are so much fun to make and display. They could even be made into gifts! Paint, markers, cut-up leaves, googly eyes, crayons, construction paper, and pretty much any other craft supply you can think of would be perfect for creating these funny face fall leaves with kids.

6. Leaf masks

Leaf masks are another way to have fun with fall leaves. The masks can be as simple or as complicated as your children desire. Search for big leaves and simply cut eye holes into them and suddenly your child is camouflaged and can hide in plain sight. You could also use a variety of fall leaves to create elaborate masks with your kids. Create a mask shape with cardboard or a paper bag and then let your children glue the leaves on to create whimsical leaf masks.

7. Leaf confetti

Need something to keep little hands busy? Or are you needing confetti for an upcoming party or celebration? Fall leaves are perfect for making all-natural DIY biodegradable confetti! Plus, it is so very easy!

Hand your kids some dry fall leaves, scissors, and a hand-held hole punch. Let them cut up and punch holes in the leaves to their heart’s content. If you have decorative edge scissors, kids can experiment with how it makes the leaf confetti look too. This is a wonderful way to enjoy throwing confetti, but without using plastics and glitter, which are harmful to our planet and are typically found in store-bought confetti.

8. Pressed leaves

A lot of the fall leaves kids collect quickly begin to dry and curl at the edges. An easy way to prolong the life of a fall leaf is to press it. If you have a flower or leaf press, use it. Sticking the leaves in the pages of a book will do pretty much the same thing. Pro tip: If you use a book, be sure to put a piece of paper between the leaves and the book pages to protect the book. If the leaves were not entirely dry before being placed in the book, you may find unwanted mold.

9. Outdoor leaf art

While you are out exploring your neighborhood or local trail, gather some leaves with your kids. Once you have a few (or a ton), use them to create a work of art on the ground near where you found all the leaves. Make a heart, spiral, funny face, maze, a blob, a line, a giant number (for how old they are), or anything else you and your child can think up. Not only will your artwork brighten someone’s day, but the supplies were literally collected right there so cleanup is not required.

Photo credit: @getoutsidecapecod

10. Leaf animals and people

Ever heard of the book Leaf Man by Lois Elhert? The leaf art in this book is so wonderful and so much fun to try and create yourself. Creating leaf people and animals is a fun way to utilize fall leaves, while also incorporating family reading time. Bring the book outside and read it under a color fall tree and then collect some leaves to create your own leaf animals and people. You can try to recreate some of the scenes in the book or make up your own story. 

11. Leaf lantern

With it getting dark earlier and the ground covered in fall leaves, there is no better time to make a fall leaf lantern with your kids. Check out this leaf lantern tutorial on how to do it. Use your leaf lantern to go for a night hike or even just a twilight stroll around your neighborhood. Making your own lantern will make any evening outing that much more fun and magical! 

12. Leaf rubbings

This is probably an activity you are familiar with, but it is a classic for a reason. It is fun (and educational)! All you need to do to make leaf rubbings is put a piece of paper on top of a leaf and then rub the side of a crayon over the area of the leaf to make a rubbing of the leaf. You can try with different media (like oil pastels or colored pencils), experiment to see which colors work best, try out a variety of leaves, and see what several leaf rubbings look like together on one piece of paper. Once you have leaf rubbings, try identifying the leaves. Are they from a maple, oak, ash, aspen, dogwood, hawthorn? For extra credit, find the tree the leaf came from and make a bark rubbing as well! There are so many ways to take this classic activity and make it your own.

13. Leaf bookmarks

Looking for a fun craft that can also make the perfect gift? All you need is thick paper, leaves, and glue. You can use cardstock or upcycle paper bags, construction paper, or thin cardboard. Cut several rectangles in the general size of a standard bookmark (approximately 3 x 8 inches). Gather any fall leaves you want to use for your bookmarks and press them in a book or leaf press before you use them (see more on this below). Flat leaves are easier to glue down.

After you have your paper bookmarks and your pressed fall leaves, all you do is glue them onto the paper. The best way to do this is to have your kids paint the glue on. Then, glue the leaves onto the paper and then paint the glue over the top of the entire bookmark. Once they are dry, you can trim the edges or leave them how they turned out. They really do look beautiful no matter what!

If you have Modge Podge, this will work better at sealing the bookmarks to help preserve them.

Fall leaf activities for kids

Even if you are not feeling crafty, there are so many other ways to enjoy some fall leaf fun with kids! A lot of these activities are just good old-fashioned outdoor play! Here are a few of our favorite outdoor fall leaf fun ideas to get you started on your adventures.

1. Collect leaves

While out exploring nature in your local park or neighborhood simply collect some leaves. Some leaves are just begging to be admired! There are leaves that are mottled and polka-dotted. Some are so vibrant it’s crazy. Others look almost tie-dyed! You can collect one leaf that you found absolutely stunning. Or heck, collect a whole basketful! There is no wrong way to do it. Just make sure you have permission to collect them, as some parks (especially national parks) ask that you not collect any form of nature. You can put them in a collection bag, carry them or put them in a backpack to bring home and enjoy. 

2. Rake leaves for a friend or neighbor

I always like adding a few acts of service/kindness to any seasonal activity list. A great way to pay-it-forward in the fall is to rake the leaves out of the yard of a friend or neighbor. If you have an elderly or disabled neighbor or just know someone that could use a few extra hands, send the kids over with the rakes and leaf blower to help out. Not only will they feel good about helping, but they can make piles of leaves and have fun in the process (see below). Join forces with other neighborhood families and your good deed will go even faster with extra fun and laughter!

3. Jump in a leaf pile

If your kids are little, rake a pile of leaves into a safe location for them. Make sure the ground underneath is relatively soft (grass, not concrete) and remove any long/sharp twigs, sticks or branches. And then, let them jump! If your kids are older, hand them the rake and put them to work making their own piles! Raking leaves is a great gross motor activity and good for coordination.

What to take it up a notch? Here are some other ways to make leaf raking and leaf piles extra fun for kids:

• Make leaf raking a competition. Who can make the biggest pile the fastest? Ready, set, go!
• Rake a pile of leaves into shapes (a number that represents their age, the year, or the grade they’re in) and take a photo of them next to the pile from above as a keepsake.
• Take a photo of your child from above and try to capture the same shot year after year to document how much they’ve changed.
• If you’ve got a large space, use the leaves to create a maze. Add obstacles and blocks that you have to go around. Or even a circular spiral leading to a prize (a giant leaf pile).
• Make a leaf rainbow. Different trees make leaves of different colors. Sort your leaves into piles by color and then use them to make a rainbow!
• The ground is lava! Instead of one big pile of leaves, make a bunch of smaller piles and let the kids jump from pile to pile without touching empty spaces.

3. Throw leaves in the air

Throwing leaves up into the air is a fun and super simple activity. It can also make for a great photo opportunity, though it can be hard to capture* sometimes. Plus, this activity couldn’t be any more simple. Gather some leaves, or better yet use an existing pile of leaves, and toss the leaves into the air. And yes, mom, YOU need to do it, too! It’s fun and you can do it until your kids tucker out or get bored.

*Pro tip: Make sure your shutter speed is quick and your depth of field isn’t too narrow or you’ll get a bunch of blurry and out-of-focus photos. 

4. Go for a fall leaf walk

You do not have to collect leaves, craft, or do any sort of activity to enjoy fall leaves with your kids. Simply taking a fall hike is a great outdoor activity and a way to take advantage of the leaves. You can simply meader along a trail or through your neighborhood taking in the vibrant colors of the season. Hiking during the fall months is extra fun and beautiful! You usually don’t have to deal with the heat or mosquitoes, plus, there’s all that beautiful scenery to take in! 

Photo credit: @seldabelda

5. Lay under a tree

Lying under a tree is a great way to enjoy fall with your kids. This is an especially fun activity when there is a gentle breeze knocking the leaves off the trees. Watching the fall leaves flutter to the ground is relaxing. And if your child is bored or needs to burn energy, they can see how many leaves they can catch before they hit the ground.

Fall leaf science for kids

Just because we’re having some fall leaf fun, doesn’t mean we can learn while we’re at it! Fall leaf fun can be both a blast and educational. If you want to throw some learning into your fall leaf exploration, there are so many ways to do it. Here are a few easy science-based fall leaf activities you can do with your kids.

1. Parts of a leaf

Labeling the parts of a leaf is a simple way to add in some learning with your kids while out exploring nature. You can get formal and tape the leaf to a piece of paper and have your child label it, or you can simply do it verbally while you explore. Have your kids identify the stem, veins, lobes, base, and any serration. There is no wrong way to integrate this easy science activity.

2. Compare leaves to seeds

Autumn brings fall leaves, but it is also the season of acorns, conkers (horse chestnuts), pinecones, and more. Go on a hunt for both the leaves and the seeds of the trees. You can use both in crafts, plus matching them up is a great way to learn the lifecycle of a tree and learn to identify trees in your area. This science activity is fun to do year-round. If you have an abundance of conkers in your area, check out this post for some ideas on conker crafts to do with your kids. 

3. Leaf identification

Different trees create different shaped and colored leaves. A fun science-based activity is learning how to identify a tree by its leaves. In the fall, it’s even more fun because the leaves are not just green, but a variety of colors. Use nature books or apps and walk and explore and learn about trees together. Match the leaves to the tree and then identify the species. 

