WILD Mag

Welcome to the world of exploration and adventure with WILD Mag, the ultimate digital monthly subscription magazine designed to ignite the curiosity of young minds and families about the wonders of nature and the great outdoors. Bursting with vibrant colors and brimming with educational materials and engaging activities, WILD Mag is a gateway to a world of discovery, where children can embark on thrilling journeys through the wilderness, while simultaneously learning about the fascinating ecosystems that surround us. Get ready to dive into an immersive experience that will inspire a lifelong love for nature and foster a deeper connection to the natural world – all from the comfort of your own home!

What’s WILD Mag all about? 

The mission of the WILD Mag is to inspire a love for the natural world by helping educate families about different nature topics and encouraging them to go outdoors to explore together. With a new topic each month, you’re sure to learn lots and have fun doing it. 

An inexpensive digital resource, the WILD Mag is available by monthly subscription at Chickie and Roo Homeschool. If you aren’t ready to commit to a subscription, individual issues can easily be purchased HERE. Lauren Giordano from Chickie and Roo Homeschool, Stephanie Hathaway from Stephanie Hathaway Designs, and Laura Stroup from Firefly Nature School comprise the WILD Mag’s creative team.

Each month, you receive a 60(ish)-page digital magazine sent directly to your inbox. You can opt to print the magazine at home or have it printed by a print shop. Another economical option is to use the magazine’s digital resources from your phone, computer, or tablet and only print out the consumable pages for activities.

How to use the WILD Mag

The beauty of the WILD Mag rests in its simplicity. Open it up, and begin. Or preview and plan out a section to complete each week during your morning time, nature study, or science class.

The WILD Mag’s target audience includes kindergarten through sixth grade. Students in the older range of this age spectrum might enjoy reading through the articles and completing activities more independently, while younger kids can work with older siblings or with a parent, caregiver, or teacher. Families also enjoy perusing the magazine together as small sections of text deliver lots of information, and activities can be easily adapted for different age levels. 

If your kids are part of the early learner crowd, a WILD Mag Jr. might be more your speed. Geared toward preschool-aged kids, it shares a theme with the regular WILD Mag. But instead of exploring multiple facets of a nature topic, it focuses on just one aspect and includes something to read, ask, learn, solve, draw, find, make, and show. 

What’s in each issue?

Each issue of the WILD Mag contains more than enough information to have an entire unit study right at your fingertips. Every issue also includes a book list, along with links to related documentaries, helpful videos, and interesting websites (all with kids in mind) makes putting outside additional resources (beyond the magazine) together a snap. 

The digital magazine is filled with beautiful illustrations, including posters and diagrams, accompanying short bursts of informative text, followed by hands-on activities that may include crafts, games, experiments, recipes, projects, and nature journaling prompts, among others. These “your turn” sections encourage observation, nature walks, outdoor time, play, and family connections. 

Drawing tutorials, picture studies, vocabulary words, crossword puzzles, poetry, coloring pages, and word searches round out the WILD Mag experience. Plus, there are opportunities for your child to be featured in the monthly issues when you tag or share with the creative team the different projects and activities they enjoyed working on. 

Who is the WILD Mag for?

One of the most common questions about the WILD Mag is whether it focuses solely on North America since that’s where its creators reside. The short answer is no. The WILD Mag’s design features amazing aspects of science and nature from around the globe. The multi-country subscriber base can attest to that.

Including a variety of topics that highlight Earth’s different regions helps families see the ways in which nature connects us all. You only need to glance through past WILD Mag topics to see the biodiversity included. The magazine has previously covered topics such as mountains, coral reefs, horses, marsupials, and the solar system, plus many others. Be sure to check out the archives for a full list of topics if there’s something, in particular, you’re studying! 

WILD Mag highlights

1. Bright, colorful illustrations welcome young naturalists to turn the pages.
2. Short sections make information easily digestible for elementary and middle school readers.
3. Interactive projects encourage the application of knowledge. 
4. Fun, practical activities foster learning. 
5. Nature walks inspire a connection to the natural world. 

Benefits of learning with the WILD Mag

Introducing children to the wonders of nature through a digital magazine like WILD Mag offers numerous benefits that go beyond just educational value. Here are some of the key advantages:

1. Interactive learning experience: With a digital magazine, children can enjoy an interactive learning experience that goes beyond static text. Engaging elements like diagrams, images, and multimedia help in better understanding complex concepts related to ecosystems, biodiversity, wildlife, and more. The magazine’s hands-on activities, lessons, crafts, and games ignite curiosity and a sense of wonder about the natural world. This encourages children to ask questions, explore further, and seek answers, fostering a lifelong love for learning and nature.

2. Visual stimulation: Visuals have a powerful impact on learning, especially for young minds. High-quality illustrations and graphics in the magazine bring the natural world to life, making it easier for kids to connect with and retain information.

3. Promotes environmental awareness: Learning about nature and its intricate ecosystems instills a sense of environmental consciousness in children. They become aware of the delicate balance of ecosystems, the importance of biodiversity, and the need for conservation efforts. As children learn about ecosystems and their interconnectedness, they develop a sense of empowerment, knowing that they can make a positive impact on the environment through their actions and choices.
4. Encourages outdoor exploration: While a digital magazine is accessible from anywhere, it often inspires outdoor exploration. Children may want to venture into nature to observe wildlife, identify plants, and experience the lessons they’ve learned firsthand.
5. Inclusivity and accessibility: A digital format ensures that educational materials are accessible to a wider audience, regardless of their location or circumstances, promoting inclusivity in learning. Digital magazines offer the convenience of access on various devices, making it easy for kids and families to explore nature’s wonders anytime and anywhere that suits their schedule.
6. Holistic development: Learning about nature encompasses various subjects, such as biology, geography, geology, and climate science. This multidisciplinary approach promotes well-rounded development and critical thinking skills.

The WILD Mag provides a captivating platform for kids to delve into the enchanting world of nature. Its immersive and interactive content nurtures a passion for the greatoors, encourages a sense of environmental responsibility, and equips the next generation with knowledge and appreciation for the natural world that surrounds them.

WILD Mag themes for 2023-24

Each year, the WILD Mag team shares a list of future topics to help subscribers plan their school year and summer holidays. This year’s topics have recently been revealed. 

• August – Tropical rainforest
• September – Apples
• October – Bears
• November – Winter dormancy
• December – Math in nature
• January – Puffins
• February – Trees
• March – Whales
• April – Naked mole rats
• May – Colors in nature
• June – Monotremes
• July – Urban nature

Learn about nature with WILD Mag

It’s no secret that nature study lends itself to multiple learning styles and an interdisciplinary approach. The WILD Mag focuses on ecological relationships, zoology, and other sciences in addition to sprinkling in math, reading, writing, geography, history, art, and physical education. Basically, there’s something for everyone and everything for someone.

If you would like to try out the WILD Mag, you can grab a free sample by clicking HERE and scrolling to the sample section.

Happy exploring!

Be sure to check out WILD Mag and learn something new with your kids today! 

About the author

Laura is an ecology writer and the founder of Firefly Nature School, a nature study curriculum designed for homeschooling families, co-ops, and classrooms. Laura has a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Ecology from Iowa State University with an emphasis in natural resource education. A former wildlife conservation educator and upper school science teacher, she now directs School of the Wild, a local nature school serving her community. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her family, hiking, running, writing, reading, and cooking. Laura lives with her husband and their three children in the beautiful Ozarks countryside.

Find more from Laura in the following locations:
Website: Firefly Nature School
Instagram: @fireflynatureschool
Facebook: Firefly Nature School
RWMC posts: Laura

The post Exploring Nature with the WILD Mag appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Children learn by touching

I loved daffodils and tulips long before I had children. But their wonder and delight grew when I began to experience them with my kids. To a small child, whose outdoor world has been governed by cold and snow for so many months, daffodils and tulips bring sheer amazement. They’re so cheerful, so undaunted by the often frigid world around them.  

Children learn so much by touching and feeling the natural world around them. Dissecting tulips and daffodils is particularly delightful because it allows kids to take apart and touch each part of the flowers. Other than common weeds like dandelions, I don’t usually let my kids tear flowers apart! So, this activity definitely felt special to them. It reminded me that the simple beauty of nature brings so much wonder and delight to a child. Learning experiences don’t have to be complicated. They can simply involve removing the delicate pieces of a flower and learning what those pieces are called.

Picking daffodils and tulips

If you choose to do a flower dissection, be sure your child has permission to pick the flowers. Asking before picking flowers has been a hard lesson for each of my children to learn. It usually comes up most during their preschool years. They’re just so overcome by the beauty of the flower, they find picking it irresistible!

Tulips, in particular, seem to just call them. This has always been a big deal because tulips are often a little sparse in our flowerbeds. Yet, at some point in their early years, every one of my children has systematically picked the handful we had. One of my offspring once even picked and dissected the only bud we had, just to see what it looked like inside. Childhood curiosity! This dissection activity satisfies that curiosity. It also deepens kids’ understanding and appreciation of daffodils and tulips.