Photo credit: A Little Pinch of Perfection

4. Why do leaves change colors?

If you have a kid who really enjoys science experiments, this activity may be perfect for your family. A Little Pinch of Perfection provides a detailed tutorial on leaf color and chlorophyll. You really just need fall leaves, boiling water, rubbing alcohol, and a couple of jars. It’s a super easy experiment and one that will likely delight most children and their grownups.

Fall leaf jokes for kids

Everyone can use a little more laughter in their life. Here are a few funny child-friendly jokes all about fall leaves.

Q: What did one autumn leaf say to another?
A: I’m falling for you!

Q: What is the cutest of all seasons?
A: Awwwtumn!

Q: What happens when winter arrives?
A: Autumn leaves!

Q: Why do trees like to try new things each year?
A: Because every autumn they turn over a new leaf!

Q: What did autumn say to summer?
A: Make like a tree and leave!

Knock Knock
Who’s there?
Iva
Iva who?
Iva bunch of leaves that need raking!

Knock Knock
Who’s there?
Olive
Olive who?
Olive looking at the autumn leaves!

Fall leaf books for kids

Books are such a wonderful addition to any activity. Take a book with you on a nature walk and read it under a tree. Read a book while your children paint fall leaves or cut them up into tiny confetti pieces. As the seasons change, having seasonal books on hand for your children to explore and for you all to read together as a family can be fun. If you have personal libraries you are growing, here are some wonderful options all about fall leaves.

• Awesome Autumn: All Kinds of Fall Facts and Fun by Bruce Goldstone 
• The Fall of Freddie the Leaf: A Story of Life for All Ages by Leo Buscaglia 
• Fall Leaves by Loretta Holland 
• Fall Leaves: Colorful and Crunchy by Martha E. H. Rustad 
• Fletcher and the Falling Leaves by Julia Rawlinson 
• Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert 
• The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming 
• Leaves by David Ezra Stein 
• Leif and the Fall by Allison Sweet Grant 

How are you exploring fall leaves with your kids?

The post Fall Leaf Fun for Kids: Leaf Crafts, Leaf Activities, Leaf Books, and More! appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Raising a reader

Benefits of reading

You can do anything for 20 minutes!

• Pre-K to Kindergarten 10-15 minutes a day
• Grades 1-3 15-20 minutes a day
• Grades 4-5 20-30 minutes a day

Adventure chapter books for curious courageous kids

10 outdoor exploration and adventure chapter books for young readers

Kondo & Kezumi by David Goodner

Why did my seven-year-old love these books?

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

Why did my seven-year-old love this book?

The Minpins by Roald Dahl

Why did my seven-year-old love this book?

Bear Grylls Adventures by Bear Grylls

Why did my seven-year-old love this book?

S.W.I.T.C.H. by Ali Sparkes

Why did my seven-year-old love these books?

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lundgrin

Why did my seven-year-old enjoy these books?

The Boy Who Biked the World by Alastair Humphreys

Why does my seven-year-old like this book?

Alastair Humphreys’ Great Adventurers by Alastair Humphreys

Why did my seven-year-old enjoy this book?

National Parks of the USA by Kate Siber

Why did my seven-year-old enjoy this book?

Atlas Obscura for the World’s Most Adventurous Kid by Dylan Thuras & Rosemary Mosco

Why did my seven-year-old enjoy this book?

Reading strategies

Earn a Super Readers patch! 

Make reading fun

About the author

The post 10 Must Read Exploration & Adventure Chapter Books For Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Celebrating World Kindness Day outside

World Kindness Day is right around the corner and what better way to inspire kindness than to take a moment and be kind to our planet. Each year on November 13th, people all over the world come together and give kindness to each other, themselves, and the world.

World Kindness Day was designed to highlight good deeds in the community focusing on the positive power and the common thread of kindness for good. Kindness is a fundamental part of the human condition which bridges the divides of race, religion, politics, gender, and location. 

This shared movement reminds us all that compassion really does bind us together on this planet. This year, we encourage you to reach out with acts of kindness to your families, neighborhoods, communities, and to our shared planet.

Photo credit: @kidsdelmundo

20+ kid-friendly ways to be kind to nature

Of course, we want you to be kind to everyone, but since we’re all about getting kids outside and into nature, today we’re going to share some ways that you and your kids can be kind to nature and our planet. If you are in need of a little inspiration and some ideas for ways you can be kind to nature, we’re sharing over 20 ideas to get you and your kids started. And the best part…you can do a lot of these acts of kindness outside! 

1. Pick up trash

This is probably one of the easiest ways to get your kids involved in giving back to your community and nature. As you walk through your neighborhood and local parks, pick up the trash you see. Make a point to go out on a hike or walk with the sole intention of cleaning up. Kids love being helpful and it really is so beneficial to the maintenance of the natural areas we all love and enjoy. Plus, you’re setting an example of a lifelong love of their planet and instilling a personal responsibility to take care of nature.

2. Practice Leave No Trace principles

While out in nature, teach your kids Leave No Trace principles and practice them together. Unless you have specific permission to do otherwise, stay on the trail, leave nature treasures where you found them, don’t build rock cairns, don’t litter, and respect wildlife. Always leave a place better than you found it. Make sure that you also explain why you should (or should not) do things when you’re with your kids so they understand the implications of your actions and the reasoning behind them. Not sure where to start? Learn more about outdoor etiquette and manners for kids with this post.

3. Join a community cleanup

Bring your kids along and join in on a local community trash cleanup. These are almost always kid-friendly and event coordinators will be happy to find a child-safe area for you to help in the cleanup efforts. Kids love to be involved in adult projects and they are sure to be rewarded for their volunteer efforts with smiles and kind words by other adult volunteers. If you don’t have a community clean-up project in place, organize your own! Gather some friends and go out together to make a difference. 

4. Plant a tree

Give back directly, by planting a native tree or shrub in your yard. Fall is a great time to plant trees. Visit a local nursery to get the best advice on which tree to plant and how to care for it. Let your kids be part of the process from beginning to end. Not only will kids love digging the hole and helping care for the tree, but they get to watch their tree grow for years. 

Photo credit: @dimples.and.the.blonde

5. Plant a wildflower garden

The bees, butterflies, and other pollinators love native flowers. Planting (or planning if it is the wrong time of year) which flowers are beneficial to your local environment is one wonderful way to spread a little kindness to nature. Here’s a great post on planting a pollinator garden with lots of native plants and flowers.

Or, if you’re looking for a fun way to explore native wildflowers with your kids or make a fun homemade gift, you can create seed bombs with your kids (in paper or ball form): DIY Eco-friendly Plantable Seed Paper and How to Make DIY Wildflower Seed Bombs with Kids.

Photo credit: @c_l_allofus

6. Feed the birds

Winter can be rough on wildlife, especially birds. Spread some kindness by feeding the birds this fall and winter. It’s simple and even provides hours of entertainment. Make your own bird feeders and then watch the birds together. Gather some ideas on making bird feeders for your backyard birds with these two posts: Eco-friendly Bird Feeders to Make with Kids and Easy Bird Feeders to Make with Kids.

7. Compost

Anytime is a great time to dive into the world of composting and recycling your food waste scraps. Your kids will learn all about food waste, get to see how food breaks down, and less food waste ends up in the landfill. If you have space, you can create a composting station directly on the ground. If you don’t (or if you live in a city or neighborhood), this composting tumbler is a great option. When you start your compost project, make sure to include a few bins for little hands so the kids can help out, too! Mother Nature and your local landfill will gladly accept that kindness. 

Photo credit: @robbs_rule

8. Start a wormery

Kids love worms! And so does the earth. If your kids are super into worms, we have a great project that will be fun and beneficial. Creating a wormery with kids is the perfect way to learn about food scraps and food waste with kids. Your kids will learn a ton, the worms will be well-fed, and keeping food waste out of trash helps our planet. It’s a win-win kindness activity for all.

9. Join a seed swap

If you garden every year, then you know that you never (or rarely) use all the seeds you buy! Or maybe you have varieties of plants that are wonderful and you save the seeds each year. Instead of tossing the extra seeds in the trash, donate your extra seeds to your local seed swap. Seed swaps are very educational and are a great way to teach kids the difference between plant hybrids and heirlooms. Heirloom seeds are often handed down through families and might hail from other parts of the world. Take your kids with you to the swap and let them help you find the perfect seeds to plant in your garden. 

Photo credit: @kirsten_alice_photography

10. Join or start a community garden

Interested in gardening and don’t have the space or have no idea where to begin? Join a community garden! If one doesn’t exist, you could even start one. This is a great way to volunteer with your kids, learn about growing your own food, and even eat locally grown food.

11. Reduce your use of single-use plastics

Teach your children all about how single-use plastics end up in giant piles of trash and how cutting back (or eliminating) these types of plastics is beneficial to nature. Not only will your family be helping the Earth right now, but you are helping to teach the next generation a better way to care for our planet. Examples of single-use plastics are straws and plastic utensils, water bottles, baggies, single-use coffee pods, takeout containers, coffee cup lids, etc.

Learn more about how to dive into the topic of sustainability with your kids with this post: Garbage Collecting, Recycling, and Sustainability for Kids.

Photo credit: @okoshifarm

12. Volunteer with your kids

There are so many ways to be kind to nature and volunteering with your kids is one of the best. Your community likely has environmental groups, animal rescues, wildlife conservation groups, and other nature-focused organizations you can spend your time helping. If your kids are not enough to tag along, set an example by volunteering yourself and sharing your experiences with your kids. Learn more on how to volunteer with kids here.

13. Save water

The little efforts we put into our everyday activities really do add up. Teach your kids all the little ways they can reduce the amount of water they use each day. Water is a precious resource on our planet and learning how to conserve it is a kindness our Earth and everyone on it will appreciate. Some quick ideas for conserving water: turn off the water when you brush your teeth, take shorter showers, wash the dishes at least once a week by hand instead of using the dishwasher, and don’t water your lawn during the summer (or better yet replace your lawn with native plants or a wonderful garden).

14. Reduce electricity usage

As with water, reducing electricity usage is beneficial to our planet and kids can learn a lot of ways to do it. Easy ways include turning off the light when you leave a room, spending an hour each evening together in one room (or outside) with all the other lights and devices off, installing energy-efficient light bulbs, not standing with the refrigerator door open (keep warm air out), hang drying laundry, unplugging unused devices, and using natural light when possible.

Photo credit: @sage.and.summit

15. Shop at a farmer’s markets and u-pick farms

Shopping local and small is a wonderful way to spread kindness in your community and help out our planet too. When you buy food and other goodies from farmer’s markets or local farms, you are reducing the carbon footprint of the food you eat. Local food travels significantly less far from the farm to your plate. Plus, children get to interact with local farmers and food vendors, which spreads smiles and good cheer. Learn more about exploring farmer’s markets with kids here.

16. Raise and donate money to the local environmental group

Spending time raising money for a good cause is such a great way to spend time with your kids. Maybe you bake cookies and make hot chocolate together and sell them on your street corner. Rake leaves and donate the money. Host a yard sale. Maybe have your children come up with a goal and use social media to help them reach it. There are so many options out there and plenty of time to make it happen. After all, teaching and learning kindness through giving is a wonderful life lesson.

Photo credit: @jannaprange

17. Write a letter to elected officials

Get your children involved in politics and help them write letters to elected officials sharing their thoughts on ways to help our environment. Everyone likes to get mail, especially from kids, right?

18. Carpool

This time of year is incredibly busy with sports and school. Offer to carpool with another family to reduce car emissions. Not only will you be helping another family, but you are being kind to Mother Nature too.

Photo credit: @stacey.raising.boys

19. Ride your bikes

If you live close enough to school or community businesses and events, consider riding your bikes instead of taking the car. Talk to your kids about why you are opting for the bike lane and set an example by using your bike whenever you can. Biking or walking just one mile a day for a year could save 330 pounds of carbon dioxide—that’s the same as planting four trees and letting them grow for 10 years! This also helps kids be active, connect with their neighborhood and gain a sense of direction.

20. Use public transportation

Not all of us have this option, but you absolutely should give it a go if you can. Kids love riding buses, trams, subways, other public transportation options. This is especially true for little kids who require car seats in the car but get some freedom when taking public transit. Not only are you reducing emissions (for which nature thanks you), but you get to spend time with your family and give your kids an eco-friendly adventure.

21. Shop second-hand shops

There is so much clothing, toys, and other products sitting in trash dumps all over the world. Our consumer culture creates a ton of waste. Did you know that so many things you want and need can be bought second-hand? Instead of buying a bunch of new gifts for the holidays this year, buy some gently used items instead and encourage your children to do the same. Or when your children need new clothing or your family wants a new board game, puzzle, or book, go to a thrift store or used book store and see what you find. You are helping to reduce waste by reusing items and that is a kindness nature needs.

Photo credit: @jhennyloouuu

22. Use libraries and Little Free Libraries

Sharing is caring and what better way to spread kindness than through sharing books? Instead of buying new books, utilize libraries to find new-to-you books. Your local library is sure to carry the majority of books you could ever want to read and almost all of them have ways to request books they do not yet carry. Plus, Little Free Libraries are all over the place and are such a fun way to share books you are done with and grab new books too.

23. Help your kids organize a clothing and toy swap

So many of the toys we buy our kids and the clothing we wear are in great shape when we are done with them. This is especially true of children’s clothing because kids outgrow them so quickly. Your kids will love to spread kindness by helping you organize a clothing or toy swap between their friends and families. Maybe a school, your place of employment, or a local community organization would like to host or you have space in your garage or yard. It can be between friends or a whole community event. Get the kids involved with sorting and set up and then let them find some new-to-them items for all their hard work.

24. Organize a craft supply exchange

Similar to a clothing and toy swap, a craft supply exchange is a great way to be kind to nature and lets you re-distribute craft supplies you are no longer using. Your kids will love to help organize, sort, and find new craft supplies. Not only are these sorts of exchanges spreading kindness within your community, but Mother Nature will be happy the items were utilized instead of tossed in the trash.

Photo credit: @thespencersadventures

25. Set up a scrap paper station

So much paper gets thrown away that could still be put to good use. Be kind to nature by getting more use out of scrap paper. Instead of throwing out (or even recycling) perfectly good paper that’s only been used on one side, set up a scrap paper station in your home. Add all the worksheets and papers that come home with your kids from school. Add printed paper that you no longer need. If the paper has a blank side, you can still use it for lists, notes, drawing, coloring, and jotting down messages. It’ll give that paper a little extra life before going into the recycle bin.

26. Know what’s recyclable (and what’s not)

Knowing what can and cannot be recycled in your area is one of the smartest things you can do to ensure that you are diverting as much of your waste from landfills as possible, while avoiding recycling contamination through proper separation. Here are the different categories of waste. Some of these categories can be recycled and others cannot. (1) Organic waste: food waste, grass, leaves, eggshells, coffee grinds, tea bags. (2) Glass: white and colored glass. (3) Plastic/metal: plastic bottles, plastic packages, jars, cans. (4) Paper: cardboard, paper bags, paper cups, paper. (5) Toxic waste: printer ink, lightbulb, batteries, electronic waste. (6) Residue: whatever doesn’t fit the others, such as used diapers, animal waste. 

27. Spend time outside

Yup, even just spending time outside as a family in all the green spaces is being kind to nature. The more time you spend outside learning about nature and being a part of it, the more you’ll learn to respect and appreciate it. Just make sure to leave the areas you enjoy better than you found it and Mother Nature will be happy.

Kindness and nature books for kids

If you want to help inspire your children to find ways to give back and be kind to nature on their own, reading them books about kindness and the ways our planet needs help is sure to set them on the right track. Here are just a few of the many wonderful books available to get you started.

• I Choose to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle by Elizabeth Estrada
• Kindness Grows by Britta Teckentrup
• Manu The Kiwi of Kindness by Rosie Chenault
• The Mess that We Made by Michelle Lord
• Old Enough to Save the Planet by Loll Kirby
• One Earth by Eileen Spinelli
• Save the Ocean (Save the Earth) by Bethany Stahl
• You Can Change the World by Lucy Bell
• We Are the Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom

How do you plan to be kind to nature with your kids?

The post World Kindness Day: 20+ Outdoor Acts of Kindness for Kids & Ways to Be Kind to Nature appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

The case for dinosaur-obsessed kids

Before I had a child, I didn’t have a clue about dinosaurs or fossil hunting. Another confession, despite hours upon hours of reading dinosaur books and taking all things dinosaur, I am still no dinosaur expert. However, I admit that I have enjoyed learning all about them with my son. From the armored Ankylosaurus to the sea-dwelling Plesiosaurus, we have played, watched, and read about what feels like every dinosaur possible.

Interest in dinosaurs not only evokes questions and learning about history, geography and nature: a study by the University of Indiana and the University of Wisconsin reported that interest in dinosaurs as a child, leads to enhanced perseverance (definitely a skill needed when fossil hunting!), improved attention and “enhanced skills of complex thinking, such as processing information.” Turns out that your child’s dino-obsession just might be good for them! 

Benefits of fossil hunting with kids 

While I’m not expecting my son’s interest in dinosaurs to turn him into an archeologist or paleontologist, I like that it’s made him curious about the world around him (and what came before us). Fossil hunting is an activity that we use to connect the past (and his interest in dinosaurs) to the present (and our interest in nature and outdoor activities).

Fossil hunting takes patience and perseverance. This is an activity that definitely suits his characteristics; he’s calm and always interested in facts. Fossil hunting is a fun outdoor family activity with many benefits for children: improving their fine-motor skills when selecting small treasures amongst pebbles, risk management when working with tools along the coastline and under cliffs, sorting and ordering, encouraging reading about and researching what you collect, and best of all, it seems to have a positive effect on mental well-being.

In my son’s own words “Fossil hunting makes me feel calm.”

Where and when to go fossil hunting with kids?

We are very lucky to live near the Jurassic Coast in the UK. It’s a coastline where thousands of sea-dwelling creatures and dinosaur fossils have been discovered over the years. It is a UNESCO site for its outstanding value of rocks, fossils, and land formations.

But don’t worry! You don’t have to live in a UNESCO site to enjoy fossil hunting and find fossils. Every continent on earth has many fossils. And new species are yet to be discovered in all areas. So, no matter where you live, you can go fossil hunting.