This is also a great time to teach them that just because it’s okay to pick some flowers doesn’t mean it’s okay to pick all flowers! I try to remind my children of the old adage, “What if everybody did?” If everyone picked every daffodil or tulip they saw, there wouldn’t be any left for us to enjoy in nature.

If you don’t have permission to pick flowers (or don’t have access to flowers), you can usually find cut flowers to purchase at a grocery or flower store. 

Daffodil and tulip dissection with kids

Daffodil or tulip dissection is one of the easiest and simplest nature experiments you can do with your kids! All you need is a couple flowers and a sheet of paper. You can also use this printable if you’d rather not make your own. We enjoyed laying out our own pages and labeling them ourselves. If you have a magnifying glass, be sure to keep that handy so your kids can examine each part more closely!

For our daffodil and tulip dissection, we simply separated the pieces of each flower and arranged them on a piece of paper. You can also cut the flower in half with a sharp knife, but my kids voted for taking it apart by hand. That way even the little one could participate.

My oldest daughter copied a chart showing the parts of the flowers, then the younger girls got to arrange their own flower pieces. This simple activity was so much fun! They all learned so much about the details of the flowers. It felt like playing, taking apart the petals and stems and other parts of the blossoms. After dissecting a daffodil, the girls couldn’t wait to try a tulip.

Identifying parts of a daffodil or tulip

For younger children, a simple breakdown of stem, leaves, and petals may be a deep enough look into the parts of the daffodils and tulips. For older kids, we’re also including a more in-depth at the parts of these flowers and their functions. If you’re looking for a little more information about the parts of a daffodil, check out this page.

• Stem: The stem is the tall, green stalk that carries water and nutrients from the earth up to the flower.
• Leaves: This is where photosynthesis happens—where the plant takes the sun’s energy and turns it into food for the plant!
• Spathe: The papery brown sheath that covered the bud before it opened.
• Ovary: Filled with ovules, or eggs, which later become seeds after the flower has been pollinated by bees or other insects.
• Pistil: This is the center part of the flower, including the style and the stigma at the top.
• Stamen: The six little stalks surrounding the pistil. The stalk part is called the filament and the pollen-covered tip is the anther.
• Petals: This is most visible and colorful part of the flower.
• Corona: The inside layer of petals on the daffodil, also called the crown or trumpet

Planting bulbs with kids

Daffodils and tulips are both bulb plants, meaning they grow from a bulb deep in the earth, rather than a seed. The bulb stores up energy for the plant and goes dormant over the winter. Daffodil and tulip bulbs are best planted in the fall, so they can emerge as the daylight strengthens and the earth thaws at the end of winter. A healthy bulb will multiply year by year—if you plant a single daffodil bulb, within a few years you should have several!

My mother-in-law likes to tell how she once assigned her children the job of planting some daffodil bulbs in her new flower bed. They carefully inserted a single bulb in each hole, neatly spaced around the flower garden. The next year, she had single daffodils blooming everywhere! But after several years, she had the beautiful clusters she had once dreamed of.

To turn this into a long-term science project, plant some daffodil or tulip bulbs with your child this fall. You can find them at home improvement or garden centers in the fall months. You can also order them from seed catalogs or even see if a friend or neighbor has some to share. Then plant them about twice as deep as the bulb is tall (probably about 2-3 inches deep). In the spring, you’ll have your own daffodils and tulips to enjoy!

Tulips and daffodils in the cold

As cold-hardy plants, tulips and daffodils are able to survive chilly and even briefly freezing weather. If you live in an area where spring comes in fits and starts, like we do, you’ve probably seen daffodils with their heads bowed down with frost or even tulips dusted with snow. Amazingly, once the temperatures warm and the sun comes out, these hardy plants usually bounce back like nothing ever happened! Although temperatures below 25 may kill the blooms, the plants themselves will survive and bloom again the next year.

Making spring flower bouquets with kids

If you can’t get enough of these beautiful spring flowers, here are some more activities involving daffodils and tulips. First of all, make flower arrangements! This is one of the easiest and most rewarding hands-on activities you could ever let your kids do. It builds artistic skills and deeply satisfies the love of beauty that’s built into every one of us. If you don’t have spring flowers to pick, maybe a neighbor or friend has a yard full of them. Many times people won’t mind letting children pick a few for a bouquet.

Flower picking instructions for kids

This is a great time to help children learn how to pick flowers intentionally. Have them think through these questions as they select and pick their flowers:

• How many flowers do I need for this arrangement?
• Which colors and shapes will look good in my arrangement?
• What varieties/colors are there most of?
• Which flowers can I pick without leaving a hole in the beauty of the mother plant?
• Are there other flowers or greenery to pick from to complement the flowers in my arrangement?

Teach your kids how to pick the flowers carefully, carefully breaking off or cutting the stem. If you have a vase in mind, show them the vase and how much stem length they’ll need for their arrangement. (For some reason it’s hard for kids to learn to leave enough stem with the flower. They seem to have their eye on the flower and break the stem just past the flower. It always takes a while to teach them to cut the stem with their flower!) But most of all, just let them have fun putting together beautiful flowers to display inside your home. Or have them make a bouquet to give to a friend or neighbor!

Dyeing daffodils with kids

Did you know daffodils can be turned different colors? This fun and simple experiment shows how their veins draw fluids up, through the stems, and out into the petals. Place a daffodil with white or light-colored petals into a glass of water and add food coloring. Better yet, try several daffodils in different colors of water. Set in a safe place and check back every day to watch the magic happen! 

You should be able to see colors in the petals within 24 hours. My kids are fascinated with this–even our four-year-old loved checking in to see the colors changing. We’ve had issues with the flowers beginning to wilt and fade before the colors had time to make a really vibrant difference, though. So I’d recommend using the freshest blooms you can find and a strong food coloring solution for the best results.

In the meantime, since I failed to get a photo before our daffodils started getting all sad and wilted, my friend Ginny shared one of her amazing colored daffodils. Aren’t those lacy-colored veins just gorgeous?  

Photo credit Ginny Yurich @1000hoursoutside

Spring flower fun for kids

Whether you dissect them, dye them, plant them, or just pick some for a bouquet, daffodils and tulips are some of spring’s greatest delights. So be sure to get out and find some to enjoy with your kids!

Have you ever dissected tulips or daffodils with your kids?

About the author

Leslie is an Ohio farm girl and chaser of light, children, and sometimes chickens. She’s a lover of Jesus, wife to her high school sweetheart, and a homeschooling mom of four wild rascals who love the great outdoors as much as she does. As a family, they love hiking, camping, fishing, and just about any outdoor activity. She and her husband are just beginning the process of building a homestead from the ground up, doing most of the work themselves. Leslie has a lifelong obsession with writing and capturing everyday life from behind the lens. Follow along with their homesteading, homeschooling, and everyday adventures on her Instagram account.

You can find more from Leslie in the following locations:
Instagram: @c_l_allofus
Leslie’s RWMC posts: Leslie Alvis

The post Dissecting Daffodils and Tulips with Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

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Indoor snow day activities for kids

It’s no surprise that we’re hoping your kids get outside and play in the snow on any snow day. This entire website is about getting kids outside and off screens. However, we are also parents and we know that it’s not always possible for kids to be outside all day, every day. So, when they’re in the house, we want to help you with fun screen-free snow day activities to keep them entertained and active. We hope these snow day activities will help inspire you to get creative on your next snow day and be prepared for any “I’m bored” complaint that comes your way! 

Image credit: mylittlewildlings.com

1. Hot chocolate bar

What goes better with a cold snow day than hot chocolate?! After spending time outside playing, hot chocolate is the perfect drink to warm you up, head to toe. Get a little creative with your hot chocolate and set up a station for the kids to make their own. Include marshmallows, leftover candy canes, whipped cream, sprinkles, chocolate chips, cinnamon, or whatever else you can find in the pantry! 

2. Make an obstacle course

A fun way to make the most of an indoor snow day is to build an obstacle course for the kids.  An obstacle course around the house or the basement will provide endless hours of fun and challenge them. Plus, it will help them stay active and test their creativity. We like to set up obstacle courses around our basement with stations, where you have to complete a challenge before moving on. We incorporate furniture, pillows, blankets, cushions, toys and anything else we can find a good use for. The kids have to climb over, under and through the obstacles. Some of the challenges include spinning around 5 times, doing a somersault, doing jumping jacks or pushups, shooting a basket, doing a handstand, hitting a target, or jumping rope. 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

3. Snow ice cream

The perfect snow day is not complete without snow ice cream! With just a few simple ingredients, you can turn ordinary snow into something extraordinarily delicious! Snow ice cream is always a huge crowd pleaser at our house and can be made with things we already have at home. Just take some freshly fallen snow and combine it with milk (or cream). Add a smidge of vanilla and a couple of spoonfuls of sugar. Voila! Top with sprinkles or chocolate sauce for some extra fun!

4. Treasure hunt

Treasure hunts are always a fun idea and a great way to keep the kids occupied and entertained. We like to select one item and then hide it in various places around the house (or within a room) and they have to find it. My kids can play this game over and over and over. You can be involved and give them “hot” or “cold” clues or just let them figure it out on their own. Or, if you want to get really creative, you could hide something and give them a series of clues or draw a map for them to use to find it. Or make it a scavenger hunt and give them a list of items that they need to find to win the game. 

Image credit: @dimples.and.the.blonde

5. Board games

If you’re looking for something fun for the entire family, break out a board game (or “bored game” as my kids call them) for a fun family-friendly indoor activity. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a game with an actual board (Candy Land, Life, Monopoly, Shoots & Ladders, Sorry) or just a fun card game (Uno, Exploding Kittens, Apples to Apples, Go Fish, Old Maid). Kids love games, particularly if there’s a prize on the line. Winner gets to pick dessert! 

6. Friendship bracelets

Making friendship bracelets was one of my favorite indoor childhood activities. I went through a period of years of making elaborate bracelets for all my friends and family members. It’s something I can’t wait to teach my kids to do (hopefully soon). All you really need is some thread and some patience. Here’s an easy-to-follow tutorial on how to make friendship bracelets with helpful photos, but there are also probably a million resources out there if you have questions or want to get extra creative with your masterpieces. 

Image credit: @thimbleandtwig

7. Build an indoor fort

There are very few things my kids love more than a good fort. After years of helping them, they’ve finally become master fort builders themselves and can erect an elaborate fort all the way around the couch (with rooms and secret tunnels) in about an hour. It’s a great way for them to play independently and forces them to get creative. Offer pillows, cushions, sheets, chairs, clips and anything that might help and let them give it a shot. And building the fort is only half the fun. A lot of the time, they’ll play in the fort for the rest of the day! 

8. Indoor campout

Who says camping has to be just for outside? If you’ve got the room, set up your tent inside the house and let the kids have an indoor campout. Set up their sleeping bags, add some twinkle lights or a lantern and let their imaginations take them to their favorite camping locations. Have a meal of camping classics like hot dogs, kabobs, or foil packets. Make microwave s’mores! Before hitting the sack, give them flashlights and let them read books or tell ghost stories in the tent. And for bonus points for being the “coolest mom ever,” let them sleep there overnight! 

Image credit: hodgepodgedays.co.uk

9. Make butter

If you want to wow your kids, burn some energy and show them a little classic science, making homemade butter will blow their minds! Making homemade butter is so simple (and so delicious) that you may never buy butter again! All you need is some heavy whipping cream and a Mason jar with a lid. Fill the jar about halfway with cream (leave lots of room) and tighten the lid. Now hand it off to your kids and let them take turns shaking the jar as fast and hard as they can. After about 10 minutes you’ll have whipped cream! But keep going! After a few more minutes, you’ll notice when the cream turns solid and you now have butter! Keep shaking until the butter is solid and separated from the buttermilk. It’s that easy! If you want to get extra fancy, add some special ingredients to make flavored butter (garlic/herbs, cinnamon sugar, honey, etc.). Serve with fresh bread, blueberry muffins, pumpkin bread, or English muffins. 

10. Marshmallow tower

Building marshmallow towers can be a really fun indoor snow day activity for any kid or an effective team-building activity for siblings. All you need is a bag of marshmallows and some spaghetti and then let the kids get creative. They have to stick the spaghetti into the marshmallows to create a tower that won’t topple over. Make it more interesting by setting a timer and challenging your kids to make the tallest tower. 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

11. Decorate with snowflakes

Bring a little of the winter wonderland magic indoors by cutting out and decorating your own snowflakes. There are so many possible ways to make snowflakes with paper and scissors.  I like to show the kids once how to do this by folding the paper in some random weird way and cutting out various shapes along the folds. I’m always surprised by what it looks like when I open it up! Then I let them take over and do it their way. If you want inspiration, this post includes a great visual on how to fold the paper and make the cuts for different (and beautiful) designs. You could also use coffee filters and decorate them with watercolor paints or markers for colorful snowflakes!

12. Photobooth

Want some adorable photos from your snow day to help document and remember the fun and madness? Take some silly photos in a photo booth! Setting up a photo booth is really simple. You can use your camera, but you can also just set up your phone or an iPad for the kids to use. If you have a tripod or a stand, that’s great, but you can also use books or binder clips to prop it up. Have the kids get fancy in dress-up clothes or break out old Halloween costumes. Let them play with costume jewelry or silly accessories (sunglasses, hats, scarves, etc.). The photos will be worth the mess! 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

13. Slime

Making slime is totally the “cool mom” thing to do with kids these days! My kids are obsessed with slime and ask to make it on the daily. Very rarely do I agree (I’m obviously not the cool mom), but when we do make slime, it’s hours of entertainment. We like this easy slime recipe: 6 oz (1 bottle) of Elmer’s Glue, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1.5 tablespoons of contact lens solution, and some water. Pour the glue into a bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and mix in thoroughly. Next, add up to 1/4 cup of water if you want stretchy slime. Slowly add the contact lens solution (a little at a time) as you knead the slime. Keep kneading until you get the consistency you want, it may take a while (and you may not need all the solution). Add glitter or food coloring if you want to get fancy! 

14. Balloon tennis

Another fun, active and easy indoor snow day activity for kids is to play balloon tennis. For this, all you need is a balloon (for the ball) and a couple of frisbees or even paper plates (to be the rackets). Make a line for the court and let the kids try volleying the balloon back and forth without touching the ground. 

Image credit: @thimbleandtwig

15. Minute to win it games

Kids love a challenge and they love watching their parents be silly. Minute to win it games are a great family bonding experience when you’re stuck inside on a snow day. Most of these games can be played with stuff found around the house and are easy to set up. There are tons of ways to adapt the game for the various ages and skill levels of your children. Here’s a great list of family minute to win it games. A few of our favorites are cookie face, penny towers, noodle pickup and pantyhose bowling. Be prepared for LOTS of laughter with these! 

16. Snow play dough or DIY snow

White playdough is surprisingly easy to make and so much fun for kids! All you need is 2 cups of corn starch and 1  1/4  cup of unscented white hand lotion or conditioner. Mix them together in a bowl and you’ve got a moisturizing dough that’s fun to mold. Add some silver glitter if you really want to get fancy. Have your kids make indoor snowmen and decorate them with items they find around the house (buttons, sequins, ribbon, etc.). Kids love this fully hands-on sensory activity.

Or, you can also make your own sensory bin of DIY snow. We’ve got a great post with three DIY snow recipes to make with your kids from ingredients you already have at home! 

Image credit: refinedprose.com

17. Story stones

Story stones help build imagination and storytelling skills. By using the stone with a picture on it, children can create a story or retell an adventure. Story stones are easy to make and would be a perfect indoor snow day activity for kids. There are a variety of story-telling games you can play. If you have a group, place all the stones in a bag and let each child pick a stone, then go around the circle and have each child build on the story by adding something about the stone they picked. We love these graphics and story prompts from Little Pine Learners, which allow your kids to be part of the process, from creation to story.

18. Animal charades

A game of animal charades is such a fun way to get kids moving and using their imagination! Kids of all ages like pretending and even little kids know animal sounds and characteristics. Usually, charades is played silently, without using words or sounds, but you can always adapt the game depending on the age of the kids and their charade skill level. Toddlers and preschoolers may really enjoy making the animal sounds! Here’s a great free animal charades printable that you can use to help you choose the animals. 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

19. Puppet show

Another fun indoor activity to do with kids is to put on a puppet show! You can make puppets with materials from your recycling bin. Or, you could make sock puppets from all those single socks you have lying around! Or you could use stuffed animals and dolls you already have at home. Help the kids come up with an idea for what the show will be about and then let their creativity shine!  This is also an amazing activity to share with family and friends on FaceTime or other video chatting app. You don’t have to leave your house and you can bring some joy to others in isolation from a safe distance!

20. Make sugar cookies

Most kids absolutely love helping out in the kitchen. Especially so if they’re making sweet treats. If you want to have a little fun in the kitchen on a snow day, how about making a batch of sugar cookies. We love this delicious sugar cookie recipe that doesn’t require any rolling out or cookie cutters (although, those are fun, too). Double the batch and make extras for the neighbors! 

If cookies aren’t your thing, here are a whole bunch of other tried-and-true great recipes to make with kids from our Creative Team. 