From research (but sadly not personal experience), I learned that there are tons of amazing fossil hunting locations across the US. There have been hundreds of great dinosaur and ancient discoveries from Texas to Montana, Alaska to Hawaii. The Morrison Formation in the Western part of the US is a great place to be inspired, with Aptasaurus, Allosaurus and Stegosaurus fossils on display.

There are many other amazing places across the US where you can actually fossil yourself, check out this website for an array of destinations.

Fossil hunting can be done at any time of year but in the UK, the best months are between November and April. This is due to the rough seas churning up the beach and revealing more fossils. In the US, more fossils are found inland so, lucky for you, it can be an all-year-round activity!

How to get started fossil hunting with kids

Fossil hunting books for kids

The only thing you really need to get started fossil hunting with kids is an interest in the activity! If you have a dino-loving kid, the interest has already been ignited. In order to help your kids make the connection between dinosaurs of the past and the rocks they can find today, check out Fossils for Kids or Dino Dana Both will help your child identify and understand dinosaurs and how they’re still relevant (and being discovered) today. 

We set the scene for our first fossil hunting day out by using a story by Linda Skeers titled Dinosaur Lady. It’s about the historical figure, Mary Annings, who is now known as one of the most successful palaeontologists in UK history. What excited our son was that the story was based in the place we were planning to visit so he was expecting to find a whole dinosaur, just like Annings did!

Fossil hunting songs, games, and activities

On the journey to our destination, we carry on the fossil theme and, as a family, we sing along to “I’m a Palaeontologist” by They Might Be Giants. It’s a fun and catchy tune that will get kids excited about fossil hunting and the fun things they can potentially find.

We also play a game where we named a dinosaur for every letter of the alphabet. I warn you this gets pretty tricky at N and O but we had help from our 199 Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals book. 

Dinosaur museums

In order to give your child a better understanding of what they are looking for and how cool fossil hunting is, consider taking them to a local, child-friendly dinosaur museum. We are lucky since where we fossil hunt, there is a small museum set up by a local man who started fossil hunting at the age of 6 and now, 50 years on, he has a great collection of fossils including a whole Pliosaur and an Ichthyosaur. Our son was very inspired by The Etches Museum and was definitely in the mood to find his own fossils once we left.

There are loads of museums around the world with great collections of fossils and dinosaur bones. If you’re lucky enough to be near any of these places, they were listed as the 10 best Dinosaur Museums in the world by www.thetravel.com:

1.  Zigong Dinosaur Museum (Zigong, China)
2. Natural History Museum (Paris, France)
3. Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Science (Brussels, Belgium)
4. Royal Tyrell Museum of Paleontology (Alberta, Canada)
5. Natural History Museum (London, England)
6. The Field Museum (Chicago, Illinois, USA)
7. Fukui Dinosaur Museum (Katsuyama, Japan)
8. Badlands Dinosaur Museum (Dickinson, North Dakota, USA)
9. Smithsonian Museum of Natural History (Washington D.C, USA)
10. National Dinosaur Museum (Canberra, Australia)

Fossil hunting gear and equipment

There’s really not a lot of gear or equipment you need when fossil hunting with kids. There are a few things that help make the experience safer and feel more legitimate for kids, though. I’ve included a list of optional fossil hunting gear below. 

Fossil Hammer – While not essential, a fossil hammer will make the fossil hunting experience more of an adventure for your child and give him/her more independence and responsibility.  Our son was very excited that he had his own fossil hammer, but of course, always make sure you talk through safety with them and supervise them while using it.

Eye Protection – If you’ll be using a hammer and smashing rocks and chipping away at stone and dirt, safety goggles are a good idea to protect their eyes from flying stone and debris. Nothing spoils fossil hunting like a piece of stone in a little eye.

Collection Tools – Another great thing to have is a little tin or a small collection bag so the children can collect and look after their own treasures. Our son also enjoyed using a small brush to clear away the dust (a paintbrush will work just fine), and a magnifying glass to inspect his findings.

What else to bring on a fossil hunting outing

That’s all the essentials tools you’ll need for fossil hunting; however, there are a few other things you should bring along on your outing. Make sure to pack and dress for the weather. A spare change of clothes is always useful whenever you’re out near the water We’ve learned this lesson the hard way – once we fossil hunted around rock pools and it was a rather soggy affair. We now take our lightweight waterproof suit whenever we’re out and about. Then again, we do live in England!

Shoes with a good grip are also recommended as some areas can be slippery under cliffs. Also, don’t forget lots of snacks and a picnic for a day trip. In the winter we always take our Kelly kettle so we can have a hot chocolate to warm up and refuel.

Where and how to look for fossils

The most important tool you need for fossil hunting is your eyes! While you can find lots of tips on where to look for fossils, fossil hunting success is largely down to luck. The longer you spend on the activity, the more chance you have of spotting some cool finds. Here are a few of the places we tend to find the most and best fossils.

Look for fossils in and at the bottom of cliffs

Look for sedimentary rock in the cliffs, so anything from sandstone to limestone or shale. On our last fossil-hunting expedition, there was slate which is composed of volcanic ash and clay. It is soft and can be flaked apart or gently tapped with the hammer, which was ideal for fossil hunting with kids. The main fossil you want to look out for in the cliffs are ammonites. But, also look out for Coprolites (dino poop) and leaf imprints. We discovered lots of imprints when splitting rocks apart and along the coastline on large rocks. Sadly, many of these rocks were way too big to take home!

Make sure that you do not hammer the cliffs, as this can cause landslides and displace large amounts of earth. Just hammer the rocks that have already fallen from the cliffs on the beach. Sometimes, when you look along the side of a rock you can see different layers of earth. This is a good sign that there might be a fossil inside. We didn’t spend too much time under the cliffs as they were constantly falling around us as we had rain the night before.

Fossil hunting in shingle and sand

When fossil hunting, we enjoy sitting down amongst the shingle and just gently moving the sand and pebbles back. This is usually when some chill-out time is needed. Some of our most successful finds have been here!

Keep a lookout for “precious jewels”, or sea glass gemstones (small pieces of different colored glass).  Occasionally, you can find semi-precious gemstones such as Rhodonite.  All of these treasures have history and we enjoy looking in our rocks and fossils book to see what they are and learning about them.

Shoreline fossil hunting adventures

During our shoreline fossil hunt, we play a game we call ‘dinosaur footprints.’ We follow behind our son, walking like dinosaurs, and whenever he turns around we have to freeze. While you’re playing, keep your eyes down and look out for black or white stone-looking objects. You will probably need to pick in the sand with your hands to find them.

When you’re at the shore, it’s also worth looking for sea snails, echinoids (fossilized sea urchins – they are quite rare), Belemnites (sea creatures similar to modern-day squids), and Crinoid stems (ancient animals related to sea urchins and starfish).

If you are unsure what you are looking for, there are loads of websites specific to certain areas that you can look up and research before leaving for your fossil hunting adventure.

The great thing about fossil hunting on the coast is that if you or your kids get bored, impatient, or tired of searching there are rock pools and the sea to splash in and explore, too! Activities on the beach are endless, we love making rock towers (but remember to put rocks back when you leave), and why not have a sandcastle competition or look for wildlife in a rock pool.

Sorting and displaying your treasures

One of our favorite parts of fossil hunting is coming back home and seeing all the treasures we found. We put our fossils into a collection box and have even made a little resin display for them. Hobie loves taking his collection to school for show and tell and even gets them out sometimes when playing with his dinosaurs.

Fossil fun for the whole family

Fossil hunting is a great activity for all the whole family. We always come back from our fossil hunting adventures invigorated by the fresh air, with a good feeling of tiredness from walking and playing. We go home feeling a sense of achievement and with a tin full of historical, educational, free goodies!

I hope this post has inspired you to get outside and see what fossils you can find in your area. We hope to see you out fossil hunting sometime soon!

Are your kids into dinosaurs?
Have you ever gone fossil hunting?

About the author

Hannah Martin has worked as a PE Teacher in the UK for 15 years. She has always loved being active outdoors. However, she discovered a new passion for nature and appreciating the environment when she had her son Hobie (now 5 years old). Hannah and Hobie’s vision is to inspire parents to spend time doing fun, creative, nature activities outdoors with their children; no matter where they live and whatever the weather. They believe spending time together outdoors as a family will encourage future generations to love and care for the world, wildlife, and environment.

Find more from Hannah (and Hobie) in the following locations:
Instagram: @hobies_nature_club
Website: hobiesnatureclub.co.uk
YouTube channel: Hobie’s Nature Club

The post Tips for Fossil Hunting with Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Go out, go out I beg of you
And taste the beauty of the wild.
Behold the miracle of the earth
With all the wonder of a child.”
~ Unknown

Full moon frolics for families

A full moon occurs when the moon appears as a complete circle in the sky. We see it as a full orb because the whole of the side of the moon facing the Earth is lit up by the sun’s rays. A full moon is a beautiful sight and one that we love to acknowledge and appreciate each month. Our family celebrates each full moon with an evening of full moon frolics! It’s a tradition we started a while back and have come to love doing month after month. I’m here to help you do the same with your little moon-lovers. 

Planning an evening of full moon frolics is easy to embark on and requires as much or as little prep as you want. It can be leisurely and relaxing or it can be an educational teaching opportunity. You can spend a lot of time planning out your activities for the evening, or just wing it as you go! You can make it as elaborate or simple as you want. But no matter how you structure your evening outing with the kids, it’s sure to be fun!