Image credit: @thimbleandtwig

21. Spa day

I think we could all use a little extra pampering and self-care these days, even kids. If you’re stuck inside during bad weather or need a fun indoor snow day activity, consider having a spa day with your kids. Start with a warm luxurious bubble bath. Use all the fancy bubbles and soaps. When you get out, put on a robe and wrap your hair in a towel. Move on from there to a facial. You can make a natural face mask out of avocado, oatmeal, or honey. You may also use one you already have at home. Cut up some cucumbers they can use while their masks set to help rest their tired eyes.  Next up, manicures and pedicures. Let the kids pick their nail colors and get as creative as they want. 

22. Ghost mud

If snow’s not your thing, how about mud? Clean mud! To make ghost mud, all you need is a bar of Ivory soap, a roll of toilet paper, and a cup of warm water. Let your kids have fun removing all the toilet paper from the roll. This is a great indoor activity in and of itself! Gather it up and put it in a large container. Then add the soap – you can either grate it or do the soap explosion experiment where you microwave it! Then add the warm water and have the kids work the mush into mud! Check out this post for the full ghost mud tutorial. 

Image credit: @brandimarkham

23. Indoor picnic or tea party

Make mealtime a little more fun on a snow day by having an indoor picnic or an indoor tea party. Move some furniture out of the way and spread out a blanket or a tablecloth on the floor. Give the kids fun picnic-like finger foods and snacks like fruit kabobs, sandwiches, chips, and lemonade. Let them help in the process and have a say in what they make. Set everything up with paper plates for easy clean-up. Turn on some music and have a relaxing meal. Just make sure to put lids on drinks!

24. Make taffy

Did you ever make taffy as a kid? My cousins and I used to make taffy every summer and loved it! It can be a little messy, but it’s super fun and your kids will love how interactive and involved the process is. There’s a lot of taffy pulling, kneading, and stretching involved, so little ones can get some energy out while they make it. Here’s a great kid-friendly taffy recipe and a step-by-step tutorial on how to make taffy with kids. 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

25. Fashion show

My daughter loves any excuse to raid my closet and try on all my shoes and jewelry. And all the kids love costumes. Give the kids permission to play dress-up by having them put on a fashion show. Let them select their own outfits and do their own hair (and make-up, if you’re feeling extra brave). Then let them walk the runway to fun music fanfare and applause. Grab your camera and play the part of paparazzi to your little supermodels. 

26. Indoor snowball fight

If you’re not able to get outside for a “real” snowball fight, you can safely bring it inside! You can purchase soft indoor snowballs or just do it the old-fashioned way by using balled-up socks. Divide up into teams and dump half of the snowballs on each side of the room. Instruct the teams that the goal is to have the least number of snowballs in your area at the end of 5 minutes. Snowballs can only be thrown, not kicked and they can only throw one at a time. Then let them go wild! 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

27. Make bird feeders

There are TONS of ways to DIY a bird feeder using eco-friendly and recycled materials. We’ve made bird feeders using recycled toilet paper tubes, popsicle sticks, orange peels, twine, pine cones and sweet gum balls! A really easy way is to coat your materials in peanut butter and then dip in birdseed. We have a great post on making ec0-friendly bird feeders with kids using materials you already have at home! When you’re ready to venture out into the snow, the birds are going to be especially grateful for the treats! 

Image credit: @brandimarkham

28. Racecar track with tape

I’ve always been impressed with how many things I can do with a roll of tape! If you’ve got a few rolls of masking tape lying around, you’re in for hours of fun. We love this idea to create a race track using masking tape for your cars around the house or around a room. Not only will it be fun to come up with the course, obstacles, and challenges, but then racing the cars will be a blast! 

Image credit: @thimbleandtwig

29. Read a book

In my opinion, nothing sounds better to me on a cold snowy day than snuggling under a blanket and reading a good book. You don’t need any kind of fancy reading nook or window seat (although that sounds nice). A couch, oversized chair or bed will work fine. Snuggle up together and read something exciting together with the kids. Even if your kids are old enough to read on their own, they love being read to. So, grab a book (here are some great read-aloud book ideas) and dive in! 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

30. Dance party

Crank up the music and dance the winter blues away! If you’re stuck inside on a snow day, a dance party is a great way to have some fun, burn some energy, and show off your smooth moves. Let all the kids have a turn choosing the songs or let your system shuffle music from your favorites. Make it extra fun by adding some instruments (even fake/imaginary ones like an air guitar) or costumes. 

Outdoor snow day activities for kids

Playing in the snow is so much fun! It provides a fabulous sensory experience for all those who are lucky enough to enjoy it. We’re all about getting kids outside, no matter the weather. We hope that you’ll send your kids outside to play in the snow as much as possible on their next snow day. And if they’re in need of some fun snow day activities and ideas, we’ve got tons! This list should help you get through an entire winter of snow days! 

Image credit: @roaminggonzalez

31. Sledding

Sledding has become a beloved winter activity for our family. Especially as my kids get older, they really love the speed and thrill of how much fun they can have on an otherwise normal hill. However, as with every fun activity, especially when children are involved, it’s important to be safe, as well as have fun. Find a hill that is not too steep and has a long flat area at the bottom so there is a place to glide to a stop. Avoid hills that end near a street or parking lot or near ponds, trees, fences, or other hazards. And don’t underestimate the fun of even a small hill. As kids get older, they may want a bigger and longer hill for sledding, but don’t be afraid to start small and see how it goes. My kids can have hours of fun on the tiniest of hills!

Photo credit: @this_gr8_kozi_life_

32. Snowman building

Building a snowman is a classic wintertime childhood activity that is a blast for kids of all ages. Give your snowman the perfect proportions by aiming for a 3-2-1 snowball ratio (for example, if the lowest ball has a diameter of three feet, the middle ball would be two feet, and the top ball would be one foot). Also consider that the lower to the ground your snowman is, the more stable he will be.

Just because building a snowman is a classic activity doesn’t mean you can’t use nontraditional decorations. Let your kids give your snowman (or snowwoman) some personality. Give him a funky cap or an ugly Christmas sweater. Give her a grass skirt and Hawaiian shirt to wear. And no one said your snowman had to be a man. Make a snowwoman, a snowdog or snowcat, a snowtiger, or an entire snowfamily! Add some extra fun with snow paint (food coloring and water in a squirt bottle) to give your snow character clothes or stripes or just have some extra fun.

33. Snow maze

If you have a large wide-open space with nice untouched snow, consider making a snow maze for the kids. You can shovel the maze out, or just walk through to pack down the snow in lines, with turns, dead-ends, and loops. Depending on the ages of your kids, you may want to make it harder or easier to find their way through the maze. Kids will love trying to figure out where to go and how to get through with the fastest time. 

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

34. Snowball fight

Snowball fights are such a fun way to get the kids outside, active and burning through some of that snow day energy. Older kids tend to do better with snowball fights, but even little kids love making and throwing snowballs. Snowball fights are usually about nailing a member of the other team with a snowball, so make sure to talk to the kids about proper snowball fight etiquette (no throwing at the face, no ice or rocks in snowballs, etc.). If you don’t want to throw them at each other, you could have a competition to see who can throw them the farthest or who can make the most snowballs the fastest. 

35. Look for animal tracks

Winter is a great time to head out to the woods (or even your local park) and see if you can find animal tracks. Fresh snow is great for showing tracks of various woodland animals. Examples include rabbits, foxes, deer, and squirrels. Make it a game and see who can spot the most tracks, the biggest, the smallest and the most exotic. Try to guess what animal made them, where they were going and what they were doing. Don’t recognize the tracks? Take photos of the tracks and look them up when you get home to see what animal made them.

36. Snowball target practice

My kids love to use snowballs for target practice! Set up or choose a target and see who can get closest to the bullseye with snowballs. You can do this horizontally (place a target on a wall or choose a location on a tree to throw at) or vertically (set a bucket or item on the ground and throw the snowballs up into the air to see if you can get them to land in the bucket). 

37. Ice experiments

Turning water into ice sounds simple enough, but in the winter, it’s a great educational science experiment. Water freezes at 0 degrees Celcius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Use your snow day to get in a science experiment by challenging your kids to see how long it takes water to freeze into ice. Try freezing water in various locations around your yard or neighborhood to see if that makes a difference. What about using different containers? On a super cold day, we’ve heard of people throwing a cup of water into the air and watching it freeze instantly!

Image credit: @ladybirdsadventures

38. Snow painting

Add some color to your snowy landscape with snow paint. All you need is water and food coloring. Put it in a spray bottle and let the kids turn the snow colors and make designs. You can also give them a paintbrush and let them color snowballs or paint pictures in the snow. 

39. Ice lanterns

Ice lanterns are made by using molds to freeze ice into candle holders. You can put them outside to light your walkway, or on your front porch to welcome guests. If you add a handle, you could even take them on a night walk/hike around the neighborhood. Our friends over at Take Them Outside have a great tutorial on how to make ice lanterns with kids. 

Image credit: littlebinsforlittlehands.com

40. Ice globes

Add some magic and fun to your outdoor snowy space by making colored ice globes. All you need to do is add a few drops of food coloring to the water in a water balloon and let them freeze (either outside or in the freezer). Once frozen, pop the balloon, and you’re left with a beautiful ice globe in your color of choice. Take them outside to decorate or play with. 

41. Snow cakes for the animals

Everyone loves cake…even animals! But while deer, squirrels and birds probably shouldn’t be eating cakes made from sugar and flour, they can eat cakes made of snow, fruits, and veggies for the animals! Head out to a field or choose a spot near the woods where animals will be sure to find it. Use the snow to make a big cake on the ground and decorate it with birdseed, carrots, apples, lettuce and other fruits and vegetables. The animals will be grateful for your generosity.

42. Frozen suncatchers

Suncatchers made from ice are not only beautiful but super easy to make! Spend some time outside gathering natural items to use in your suncatchers. The more colorful the better. Examples: branches, berries, twigs, flowers, buds, and leaves. Lay out a plastic lid, paper plate, cups, muffin tin, pie plate or silicone mold to use as the mold for your suncatcher. Fill the mold with water and add your natural elements to the water in any design of your choosing. Leave outside for a few hours or overnight to freeze. Gently remove the ice suncatcher from the mold and hang it from a tree branch or window sill. Pro tip: Rumor has it that if you want your ice to be crystal clear, boil the water first! For a full tutorial, check out our post on how to make frozen ice suncatchers.

Image credit: @stephanie.b.collins

43. Winter mandala

In its simplest form, a mandala is a circular structure with a design that radiates out symmetrically from the center. There is no right or wrong way to make one which is why it is such a wonderful way to engage children to make their own mandalas using items they find in nature. Go for a walk or hike and collect items to use in your winter mandala. Choose a location to start making it directly on the ground, with a snowy white background. Let the children’s imaginations create something beautiful! This is a great time to discuss symmetry and shapes, but don’t push them too hard to stick to any hard and fast rules. Creativity wins the day. We’ve got a great post on making nature mandalas with kids if you want to read more about this fun activity.

44. DIY yeti tracks

After you’ve found animal tracks in the snow, why not have some fun creating some of your own! Use heavy cardboard to create oversized yeti footprints. Cut the feet out and attach them to the bottoms of your kids’ snow boots. Head outside and let them create their own yeti tracks in the snow. Create a trail around the yard or neighborhood for others to track. Your kids might be surprised by how they can seem to walk on top of the snow. With a larger surface area, they will sink less, giving walking on snow a whole new feel.

Image credit: @roaminggonzalez

45. Build a snow fort/igloo

There are so many fun things you can do in the snow, but building a fort has to be up there at the very top of awesome winter outdoor activities! Last year my kids built an amazing igloo (with dad’s help) that they played in for hours and hours over the course of a few weeks (until it melted). They were so incredibly proud of their igloo and had so much fun building it! Always be extra careful not to make it too heavy on top, and make sure kids have proper adult supervision.

Image credit: @coleyraeh

46. Maple candy

Have you ever tried or made maple candy? All you need to make this delicious treat is some pure maple syrup and snow! You’ll need to help your little ones, though, as you first have to heat the syrup before pouring it hot into the snow to solidify. Grown-up supervision is a must. For the full set of directions, check out this awesome maple syrup snow candy post from our friends at Little Bins for Little Hands.

Image credit: @sage.and.summit

47. Snowshoeing

Snowshoeing is essentially winter hiking over the snow. You need special snowshoes to do this, but they’re not expensive and can even be rented very cheaply in many places. Snowshoeing is a great way to get the whole family outside together for fresh air and exercise. We’ve got a great beginner’s guide to snowshoeing with kids to help you get started with this fun family snow day activity. 

Photo credit: @the.meadow.house

48. Ice skating

A snow day is the perfect time to try ice skating – particularly at an outdoor rink. There’s something magical about skating outside when it’s frosty cold. Most rinks have rental skates for kids as young as two, along with buckets or rails for little kids to hold onto. If your kids are little, we also recommend wearing a bike helmet and super thick gloves to protect kids’ heads and fingers.

Image credit: @thereluctantexplorers

49. Freezing bubbles

Blowing a bubble and watching it turn to ice is such a fascinating activity. If it’s super cold outside (below freezing), try making frozen bubbles! This is a great science experiment for kids in freezing temperatures. It might take a few different attempts to get a bubble to freeze, depending on time, sunlight, what the bubble lands on and bubble solution. Check out our full post on making frozen bubbles, which has tips and a great homemade solution that works! You may want to chill the bubble solution in the fridge or freezer before using it outside, to help with the freezing process. And if your breath is too warm, try waving the wand to make the bubbles instead. 

50. Frozen clothes

Freezing and posing clothing seems to be all the rage right now! It’s such a simple and silly way to have some fun with your kids. All you need to do is soak some clothing in water and then set outside to freeze. Then, reshape the clothing to look like it’s being worn and stand it up in the yard! Set up a whole scene and astonish the neighbors! 

Image credit: @destinationmommy

51. Snow tic-tac-toe

Playing tic-tac-toe outside in the winter is so much fun for kids. There are a variety of ways you can set up a game outdoors. Use 4 large sticks to create a board on the snowy ground and then use colored water in spray bottles to designate your X or O marking. Or use pinecones, leaves or rocks for Os and 2 sticks to make Xs. 

52. Eat an icicle

Icicles are nature-made popsicles, just hanging there ready for a lick! Let kids be kids and give them the chance to taste an icicle this winter. The next time you have a snow day, go on a hunt for icicles. Be careful getting them down, as they can be very sharp. For extra awesomeness, dip it in sugar!

Image credit: @ashleeboonephotography

53. Snow day picnic

When it’s warm outside, we practically eat every meal outdoors on our back patio. Why should winter stop us from enjoying delicious food with a side of fresh air and snow? Use your snow day to spend a little extra time outside and host a winter picnic for your kids. We recommend serving warm and savory non-messy and easy-to-eat foods, if possible. Fill a thermos with vegetable soup, chicken noodle soup, chili, stew, lentil soup, ramen, or macaroni & cheese. If you’re not using your thermos for food, use it for drinks like hot chocolate, hot tea, or warm apple cider. If you don’t feel like taking a whole meal outside, let them eat a special treat outside like donuts or cookies. 

54. Snow angels

Making snow angels is a quintessential snow day childhood outdoor activity. This activity needs no real explanation or instruction, but there are a few things you can do to make it more fun for kids. After the kids make the snow angel, let them decorate them! It’s really funny to see hollow snow angels on the ground with pinecones for eyes, sticks for hair, and a red berry mouth!

Image credit: @thevacationcastleguy

55. Snow castles

Sandcastles are all the rage in the summer, but building snow castles on a snow day can be just as much fun! Get out your sandcastle-building equipment (cups, bowls, shovels, etc.) and do the same in the snow! Create elaborate castles with moats and leaf flags. Bring out the army men, Barbies, or characters and make an entire town. Add some colored water to give it a whole new look! There are so many fun things to build in the snow.

Image credit: @stephanieruff.lifestories

56. Study snowflakes

There’s nothing more magical in the wintertime than snowflakes! If you’ve ever seen photos of individual snowflakes up close, you know just how truly miraculous and incredible they are. Take some time this winter to study snowflakes with your kids. Talk about how snowflakes are formed, how/why they’re similar, but all unique. Use a piece of black felt to try to catch falling snowflakes to observe and see if you can even photograph them.

Image credit: @destinationmommy

57. Snow kitchen

Snow day activities should be fun and creative. Make good use of that mud kitchen in the winter by using it as a snow kitchen! Let your kids play with some mixing bowls, utensils, and pie pans to make all kinds of snow delicacies. Snow cakes and snow pies, sundaes, and snowshakes. Let the kids decorate their creations with twigs, leaves, and pebbles (or whatever natural materials they can find outside).

Image credit: @sara_mccarty

58. Acts of kindness

Snow day activities are a great time to consider doing some acts of kindness for others, particularly those that can’t get around well outside in the snow and ice. If you have kids old enough to help, shovel the sidewalk or driveway of an elderly neighbor or new parents. Salt local walkways or paths. Scrape off windshields or help clear paths for delivery drivers. They’re all guaranteed to appreciate the kindness. 

Want more ideas? Here are 20+ ways to be kind to nature and outdoor acts of kindness for kids. 

59. Outdoor hot chocolate stand

You’ve heard of lemonade stands in the summer, so why not a hot chocolate stand in the winter? This is one of our most clever snow day activities for kids. Get your kids into the entrepreneurial spirit by letting them set up and host a hot chocolate stand. There probably won’t be a lot of traffic out and about on a snow day, so invite nearby friends and neighbors to participate. This type of activity is great for teaching kids about hard work, customer service, counting money, etc. 