Monthly moon outings

Nearly every month there is a full moon! A full moon happens roughly every 29.5 days. This is the length of time it takes for the Moon to go through one whole lunar phase cycle. Did you know that a month was originally defined to be either 29 or 30 days, to correspond with the lunar cycle? However, some of our calendar months were later padded out with extra days, so that 12 months would make up one complete 365-day solar year. Because our modern calendar isn’t quite in line with the moon’s phases, sometimes we get more than one full moon in a month. This is commonly known as a blue moon.

Since there’s a full moon every month, this means that you’ve got an amazing opportunity to create a year-round experience for your kids, month after month. Being consistent and making your full moon frolics a monthly tradition means that your kids will grow to appreciate and observe the moon. We’re raising “look at the moon” people! 

Creating special family traditions

But before we dive into how to set this all up and make your full moon evenings a reality, let’s talk about why…

Why skip a 6:30 bedtime (wait, maybe I am the only one who does that) and hit the trails during or even after the witching hour? Why stay up late and look at the moon? Why plan all these evening activities for your kids? 

Because it’s fun! Simple, but true. Families that have fun together, thrive. Consider a full moon frolic for families your invitation to be light-hearted and enjoy something beautiful and magical with your children. Something changes at dusk. Fairies become a real possibility, frogs croak louder, and wonder appears without needing any special encouragement. The evening is a magical time and a little break in your normal evening routine means your kids will think this is a very special adventure! 

Beyond fun, there are so many benefits to observing the night sky. It is science and all that jazz (insert cute winking emoji here). So don’t worry, you can write your kiddo a note to take the teacher when they skip out on their homework because the fam was busy checking out the moon. 

How to plan full moon activities for kids

Now, let’s get to the specifics so you are equipped with ideas and resources for creating evenings full of magic, laughter, and learning. Otherwise, full moon frolics will likely remain something you want to do, but don’t. This is the good stuff.

So, how on earth do you plan such a thing as an evening of full moon frolics? Does a full moon frolic just mean you step outside and look at the moon? Nope. (Well, okay, it can. But, only if you want it to be that simple.) Luckily, like most activities with kids, there’s no one right or wrong way to do things. There’s no one-size-fits-all-families option. Your family is unique. You know your kids best and what they’d like to do and be interested in. And again, you can plan as many things as you can (or just a few). 

But, let’s say you want to go all in and do this thing one hundred percent. Go big or go home, right? Here is how you do that.

1. Note the dates

A quick internet search will give your the dates of the full moon each month. This will help you plan your evening outing on/near a full moon. We try to schedule our full moon frolics on the date of the full moon, but we’re usually flexible (due to weather/clouds, etc.). Jot down all the dates of the full moon on your calendar, which will help you plan. Once it’s on your calendar, it’ll be easier to remember to celebrate. 

2. Pick a spot

You need to know where you can see the moon. A quick google search can tell you where and when the moon will rise in your area. Sometimes a full moon shows up in the middle of the night or the wee hours of the morning, don’t worry about that. Just go when you know it can be seen (the day before the full moon, or even a couple of days after it peaks, is just fine).

We chose a spot a little ways away from our house. Our family enjoys having a brief hike over to where we will make observations. The evening hike just adds to the fun and makes the outing seem a little more special than staying in our own backyard (but that’s also totally fine, especially for families with small children). 

3. Learn some basic moon facts

Equipping yourself with some simple knowledge about the moon is helpful when making observations and enjoying your family full moon frolic. With an evening of activities centered around the full moon, your kids are sure to ask a lot of questions about the phases of the moon, the color, the size, and the shapes. You’ll want to know that the moon has eight phases and the same “face” or side of the moon is illuminated during each observable phase. My kids find it most interesting that a new moon is not observable (as in, it is the phase when we cannot see the moon from Earth). You don’t have to know all the facts, though. Learning about something together with your kids is always encouraged. 

4. Bring snacks

We also love having food at our frolics. You can keep it simple and bring simple snacks (fruits, veggies, chips, pretzels, etc.), or you can decide to have an entire campfire meal! We’ve done both and neither disappoints. Any food enjoyed outside under the light of the moon is delicious!

If you are feeling up to it, prepare a moon-themed snack to enjoy while you gaze up at the moon on your frolic. Moon pies or moon cheese, for example. Or cut your fruit (banana or kiwi slices) into phases of the moon shapes. During the warmer months, moon-shaped cookies (or any cookies) are perfect, and during cooler months bring some hot chocolate. 

5. Grab some books 

Taking books with you on your moonlight adventure is the perfect way to learn more about the moon while sitting under it. Plus, if you plan on eating a snack or stopping to sit and watch the moon, it gives your family (think younger kids) something to do while they sit. Below are some of my family’s favorite moon-themed books to get you started.

Best moon books for kids

Books somehow always make it into our full moon frolics. There are so many amazing books and resources out there when it comes to this. Here are some of our personal favorites. Often we read these around a fire or while we are enjoying our snack during our frolic. You can check these out from your local library or you may also find many of these titles on thriftbooks at lower prices than buying them new. 

Fiction

• Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me by Eric Carle
• Max and the Tag-Along Moon by Floyd Cooper
• Hello, Harvest Moon by Ralph Fletcher
• A Big Mooncake for Little Star, by Grace Lin
• A Moon of My Own by Jennifer Rustgi
• By the Light of the Harvest Moon by Harriet Ziefert
• Full Moon Stories: Thirteen Native American Legends by Eagle Walking Turtle
• Maple Moon by Connie Crook
• Owl Moon by Jane Yolen

Non-Fiction

• The Moon Book by Gail Gibbons
• The Moon Seems to Change by Franklyn Mansfield Branley
• What the Moon is Like by Franklyn Mansfield Branley

Activities to do during a full moon frolic

One of the most spectacular benefits of doing regular full moon frolics is noticing seasonal changes. As you go out each month, you and your family will begin to take note of how things change outside around you through the seasons. Here are some fun ways to enjoy the various changes in nature during each frolic throughout the year.

Summer full moon activities

• Bring a mason jar and lid with holes poked in it to catch fireflies. Of course, if you do not have fireflies in your area, you can listen and watch for the creatures that you have around you (frogs, crickets, cicadas, etc.).
• Collect flowers to press (be sure and check the area you are in for permission to ethically collect wildflowers).
• Bring a telescope and observe the constellations in your area.

Autumn full moon activities

• Walk silently and listen to the changing creature sounds. What do you hear that you didn’t hear during the summer (or what don’t you hear)?
• Make notes about birds you see.
• Paint the colors of the leaves in the moonlight.
• Make a campfire. 

Winter full moon activities

• Bring food for the birds.
• Bring a ruler to measure the snowfall.
• Search for scat and tracks.

Spring full moon activities

• Observe moths.
• Go to a pond for the frolic, and find frog and toad spawn.
• Identify trees by their buds.

Activities based on the name of the moon

A quick search will also help you find out the name of each full moon. For example, a few types of moon names are Harvest Moon (fall), Strawberry Moon (June), Wolf Moon (January). Each full moon has a name and a story behind it. Consider telling the story of the reason behind the moon name to your kids each month. Or plan activities and food that corresponds to each moon name (all strawberry-flavored treats for the Strawberry Moon, a scavenger hunt for the Hunter’s Moon, etc.). 

Photo Credit: Molly Pratt

Connection and conversation with kids

One of the reasons I personally enjoy an evening of full moon frolics with my kids is the connection it builds with our family. We have these monthly walks in the woods, at dusk or later, where we have a goal and we have a topic of conversation. In truth, this will work for the oldest kiddos in your home as well as the babies. You can make your frolics simple, like a walk through your neighborhood. Evening walks open us up; there is something unassuming about strolling at dusk or in the moonlight. Guards down, you may find your conversation drifts from the moon to your teen’s concerns at school and questions about life. 

If you want to keep focused on the moon, our family likes to choose one picture book and one non-fiction book or general facts about the moon. We learn the common name based on the Farmer’s Almanac as well as some of the names given by Indigenous People. The full moon connects us to the past, to religion, to customs, seasons, nature, the beyond, and so much more. 

We didn’t realize we were making memories, we were just having fun.” -Unknown 

Everyone will remember these full moon frolics

Making memories is the best part of this amazing activity. Full moon frolics can become a family tradition – a monthly adventure that everyone looks forward to. Some months you may go all out and other months you may keep it simple. No matter what, taking a frolic together under a full moon will create fond memories for all!

If you are looking for a more in-depth guide, I created a resource that includes activities, recipes, book suggestions, music, and more for every full moon. It is a Charlotte Mason-inspired approach to moon frolics and includes some faith-based content. 

When are you headed out on a full moon frolic?

About the author

SarahRuth is a homeschooling mother of three boys. She was raised in cities across the East coast, but now resides in the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia where her husband grew up. Passionate about inspiring others to shift from the status quo of Western indoor life, she launched a local Free Forest School chapter in 2017. Her family clocked over 2k hours outdoors in 2019 and believes that outside time as a family is vital to a joy-filled life. She collects books, stray children, and as much coffee as her body will permit. When not foraging, chasing waterfalls, or camping with her crew, you can find SarahRuth crossing the globe from her laptop, teaching English full time online! She has two bachelor’s degrees in Education and is passionate about teaching children to love learning through outdoor adventures.

You can find more from SarahRuth in the following online locations:
Instagram: @kindle_togetherness
RWMC posts: SarahRuth 

The post Full Moon Frolics: Evening Moon Activities for Families appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

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“I do not want to be a fly, I want to be a worm!” — Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Ways to explore worms with children

That magic moment when a child finds a worm for the first time is not something you soon forget. Maybe your child shrieked and ran away, leaving behind a fun story to tell them later in life. But, if your children are anything like mine, they will be excited and joyful at finding worms.

And if your child is the shrieker, have no fear. Exploring worms with kids isn’t all about digging for them and handling them. In fact, you can learn all about worms without ever touching one. So strap on your outdoor play shoes and let’s dive into easy ways to explore worms with your children.

Where to find worms

When you go on a worm hunt, one of the very first things you need to know is where to find these elusive creatures. This is not always an easy feat. But with a little determination and some ideas on where to look, you have a high chance of being successful. And remember, if at first, you don’t succeed, dig, dig again.

Dig in wet dirt

Wet dirt (not mud) is one of the best places to begin looking for worms with kids. Not only do children enjoy digging in the dirt, but they are more likely to find worms in wet dirt. We always like to start by digging under rain gutters or near water faucets. These areas are usually a bit wetter than the rest of the yard and make great starting points.

Other places to dig with a high chance of success are in a garden or near a green lawn. These areas are usually watered often and thus make great homes for worms.

Look under large rocks/stepping stones

If you’ve ever turned over large rocks you know it is a hub for all dirt-loving critters. If you have access and permission, gently lifting large rocks or stepping stones is another great place to search for worms with kids. Not only are you likely to find worms, but there is a host of so many other tiny critters living in these spaces to explore, identify, and learn about.

Watch the sidewalks

If you’ve ever gone for a walk in the rain or immediately after a rainstorm, you’ve surely come across one or more worms resting on the cement. In fact, when it rains a lot, worms surface because the raindrop vibrations feel like predator vibrations. In other words, they are running away from a threat that does not exist. So if digging in the dirt and flipping over rocks aren’t options, just wait until the next rainstorm and head on outside for a walk. The worms are bound to make an appearance and give your children a chance to see and explore them.

Sometimes the rain will wash them into the street, driveways or sidewalks. We love “saving the worms” when they’re trapped on concrete and gently put them back in the grass to be found another day! 

Buy them

Don’t have a good place to dig or keep coming up empty? You can buy bait worms pretty cheap at local bait and tackle shops. Take a small container home and place them in a larger bin or bowl for exploration. If you go this route, make sure to include some moist soil to keep the worms healthy.

Worm exploring safety tips

Exploring worms with kids is such a fun and easy activity. Little to no prep is needed and it can easily happen spontaneously or with a little planning. As with any living creature, it is important to know how to explore worms safely. Here are some quick tips to make sure you handle your worms as safely as possible.

• 30 minutes or less: Make sure all worms you catch are released back into the wild after about 30 minutes of exploration. However, if you still have more activities to do or just want to watch the worms some more, try to find some new worms.
• Worms are very sensitive: Do not handle them too much and always use a gentle touch.
• Keep the exploring area damp: Use a damp cloth or paper towel to set your worms on if you remove them from their habitat.
• Keep them in the shade: Make sure to handle the worms in a shady space, out of direct sunlight.
• Mist the worms often: Keep a misting spray bottle on hand and gently spray your worms often to ensure their bodies are kept moist.

Worm facts for kids

When you’re exploring worms with kids, they’re sure to be curious and ask questions. I don’t know about you, but I’m not up to speed on all my worm facts these days! So, I’ve done some of the work for you and put together this list of fun facts about worms that are sure to please inquiring little minds. Whip these facts out and your kids are sure to be wowed with your extensive knowledge! (you can thank us later)

• There are thought to be 4,400 (or more) species of earthworm.
• Earthworms have no resistance to the sun’s ultra-violet radiation, so daylight can be fatal to them.
• Worm castings (also known as vermicast) improve soil health.
• An earthworm can lose one end of its body and grow a replacement, but the worm will die if it is cut in half.
• Earthworms are attracted to one another by scent.
• There are fossilized worms in 600 million-year-old rocks – meaning worms were living in the time of dinosaurs.
• Earthworms eat a lot! They can eat about ½ to 1 times their body weight every day.
• The largest worm ever found was a South African Earthworm measuring 22 feet long, though they average closer to 6 feet long.
• Worms need moisture to live, so if their skin dries out they will die.
• Baby worms hatch out of a cocoon smaller than a grain of rice.

Worm science experiments for kids

If your kids are curious about worms, it can be even more fun to learn these facts with hands-on activities. Here are two simple worm science experiments you can do with your children.

Moist or dry?

This is a simple activity that requires a moist area and a dry area and at least one worm. You can use paper towels or dirt to create the experiment. Create one wet side and one dry side and then place your worm’s body half on the wet side and half on the dry side. Observe which way your worm travels. Does the worm prefer the moist side or the dry side?

Light or dark?

This easy experiment is very similar to the first, but this time you are testing to see if the worm prefers the light or the dark. To set up this experiment you need to create an environment with a dark side and a light side. This is explained really well on Education.com. Which way do the worms travel? Why do you think they went that way? Did they prefer light or darkness?

Worm activities for kids

If you want to extend your worm adventures and add some more learning into the mix, here are some simple and fun worm activities for kids.

Measuring the worms

When you go out on a worm hunt, bring a ruler along with you. Children love measuring things, even if they don’t understand the concept yet. And for the older kids, have them measure each worm, write down the measurement, and then compare the findings. With this simple activity, you’ve added math to your learning.

Creating a wormery

If you want to take exploring worms to the next level, consider creating a worm bin. This is a fairly simple project and your children are sure to delight in checking in on the worms and seeing how fast they eat through your food scraps. Here are some wonderful, kid-friendly tutorials for how to create a wormery with kids and creating worm farm.

Worm arts and crafts for kids

Kids love art and there is always something special about creating art projects that align with what you’ve been exploring in nature. If you want to add a little art and crafts into your worm exploring, look no further! Here are some fun worm-inspired arts and crafts for your kids to do and enjoy! 

Upcycled paper bag worm weaving

If your house is anything like mine you often find yourself with an excess of brown paper bags. Turn these paper bags into a fun worm activity in only a couple of steps.

1. Cut your paper bag. Remove the handles (these will be the worms) and cut the bottom of the bag out (this will be the worm weavery). Save the remaining large paper bag portion for a painting canvas or wrapping paper.
2. Fold the paper bag bottom in half and cut from the folded side 4-5 lines, leaving 3-4 inches uncut at the top and bottom. Voila, this is the dirt the worms will weave in.
3. Decorate your worms with markers, googly eyes, or anything else that your children want to use.
4. Add nature finds to the top of your worm weavery. This is totally optional, but it does make it seem more obvious the worms are underground.
5. Now you can grab your worms and weave them in and out of the weavery. This can be done once and displayed like art or over and over again to help improve fine motor control.

Painting with yarn worms

Painting with yarn worms is a simple project that requires only paint, yarn (or string, twine, spaghetti noodles, or anything else you can think of that is wiggly and worm-like), and paper.

After you’ve gathered supplies, simply dip the yarn into the paint and then let your children find their own way to use the yarn as a paintbrush. Children will come up with their own way of using their string-worms to paint and the resulting art will likely reflect the way they chose to paint.

Worm coloring pages

Sometimes having a coloring page to work on during family read-aloud time or whenever the mood strikes, is a simple and fun way to bring your nature learning into other aspects of your children’s lives. Here are two great options available for free.

• Earthworm coloring pages for the whole family
• Worm bubble letter coloring pages

Worm jokes for kids

Add a little laughter into your worm exploration by cracking one or all of these worm-tastic jokes. In fact, there is bound to be at least one that makes your children laugh out loud or at least sigh heavily as they bask in the worm humor.

Q: What is invisible and smells like a worm?
A: A bird fart!

Q: What reads and lives in an apple?
A: A bookworm!

Q: What does a worm do in a cornfield?
A: It goes in one ear and out the other!

Q: What do you call a worm with no teeth?
A: A gummy worm!

Q: What do worms use to leave messages?
A: Compost-it notes!

Q: What is life like for a wood worm?
A: Boring!

Q: What do you get if you cross a worm and an elephant?
A: Very big holes in your peanut garden.

Worm books for kids

Bring your worm nature study into other areas of your family life with one or more good worm-themed books. Not only are many of the following books full of worm facts, but many are funny too. Grab a book or two and head on outside to read to your children and the worms too. 

• Compost Stew by Mary McKenna Siddals
• Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin
• I Can Only Draw Worms by Will Mabbitt
• Superworm by Julia Donaldson
• Up in the Garden, Down in the Dirt
• The Worm Family Has its Picture Taken by Jennifer Frank
• This is a Book to Read with a Worm by Jodi Wheeler-Toppen
• Wonderful Worms by Linda Glaser
• Worm Loves Worm by J.J. Austrian
• Worm Weather by Jean Taft
• Yucky Worms by Vivian French

Learning about worms with kids

Exploring worms with kids is such a treat. Not only is it an easy activity that requires little to no preparation, but worms are everywhere. Under any given acre of land, there can be 250,000 to 1.5 million earthworms helping to create and maintain Earth’s soil. They are an incredibly important critter and one that is almost always easy to find. In other words, exploring worms with kids is kind of impossible to avoid, so you might as well make it fun! We hope these worm facts, worm jokes, worm activities and worm books will help! 