60. Ice bricks

Most educational resources will tell you how important it is for kids to learn how to play with simple blocks and stacking bricks. We definitely agree, but we want to put our own twist on it by taking it outside! And in the winter, why not make ice bricks for building for an even more enjoyable experience. All you need to do for this snow day activity is freeze water in various size containers. Make small blocks using ice cube trays and larger ones using Tupperware. Add a few drops of food coloring to the water to make colored ice blocks. Pop them all out of their containers on the ice-cold sidewalk and let the kids get creative!

61. Ice bowling

Keep your kids outside and occupied for hours with ice bowling! All you need are 10 water bottles and a balloon. Fill all the water bottles with colored water and place them outside or in the freezer to freeze solid. Leave room at the top or leave the lid off to give the water room to expand as it freezes so it doesn’t distort the bottom of the bottle, keeping them from standing upright on a flat surface. Fill a round balloon with water and freeze to make a round bowing ice ball. Once it’s all frozen solid, take outside and set up a bowling lane! The bottles are the pins and the ice water balloon is the ball. Teach your kids how to keep score and it becomes an educational math activity as well!

Image credit: typicalmummy.co.uk

62. Snow tree faces

You may have heard of making mud faces on trees…this is same, but only with snow! For this fun snow day activity, all you have to do is pack some snow on the side of a tree trunk and then mold it into a funny face. You can add rocks, leaves, sticks or berries to make facial features. 

Image credit: @my.homespun.life

63. Outdoor hot tub

Who says you can’t swim outside in the winter?! If you have the opportunity, let your kids experience the fun of “swimming” (or soaking) in an outdoor hot tub on your next snow day. Hot tubing is a great snow day activity for kids. There’s something really special about being enveloped in warm water while it’s snowy and cold outside. The contrast is invigorating! You don’t need an actual hot tub, you can make your own! Fill a big bucket, tub, or kiddie pool with warm water and let the littles soak. But as always, use caution and adult supervision. Kids shouldn’t spend very much time in hot tubs at the risk of overheating their small bodies.

Photo credit: @maakitude

64. Skiing/snowboarding

Take advantage of the fresh powder and hit the slopes on a snow day. Skiing and snowboarding with kids is incredibly exhausting, but so much fun! Pack up your gear and head for the hills to take advantage of all the fun the winter has to offer. If your kids are new to skiing, we highly recommend you read our beginner’s guide to downhill skiing with kids. Or get the kids a lesson or ski school before hitting the slopes. Instructors are usually really great with kids and teach them in a way that’s fun and easy to understand. Once they’ve gotten the hang of it, they can show off their new skills with you.

What are your child’s favorite snow day activities?
What do you like to do on a snow day outside?
What are the best indoor snow day activities?

The post 60+ Indoor & Outdoor Snow Day Activities for Kids 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

The post Nature Books for Little Naturalists appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Bring the beauty of nature inside

With all of us being in our homes a little more than usual lately, it’s more important than ever to bring nature inside to us. We’re always looking for ways to bring more nature into our indoor lives and fun ways to stay entertained. Flower suncatchers are the perfect combination. This is a fun and super easy DIY project that you can do with kids of all ages. It’s easy to get the whole family involved in the process. Let’s get started with what you will need!

Gather your supplies

The beauty of this DIY flower suncatcher is that you probably have all of these items sitting at home. No need to leave your house, except to go pick some flowers! And since we’re all about getting kids outside, this is my favorite part of the process! Here are all the supplies you’ll need: 

• Paper plates (preferably the old school ones, not foam plates)
• Markers or paint
• String or yarn
• Press N Seal wrap
• Hole punch
• Scissors
• Flowers, leaves, grass, etc

Go flower picking

The first thing you need to do is to collect your flowers. Time to grab all the kids and get them outside to explore! Give them their mission to find as many flowers, leaves, foliage, grass, etc. as they’d like to use. Spend this time getting some of that energy out so they’ll be ready to focus on the craft when you get home! We chose to use a flower pot that was sitting around to put all of our treasures in. You can use whatever you have at home (bag, box, bowl, etc.)!

If you want to protect tiny hands, you can take along a pair of gloves. Not necessary, but may be a good option if you’ll be picking thorny flowers. Have fun with the flower picking portion of this project! Make it an adventure! Choosing different shapes, sizes, and colors will make each suncatcher unique!

Instructions for making a flower suncatcher

Step 1: Cut out the center circle from the paper plates.

Step 2: Once you have cut out all the circles, let the kids decorate the front of the paper plates. You can use colors, markers, paints, stickers or whatever else you have on hand. 

Step 3:  Place a sheet of the wrap paper on the front of the plate. Turn it over and add flowers. Next, place another sheet of the wrap paper on top and press the plate flat to allow the two pieces to stick together.

Step 4: Use the scissors to cut off any excess wrap around the edges.

Step 5: Punch two holes in the top and add your string so you can hang it up!

Show and share

See, I told you it was easy! Making DIY flower suncatchers is such a fun project for kids and a great way to display your nature treasures. The kids were so incredibly proud of their suncatchers. They added nature elements and fun color to our space and reminded us of our fun outing.

Are you ready to make your own DIY flower suncatcher? We want to see it! Post a photo of your suncatcher on social media and use the hashtag #runwildmychildDIY so we can see and share your creations! 

About the author

I’m Kathleen, wife to my high school sweetheart and mama to 3 energetic littles. I’m a photographer in love with telling compelling stories of life’s beautiful chaos and photographing families authentically. I am slightly obsessed with window light, Saturday morning snuggles, and documenting our adventures. We recently took the biggest leap of faith of our lives and are currently traveling full-time around the United States in our RV!

You can follow our adventures in the following locations:
Website: www.faithboundtravel.com
YouTube: Faith Bound Travel
Instagram at @faithboundtravel
Other RWMC posts from Kathleen: Kathleen

The post DIY Flower Suncatcher appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Fall in the kitchen

For me, being outside and being in the kitchen are two of the most therapeutic places. In one place you can quite literally get lost amongst the sights, sounds, and smells of nature. In the other, you have ingredients to marry, creating an entirely different set of delights to saturate the senses. This time of year is one of the best times to blend those two worlds, all while including the kids.

By now you may have had the fortune to visit an apple orchard or pumpkin patch. If you’re like my family, you can’t walk away from either without a few bushels of the literal fruits of your labor. And, after a few days of your kitchen overflowing with said goods, you’re at a loss as to just what to do with all your fruit.

That’s where we come in! We’ve compiled a list of five fun, easy, delicious, apple/pumpkin kid-friendly treats that you can make together as a family.

But first…

Do a little prep before you get started

Before everyone is corraled into the kitchen, do just a little legwork at the front end to make the process as smooth as possible for everyone.

Select a few recipes you think you and your family would enjoy. Read through said recipes to make sure you 1) have all the necessary ingredients 2) it’s not too difficult that the kids (and you) will get frustrated. Pull out your ingredients, measuring cups/spoons, mixers, bowls, baking sheets, etc. and have them ready to go so you’re not wasting precious time. We all know how short our kids’ attention spans can be.

Get the kids in the kitchen

More often than not, when cooking or baking, I like to go at it alone. But, when it comes to making family treats, I welcome the help of my kids. They are always thrilled when I tell them we’re going to bake together. With some guidance and direction, I’m always amazed at how well they do. Turning a blind eye to the spilled flour, or knocked over salt, comes with the territory. Much like when we go outside to play in the rain, we expect the kids to get wet and muddy. The same concept applies here. It all cleans up in the end.

Know when to fold ’em

This probably goes without saying, but know when to let them do things themselves and know when to step in. Most kids love being able to do grown-up things (like operate a mixer or use a knife) themselves. Give them as much freedom and independence as you can, but know when to step in. Are the kids losing interest? Is there a step in the recipe that seems too advanced for them to complete? Let them experience as much of the baking process as possible, but step in when needed. You’ll save them from potential injury, serious mishaps, or a botched recipe, as well as saving your sanity.

Five fall treats to make with kids

The hardest part of this post on fall treats to make with kids was narrowing it down to just five recipes. I fell down the rabbit hole of autumn-inspired recipes – there are so many good ones! Anything with apples and cinnamon or pumpkins sounded amazing. I wanted to make them all! I decided to let the kids help me choose and they voted on three recipes to try (we bookmarked others to make later).

Full disclosure, I steered the kids in the direction of baking more traditional fruit-filled treats. I know my kids and know that any recipe involving marshmallow teeth and chocolate chip eyes would result in those items being devoured. The sad-looking apple or pumpkin snack would be left to a fate in the rubbish pile. However, it’s safe to say, anytime the kids are allowed the hand-mixer or apple peeler, they think being in the kitchen is fun!

Without further adieu, here are five fun, easy, and delicious fall treats to make with your kids.

1. Apple Crisp

This apple crisp is easy and comes together quickly, but tastes like you were in the kitchen for hours. The kids shook up our apples and did most of the ingredient dumping and dry-ingredient mixing, which is their favorite part of helping. The layers of cinnamony apples and the more than generous layer of crumble topping are positively drool-worthy. We had enough to share with neighbors, who ended up asking us for more. This is a recipe has been in my fall-recipe wheelhouse for years, and there’s no sign of stopping.