What is your favorite way of learning about worms with kids?

About the author

Katie lives in a tiny home on wheels and travels full-time with her two mostly wild children, tech-minded partner, two well-traveled pups, and adopted pet snails. As they wander the North American continent, Katie explores as much as possible, with a particular fondness for the adventures her family enjoys in state and national parks. When not trekking through the outdoors, Katie enjoys baking, homeschooling, consuming mochas from local coffee shops across the continent, practicing her photography skills, and soaking up as much knowledge as she can.

As an advocate for families exploring the great outdoors, Katie co-founded a Hike it Baby branch in her hometown in Northern California and tries to encourage families to get outside whenever possible. Katie has a Master’s degree in human development from the University of Missouri, Columbia, but her passion is really history and humanities (which is coincidentally what her Bachelor’s degrees are in). She currently volunteers on the Hike it Baby National team as a contributing blogger.

You can find more from Katie online in the following locations:
Instagram: @familyinwanderland
Website: www.familyinwanderland.com
Facebook: @familyinwanderland
RWMC posts: Katie Fox

The post Exploring Worms with Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

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National Let’s Laugh Day

What does it mean to celebrate Let’s Laugh Day the nature way? It means I’ve focused my brainstorming powers on finding the best ways to get your family chuckling, chortling, giggling, guffawing, loling, and laughing outside together. Everything in this post has an outdoor or nature spin on it. That’s right, the activities, jokes, puns, and books all are related to the great outdoors in some way. 

You didn’t think I forgot about making you laugh though, did you? While this post may be geared toward helping you find ways to bring laughter into your outdoor adventures, there are specific puns and jokes added especially for your reading pleasure. 

In laughter, the ‘L’ comes first,
and the rest of the letters come ‘aughter’ it.

Photo credit: Katie Fox @familyinwanderland

The benefits of laughter

Before you dive into the chuckle-filled content below, take a moment to browse through the amazing benefits of laughter. Seriously, whoever coined the adage, laughter is the best medicine, was really onto something.

1. Laughter stimulates organs

As you laugh, you naturally bring more oxygen into your body. This increased oxygen supply stimulates vital organs and increases the endorphins sent to your brain.

2. Laughing relieves stress

Beleave it or not (this is not a joke, though the nature pun is chuckle-worthy), laughter lowers your stress levels. As you laugh, your heart rate increases and as the laughter subsides, your heart rate decreases. The result is a relaxed and calm feeling. Plus, a lot happens with the endorphins and cortisol (the stress hormone) levels in your body.

3. Laughter improves immunity

Positive thoughts, such as those that cause fits of laughter, are proven to help lower stress responses in our bodies. Since stress is actually linked to lower immunity, laughter helps lower stress and boost immunity.

4. Laughing increases personal satisfaction and decreases pain

Whenever we face a difficult situation, chuckling at ourselves or laughing at what is happening can actually make the situation better. On the flip side, laughter has the ability to help our body create its own natural painkiller. So, next time you fracture a rib, just laugh until it doesn’t hurt anymore. (This last part was a joke. Don’t do that. It will hurt A LOT!)

5. Laughter strengthens relationships with others

That’s right! When we laugh with friends, families, coworkers, and even strangers, we feel more connected to them. In turn, laughter enables us to form closer relationships with those we laugh with. And this is really what National Let’s Laugh Day is all about; laughing together and creating lasting bonds with those we love. 

Photo credit: Carolyn @the.barefoot.babies

10 outdoor activities to bring out the laughter

One of the best ways to induce fits of laughter is through play and spending time together as a family. Here are ten simple ways to get your whole family holding their stomachs and laughing until it hurts while celebrating Let’s Laugh Day the nature way. 

1. Random acts of silliness

While outside or while doing routine activities, randomly begin to act silly! Skip, speak in a goofy voice, play tickle chase, jump around like a frog, roar like a lion, pretend to be a robot, or follow your child’s lead and join in on their imaginative play. Your kids will be surprised and burst out laughing! And they’ll surely follow suit, followed by even more laughter from all.

2. Outdoor dance party

Turn on a family favorite, a classic dance song, or something totally obscure and then bust out your best and silliest dance moves. Even if goofy dancing, isn’t your thing try branching out (see what I did there?) of your comfort zone and dance like no one is watching!

3. Play “make a story” while passing a ball

This game is better for older kids, but with help, younger ones can absolutely play along too. The goal is to create a silly story together as a family! The person beginning the game (or whoever is holding the ball first) creates a really silly title, then passes the ball to someone else, who then begins the story. The game continues in this fashion; whoever is holding the ball adds to the story. You can add one word, or several sentences.

Pro Tip: when the ball is passed to you, make sure to throw in something your family finds hilarious into the story.

4. Read silly books together outside

Grab a blanket, cuddle up somewhere outside, and read a hillarious book together. Books have a magical way of tapping into our emotions and make for great bonding moments! Below is a list of 12 funny nature-focused children’s books to get you started.

5. Play “the floor is lava”

Create a fun obstacle course in your yard or local park. Use what you have on hand (large pieces of cardboard, chairs, playground equipment, park benches, logs, etc.) and make sure to play along with your children! Don’t forget, you can also just randomly yell “the floor is lava” to begin the game and watch as every scrambles for something to stand on. Laugh together as you all figure out how to survive, epically fall into the lava, or find hilarious new ways to use, balance, and be outside without touching the ground.

Photo credit: Kyana Miner @blackadventuremom

6. Harness your inner child

Remember elementary school? What were your favorite games? Two easy and fun games to play with your kids are Simon Says and Red Light, Green Light. Make them silly on purpose! For instance, you can say Simon Says put your finger in your nose or make fart noises (I give you permission to use this. I know my kids would be giggling.) Or in Red Light, Green Light, pretend you can’t remember the color green and keep saying words that sound like green. The sillier you are, the more laugh-out-loud fun you’ll have together.

7. Learn a new skill together

Maybe learn to juggle together or try your hand (I mean waist) at hula hooping. Be silly. Keep trying – cactus makes perfect, right? Fail epically and laugh at yourself. Show your children that laughter is the best medicine. 

8. Watch the clouds

Find images in the clouds and make up silly stories to go along with them. Maybe you will also get lucky and see silly images too. No clouds? Don’t worry, this same activity can be done with all sorts of nature items. Go on a walk through your neighborhood or your favorite hiking trail. Find images in tree bark, tree trunk knots, boulders, tree branches, cracks in the mud, patches of grass, and more. Don’t forget to get everyone laughing will a ridiculous story about how that cloud turtle lost it’s shell and thought it was a hermit crab.

9. Roll down a hill

If you haven’t rolled down a hill as an adult, you are seriously missing out. Your body may ache more than it did when you embarked on this adventure as a child, but the aches and pains are totally worth the laughs and memories you will share with your children.

10. Outdoor charades

This is the same game as the indoor version, only done outside. Be over the top as you act out your word and don’t forget to laugh at yourself when you are struggling. Show your kids that it is okay to be awful at something and still have fun!

Photo credit: Nichole Holze @coleyraeh

25+ nature jokes and puns to share with your kids

Jokes are a sure-fire way to get people chuckling. Sometimes the laughter is because a joke was truly funny, and other times the laughter resembles a groan. This type of groan-laughter is perfect! It means the jokes you are sharing are so funny, laughter isn’t even possible. Don’t worry though, the jokes and puns below were specially curated for celebrating National Let’s Laugh Day the nature way. They are guaranteed to induce the true form of laughter and help form lasting memories and bonds between your family members.

Photo credit: @sara_mccarty

Hilarious nature jokes for kids

How do you cut a wave in half?
Use a sea saw

Why is the mushroom always invited to parties?
Because he’s a fungi

Why did the worm cross the ruler?
To become an inchworm

Why is grass so dangerous?
Because it’s full of blades

What kind of shorts do clouds wear?
Thunderwear

What is a tree’s least favorite month?
Sep-TIMBER

What type of tree fits in your hand?
A palm tree

What did the beaver say to the tree?
It’s been nice gnawing you

What kind of flower grows on your face?
Tulips

What did the limestone say to the geologist?
Don’t take me for granite

What did one volcano say to the other?
I lava you

What do you call a snowman in July?
A puddle

What do you call a bear without any teeth?
A gummy bear

What’s a tornado’s favorite game?
Twister

Why can’t pine trees sew?
They always drop their needles

What type of songs do the planets sing?
Nep-tunes!

What do you call an alligator in a vest?
An investigator!

What’s brown and sticky?
A stick

Photo credit: Chelsea Furlong @dimples.and.the.blonde

Inspirational nature-inspired puns

I lake you a lot!

I lava you!

Beleaf in yourself!

I lichen you very moss!

Lettuce do our best!

You are tree-mendous! 

I fernly beleaf in you!

I love you a lily more each day!

We make a prickly pear!

12 hilarious children’s books that are sure to make your whole family laugh

• Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing by Judi Barrett
• Du Iz Tak? by Carson Ellis
• Giraffe Problems by Jory John
• Mr. Tiger Goes Wild by Peter Brown
• Snail and Worm: Three Stories About Two Friends by Tina Kügler
• “Stand Back,” Said the Elephant, “I’m Going to Sneeze!” by Patricia Thomas
• The Terrible Plop by Ursula Dubosarsky
• The Very Impatient Caterpillar by Ross Burach
• The Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith
• This Is a Taco! by Andrew Cangelose
• Underwear! by Jenn Harney
• Unstoppable by Adam Rex

Photo credit: @umaisreading

Finally (Pine-ally)…

Now you are prepared! You have the knowledge and the skills to embark on these shenanigans with your family. I’ll leaf you with these famous words of punable wisdom…

May the forest be with you!
Leaf long and prosper!

I can’t think of any more nature puns. Canoe?

About the author

Katie lives in a tiny home on wheels and travels full-time with her two mostly wild children, tech-minded partner, two well-traveled pups, and adopted pet snail. As they wander the North American continent, Katie explores as much as possible, with a particular fondness for the adventures her family enjoys in state and national parks. When not trekking through the outdoors, Katie enjoys baking, homeschooling, consuming mochas from local coffee shops across the continent, practicing her photography skills, and soaking up as much knowledge as she can.

As an advocate for families exploring the great outdoors, Katie co-founded a Hike it Baby branch in her hometown in Northern California and tries to encourage families to get outside whenever possible. Katie has a Master’s degree in human development from the University of Missouri, Columbia, but her passion is really history and humanities (which is coincidentally what her Bachelor’s degrees are in). She currently volunteers on the Hike it Baby National team as a contributing blogger.

You can find more from Katie online in the following locations:
Instagram: @familyinwanderland
Website: www.familyinwanderland.com
Facebook: @familyinwanderland
RWMC posts: Katie Fox

The post National Let’s Laugh Day Done the Nature Way appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

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Nature books for kids

We’re huge fans of nature books around our house. If we can’t get outside, I like giving my kids the next best thing…books about the outdoors! Many nature books are filled with facts, beautiful illustrations, and lots to learn. Kids love reading them over and over, learning something, or noticing something different every time. Today, I’m sharing nine beautiful children’s picture books about nature, all from Quarto Publishers. I hope these nature books will inspire, educate and help your children develop a deep sense of love for nature and the outdoors.

Here’s a quick list of the books I’m reviewing and a link to purchase from Amazon (affiliate link). Additional info and my review of each book are below. I hope you’ll find some new reads, add some of these beautiful books to your shelves at home, give as gifts to a nature-loving kid or add to your library wishlist.

1. The Lost Book of Adventure
2. North Pole South Pole by Michael Bright
3. 50 Reasons to Love Endangered Animals
4. National Parks of the USA: Activity Book 
5. The Secret Life of Trees
6. Experiment with Outdoor Science
7. Glow in the Dark: Nature’s Light Spectacular
8. Let’s Save Our Planet: Forests
9. Encyclopedia of Insects

The Lost Book of Adventure: from the notebooks of the Unknown

For the ultimate guide to outdoor adventuring, this book is the best and most beautiful guide to inspire kids to get outside that we’ve seen. It has lovely illustrations, this would make a great coffee table book to pore over and inspire kids to get out and explore. Adults, teenagers and young kids all enjoy this book on different levels. The illustrations are really beautiful and very detailed with plenty of scope for many, many discussions on various adventures and skills you need to survive them. We love this book it’s one we shall treasure, refer to and use for a very long time. 

North Pole South Pole by Michael Bright

Beginning with the North Pole, this lovely children’s book introduces the geography and climate of the Arctic. This book is great for helping with homework. It’s also a great resource for kids to research how climate change is affecting the sea and why ice is so important to walruses and polar bears. The best thing about the book is that you flip it over and you arrive in the South Pole… The famous race to reach the Pole in 1911 is retold and readers will discover why the orca is the ultimate polar predator. The icebergs, sub-glacial lakes, and ice chimneys of the Antarctic are brought to life with beautiful illustrations which makes it a lovely read for kids of all ages.

50 Reasons To Love Endangered Animals

50 Reasons To Love Endangered Animals is such a great book for explaining why we need to love and care for endangered animals! The book explains show there are so many reasons to love animals: lions have magnificent shaggy manes, penguins go tobogganing on their tummies, bears wiggle and dance as they scratch, whales sing songs, and elephants can feel sadness. But the book explains that all the animals in this book especially need our love – now more than ever. It’s very accessible for young readers making complicated environmental topics easier to understand. It also gives children a variety of ways they can help protect endangered animals, which gives them a sense of empowerment.  I believe this book would be a great classroom reader – it’s a vital resource for younger children, the illustrations are absolutely beautiful, some of the loveliest animal images I’ve come across in children’s literature which really does help to engage even younger children on environmental issues in the book.

National Parks of the USA: Activity Book 

I don’t live in the US, but that certainly doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy and appreciate this beautiful book. Many moons ago, I traveled to some of America’s most beautiful National Parks and would have loved this activity book. If you’re planning a road trip to any of the National Parks – this would be such a great keepsake. Take a tour of America’s great outdoors and discover the beauty and diversity of majestic national parks. The book is packed with maps and fascinating facts about the 21 different US National Parks. You can explore Florida’s Everglades, travel down the white water rapids of the Grand Canyon, trek across the deserts of Death Valley, and scale the soaring summits of the Rocky Mountains! This book brings you up close to nature’s greatest adventures. 

The Secret Life of Trees

Did you know that trees can talk to each other? Or that the oldest living thing on the planet is a tree? Let the ancient and mysterious Oakheart, the oldest and wisest tree in the forest, lead you through this beautiful guide to trees. Oakheart knows all the trees’ secrets, and he’s going to share them with you! This collection of stories about trees will inspire you to look after the world around you. The stories in this book are so sweet and adorable. They each provide fun and engaging tree/forest facts that inspire curiosity and wonder in kids. They’ll impart a love of nature, and inspire you to look after the world around you. The illustrations are so magical and whimsical. This is a book that we’ll read over and over. 

Experiment with Outdoor Science

Are you looking for ways to learn while also enjoying the great outdoors? Look no further! This book is great for the kid that loves science or is always asking “why?” The book is filled with hands-on outdoor science projects and activities for kids will help them explore and understand the world around them. The Experiment with Outdoor Science book shows that science isn’t limited to the classroom – it can be found out in the garden or in the kitchen step-by-step instructions with an emphasis on fun, achievable experiments to give kids hands-on experiences. The science behind each experiment is explained so that kids can understand how the science happens!

Glow in the Dark: Nature’s Light Spectacular 

Nature’s Light Spectacular by Kay Flint (with colorful fun drawings by Cornelia Li) is a wonderful book that teaches children to appreciate the wonders of the world by examining one of the many phenomena of lights. This is such an interesting topic for a children’s book and really beautifully done. This book teaches kids (and adults) about lots of different light phenomena that I wasn’t even aware of! Examples include a firework of meteor showers, solar eclipses, double rainbows, super blood moon, and brocken spectre. Have you ever heard or seen any of those? It also discusses volcano lightning, polar lights, and glowworm caves! How amazing is that? It’s a real beauty of a book that you’ll learn a lot from.

Let’s Save Our Planet: Forests

There are lots of research books for kids about forests but this one is special. It is (most obviously) all about forests, the animals who live in forests, the environmental danger of deforestation and different ways in which we can tackle deforestation. It covers how scientists and conservationists are helping to protect forest creatures and tech inventions like robot tree-planters, which help kids become aware of the incredible solutions to deforestation that are being worked on around the world right now! But the best thing about it is how it has a clear list of facts that kids can learn or use for homework help or a project support a clear list of actions of how we can help save the forests. This book is great for the budding naturalist in your family and filled with actionable items that they can start making a difference right now! 

Encyclopedia of Insects

If you have kids that love worms, bugs and creepy-crawlies like mine do, then this Encyclopedia of Insects is going to be a perfect read! This book is such a wonderful resource for kids wanting to look up and learn about bugs and insects. It’s packed with hundreds (300, actually) of bugs in fascinating detail written by a natural history expert. It covers the cutest and most beautiful bugs, to the deadliest and most disgusting ones! It’s got a little something for everyone. Plus, it does a really great job of showing how and why bugs and insects are important to the planet and what they do for us humans. It’s educational, informative, and fun! 

Raising little naturalists through books

Kids learn to love what they experience, know and understand. Reading books about nature, our planet and the great outdoors is a wonderful way to spark their interest and curiosity about the world around them. Hopefully, that curiosity will lead to a love and appreciation of our planet, and the plants and animals that live on it. These books would be a perfect addition to your outdoor education and will help you raise a kid that loves and appreciates nature. I hope they help you and yours connect to our planet, nature, and the great outdoors this year!

Which book is your favorite?

About the author

Jemma lives in London, England with her husband and kids. Her all-time favorite thing to do is take photos and capture memories of her family. She’s on a mission to ensure parenthood doesn’t rush by so quickly by creating mini family outdoor adventures and hopefully some big adventures too, one day! She’s a mum to four and an English teacher to many. She loves sharing her passion for storytelling, adventures, and nature crafts on her blog and here. 

Find more from Jemma in the following locations:
Instagram: @thimbleandtwig
Blog: www.thimbleandtwig.com
Facebook: @thimbleandtwig
Etsy shop: ThimbleandTwig
RWMC posts: Jemma

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