2. Apple Peanut Butter Teeth

These adorable apple peanut butter teeth are one of those snacks that look so cute and beyond easy. It involves zero baking and are super fun for the kids to prepare and assemble themselves in only a minute or two. All you need to do is spread peanut butter (sun butter, cookie butter or apple butter) on one side of two slices of apple.  Arrange a line of mini marshmallows on one side of the apple and put them together to make an apple mouth filled with teeth! Easy peasy!

This is one of those snacks my kids voted to make, but we didn’t (hence, no photo). I already know that my kids would have one-hundred percent picked out the marshmallow teeth to eat and left the rest of the goods to spoil. When I’m feeling brave enough to part with perfectly good apples we’ll make this one. That said if your kids will eat more of this snack than mine, be sure give this cute snack a try. It would be great for hungry after-school tummies.

3. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I couldn’t put this post together without including some sort of cookie. This pumpkin spin on the classic chocolate chip was so good it did not last long in my house. The kids were central in the creation of the dough, and even more vital in the role of devouring. Though these didn’t stick around long, they made for great after school snacks. It was also fun to slip into the kids’ lunchboxes as a little at-school treat. Since the last morsel has been polished off, I’ve had multiple requests for these to be made again.

4. Pumpkin Pie Parfaits

These awesome little pumpkin pie parfaits are another easy no-bake treat! I was (and still am) itching to make these cute little pumpkin treasures with layers of pumpkin-spiced pudding, whipped topping and cookie crumbs. These are also easy enough for kids to make and you can keep them stored in little jars in the fridge for when hunger strikes. To make the pudding, combine vanilla pudding with a can of pumpkin and some traditional pumpkin pie spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and ground cloves. Next, grab some whipped cream and let the kids crush some vanilla sandwich cookies in a plastic bag (why sure, you can use a hammer!). Line up nine half-pint jars and layer the ingredients starting with the cookie crumbs, followed by pudding and whipped topping.

As much as I wanted to make these, that little voice in my head told me the kids would eat just the whipped cream. Which would inevitably lead to me eating all of the leftovers. While that sounds glutinously glorious, my jeans will likely thank me for opting to wait on these. These parfaits can be altered in multiple ways to fit your desired taste. And, they only take about 10-minutes to make. If you can convince your kids to eat past the whipped cream, please give these a try!

5. Apple Chips

Last, but certainly not the least of the fall treats to make with kids are these crisp gems – apple chips! Who knew that apple chips would be so mind-blowingly easy to make. I gave the kids the reign of our apple peeler/corer/slicer, and they thought it was even better than the hand-mixer. I swear, it’s the little things…

This was our first go at these, and my kids ravenously attacked them. We blew through about a dozen apples in two days thanks to this snack. I discovered this is the perfect way to get the kids to eat the not-so-perfect apples, which they tend to reach past. I also found these were great for packing in school lunches. Since our last chip has disappeared the request for these has been made almost daily.

If you only try one of our suggested recipes, I urge it to be this one!

5 easy fall-inspired recipes to make with kids

There you have it! Five super easy and insanely delicious fall treats to make with kids with goodies you bring home from the pumpkin patch or apple orchard. Let your kids have some fun in the kitchen with the fruits of their labor and create some delicious snacks. Getting them involved in the process from beginning to end not only teaches them about where food comes from, but helps them develop a skill and makes them appreciate the snacks even more.

Have you tried any of these?
What are your favorite fall treats to make with kids?

I’m Desirée; wife to Scott, mom to Marcus and Julia. I’m the domestic engineer (that’s my fancy term for stay-at-home-mom) of the family. Our family loves the outdoors. Our favorite ways to explore are hiking the coastal trails, as well as combing the tide pools for aquatic treasures. To quench our thirst for wide-open spaces beyond the hustle and bustle of our urban jungle we love to visit state and national parks, as well as conservation areas and nature preserves.

You can find more from Desirée in the following locations:

Instagram: @desireemacke
Cookie business: @coolingrackconfections
Website: Macke Monologues
Cookie Facebook: Cooling Rack Confections
All RWMC posts: Desirée Macke

The post Five Easy Fall Treats to Make With Kids from the Orchard or Patch appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

The most wonderful time of the year

The temperature is finally dropping in our neck of the woods and Fall is officially here! Since having children, Fall has easily become my favorite time of year. We love all things Fall – apple orchards, pumpkin patches, Halloween, cooler temperatures, colorful leaves and more. As a mother and a teacher, I love to create fun and simple Halloween activities for my kids to enjoy. Even better…they love it too! Today, I want to share a few fun and simple Halloween activities that you can do with your child, nieces, nephews, grandchildren or even your neighbor’s kids!

Fun and simple Halloween activities for kids

What do you think of when you think of Halloween? Spiders and ghosts and witches, oh my! These are some of our favorite spooky things, so of course, we need to include them in some fun Halloween sensory play. Read on if you want to wow your kids and have a little fun!

1. Shaving cream ghosts

Shaving cream ghosts are probably the most simple of these Halloween activities for kids, but one of the most loved. Prep for this activity is super easy. All you need is a can or two of shaving cream, some googly eyes and a tray. I have some cute plastic serving trays that I use for many of these activities.

For shaving cream ghosts, spray lots of shaving cream in the tray and toss in lots of different googly eyes of different sizes and colors. Have the kids put their hands in the shaving cream and come up with a ghost! The kids love the texture and the messiness of the shaving cream. It’s fun to see what kind of ghosts they create. For extra fun, you can add in little plastic spiders. Or use orange or green food coloring or liquid watercolor to make shaving cream pumpkins or Frankensteins.

2. Monster handprints

Monster handprints are another super simple and fun Halloween activity. For these, you need paper, paint, googly eyes, as well as glitter, glue, and stickers. Have your children make paint handprints on their paper. Then they can add googly eyes and stickers to create their own individual monsters. My kids used triangle stickers to give their monster hands sharp nails. Once the handprints have dried, you can use school glue to make fun designs and add glitter.

3. Fall leaves tree

Looking for more of a Fall activity? Use what nature’s provided to make a fall leaves tree. Take your kids outside for a nature walk and collect lots of colorful leaves. Use a large piece of paper to draw a simple tree. Then have your kids use school glue to decorate the tree. Hang it up to keep a little bit of the outdoors indoor! For more fun, you could collect other items like sticks, acorns, and pinecones to make a Fall wreath or collage.

4. Foaming spiders

Do you have a little more time on your hands for prep work? You should definitely make some foaming spiders! I found this activity years ago at Fun at Home with Kids. Your kids will love these cute spiders and the fun little surprise inside them!

To make the spiders, you will need baking soda, water, and food coloring. Mix about 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1/4 cup of water in a bowl (for colored spiders add a little food coloring or liquid watercolor to the water). Mix well until all of the baking soda is damp. Take a handful of the mixture and put some small plastic spiders inside. Then add more of the mixture to cover the spiders and round them out, making the spider’s abdomen. Cut four pipe cleaners in half and stick them in the spider’s abdomen to make eight legs. Then use the rest of the baking soda mixture to form the spider’s head. Once you have made all of your spiders, place them on wax paper and freeze them for a few hours. If you freeze them overnight, you will want to let them thaw slightly before playtime.

When you’re ready to play with these spiders, add some vinegar and a little bit of dish soap to a shallow dish. Mix it up and carefully add your spiders. The spiders will foam and start to dissolve! Watch as your children get super excited about this and find all the baby spiders!

5. Candy corn sensory play

Candy corn sensory play is another super simple, but very fun Halloween activity for kids. All you need for this activity is a tray, a few bags of candy corn, some plastic spiders and lots of small dishes, spoons, and scoops. I use the same plastic trays for this activity that we used for the shaving cream ghosts.

Simply dump candy corn and spiders into a tray and provide lots of scooping dishes and spoons to encourage sensory play. This is an activity that can easily be adapted by changing what you place in the tray (ideas: rubber eyeballs, gummy worms, squishy eyeballs, other Halloween candy, etc.). Encourage your child to sort objects, count objects, practice scooping, use tweezers to pick up objects, and more.

6. Witches stew

Witches stew is probably my kids’ favorite Halloween activity! This is a very simple idea, but is so fun and creative. For this activity, you first need to boil some spaghetti noodles. Add some orange or green food coloring or liquid watercolor for extra witchy fun. Then, gather up lots of random Halloween items like candy corn, plastic spiders, gooey eyeballs. Basically anything small you can find in the Halloween section at the store. You will also need a tray for your items, spoons, scoops, and bowls. Lastly, you will need some baking soda and vinegar for a little extra added fun. Years ago I came across a super cute witches caldron and we use it for this activity also.

Once you have all of your witch ingredients, have your kids grab their witch hats and get to work! The kids will love mixing all of the ingredients. The best part is adding the baking soda and vinegar to make the stew really fizz!

7. Ice ghosts

Ice ghosts is a fun activity that needs to be prepared ahead of time. To prepare them, simply mix one part water with two parts baking soda to create a damp mixture. Then place a bit into each hole of an ice tray and add googly eyes to each hole. Freeze for an hour or two. For playtime, put the ice ghosts in a shallow dish and give your child a little bowl of vinegar. We used tiny droppers to drop vinegar on the ghosts. The kids loved watching them fizz and slowly dissolve. One of the best parts was dropping the whole ghost into the bowl of vinegar to create tiny little volcanos.

8. Spider slime

Let’s face it, slime is fun all year round and it’s so easy to change it up for any holiday. Spider slime is probably one of my kids and my own favorites for Halloween. To make spider slime, all you need to do is use your favorite slime recipe and add plastic spiders!

My favorite slime recipe is made using two bottles of school glue (5 0z), about 10 ounces of water and 8 ounces of liquid starch. You can use clear school glue or colored school glue, depending on how you want your slime to look. In a large bowl, pour the two bottles of school glue and then add the water. Slowly add about half of the liquid starch and stir. Continue to slowly add liquid starch until the mixture soaks up the water and looks like a glob of goo. You may not need all of the liquid starch. Use your hands to knead the slime until it is not sticky. Last, add the spiders and get ready to play!

My kids love stretching out the slime and picking spiders from it, only to put them back in and start over. You can get creative with your slime by adding a little bit of glitter, using different colored glue, adding confetti or other small Halloween items.

9. Play-doh pumpkins

Play-doh pumpkins are super fun and an easy Halloween activity for kids. All you need is orange play-doh, green pipe cleaners, and little beads or pattern blocks. We have done this activity in a few different ways. We have made round pumpkins from the play-doh and we have also made flat pumpkins to decorate. Black beads are a simple tool to use to create the pumpkin faces. Another fun way to practice and play with shapes is to use pattern blocks for your pumpkin face. For extra fun, use a plastic fork to create lines and make your pumpkin look scarier!

This is such a simple activity that can be adapted in many ways. We have also used different colored play-doh, pipe cleaners and googly eyes to create play-doh monsters. This is one of my son’s favorites. You might even want to use green play-doh to make your own Frankenstein!

10. Wiggly monster eyes

Finally, our last fun and simple Halloween activity for kids is wiggly monster eyes. These are a hit because not only are they fun to play with, but they are edible! To make jiggly monster eyes you just need jello (your choice of color/flavor), raisins and plastic Easter eggs. Make the jello as directed and then you will pour it into one side of a plastic egg. Drop-in a raisin and place it in the fridge to get firm. When you pop them out of the shell solidified, they look like creepy eyeballs! That’s it! Dump the wiggly monster eyes into a shallow dish and let your kids play!

10 Easy Halloween activities for kids

And there you have it! 10 super fun and easy Halloween activities for kids. These activities are easy to put together and can be adapted and made into your own. Get creative and have fun!

What Halloween activities are you going to try with your kids this year?

Brandi
Maryland
@brandimarkham

Hello, I’m Brandi! My husband & I live just outside of Washington, DC with our three littles. They are my favorite people in the world & my biggest inspiration. I am a full-time elementary teacher & a part-time photographer, but mostly I enjoy photography as a hobby. I love chocolate, animals, & nature! Summer is my favorite because we get to spend all of our time outdoors!

For more from Brandi, check out all her RWMC posts.

The post Fun & Simple Halloween Activities for Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Favorite fall books and activities for outdoor kids

Fall is starting to make an appearance here in southeastern Virginia and we couldn’t be more excited! In our house, we love to match the books we’re reading to the current season or approaching holidays. We recently took a trip to our local library to check out almost every book in the fall children’s book section to kick-start fall. Today, I’m sharing some of our favorite fall children’s books and providing a fun family activity to do with each book. Whether you’re a homeschooler, a parent of children not yet in school, or a parent of school-aged kids, these fall books and activities will be sure to enrich your child’s learning while fully embracing the beauty of the season!

Choosing the books

In order to choose the best books possible, I used a VERY official and scientific method of measurement. My kids. We checked out a dozen fall nature-inspired books from our local library and read them all. If they asked to read a book again the instant we finished, it passed the test. I kept the ones they wanted to read multiple times and returned the rest! Here are 5 of our favorite fall books and an activity to go with each one!

Book 1: Because of an Acorn by Adam and Lola M. Schaefer

Because of an Acorn is a wonderful fall book about how all living things are connected. You’ll love both the story and the illustrations! Children are often amazed that giant oak trees all start as tiny little acorns. The book does a great job of showing how every tree, plant and animal in the forest are connected and tied to each other.

Activity: Acorn characters

Once you’re finished reading the book, take a little nature walk to collect some acorns, caps and tiny sticks. While you’re out exploring, you can discuss what kind of trees produce acorns and how to identify them! My kids had fun looking up at the leaves on each tree to see which ones were oaks and then looking around on the ground below to see if any acorns had dropped.

Once you get home, use your treasures to make little characters! We used tacky glue but I’m sure many different kinds of glue will work. If you have very small children, you may want to have them lay out the character and then leave the gluing part to a grownup! Once your characters are dry, you can draw on eyes if you’d like and then head back out into the woods to create tiny houses for them! You can break this activity up into multiple days or take a whole afternoon for it! The kids will have so much fun creating little families and then using imaginative play to make them come to life. And the best part is all that wonderful fresh fall air you’ll get from the time spent outside!

Book 2: It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown by Charles M. Shultz

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown is a childhood classic! Linus, Charlie and the rest of the Peanuts gang await the arrival of the Great Pumpkin on Halloween night. I wasn’t surprised that my kids really loved this one, because they love any Peanuts book! This book’s been around so long that it’s not only a new favorite of theirs, but a classic favorite of mine from childhood. I love being able to share that with them.

Activity: Painted rocks

In the story, one of the Peanuts characters gets rocks instead of treats during trick-or-treating, so we decided to go collect some rocks to paint. Once the boys had found the perfect rocks, we took them home, rinsed them, and dried them. Then we used acrylic paints to decorate them like pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Once they were dry, we headed to a park nearby to hide the rocks in fun places to be discovered by others! My kids are always excited when they find painted rocks at our park so we decided to keep that ball of fun rolling by placing some of our own there for other kids to enjoy.

Book 3: Stumpkin by Lucy Ruth Cummins

Stumpkin is the cutest little book about a pumpkin with no stem that never gets picked to be purchased and brought home. My kids love wordplay and making up words by putting other words together, so they were already hooked by the title. They really loved the illustrations and asked to take extra time on each page to enjoy the pictures. This one was a big hit!

Activity: Jack-o-lantern volcanoes

Once you’re finished with Stumpkin, a fun activity to do with the kids is to carve small pumpkins and then make “volcanoes” out of them. If you’ve enjoy doing science/STEM experiments at home, you’ve probably already used baking soda and vinegar for other projects. But have you ever watched the chemical reaction take place inside a jack-o-lantern?! It’s so much fun! The kids will love watching the bubbles come out of all the holes. In addition to the baking soda and vinegar, we also used some dish soap because I had read that it bubbles up more and I do think it worked!

Book 4: Fall Leaves by Loretta Holland

Fall Leaves is a really gorgeous picture book about the beauty of this magical season. Part poetry and part silent pages, this book showcases just how pretty fall is when the leaves change color and the whole world turns red, orange and yellow. 

Activity: Fall leaf art project

This activity is so much fun and goes perfectly with the beautiful artwork in the Fall Leaves book! It’s also really easy and the kids loved it. Head out on a nature hunt to find different colored fall leaves. Once you’ve collected some, head back home to make your art.

Leaf art supplies:

• water color paints
• paintbrushes
• water
• straws
• paper
• glue
• the leaves you’ve collected

Once you have the supplies, instruct the children to use the paintbrush to get lots of water and some paint on the brush. Then have them make a “puddle” of water on the bottom of their paper. Use the straw to blow the water upward and out to make the trunk and branches of a tree.

When they’re finished with the trunk and branches, have them pick their favorite leaves to glue onto the branches. This project is great for building and developing fine motor skills, so feel free to have them create more than one tree!

Book 5: Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn by Kenard Pak

Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn is another beautiful book about the changing seasons. In this book, a young girl takes a walk through forest and town, greeting all the signs of the coming autumn season. In a series of conversations with every flower and creature and gust of wind, she says good-bye to summer and welcomes autumn.

Activity: Fall leaf art with crayons

If you’re like us, you have all sorts of old, broken crayons hanging around the house! These projects are a great way to use up some of those crayons. They’re also perfect activities for families who live in areas that don’t have season changes! You don’t need to use any real fall leaves for these projects but can still make some art that celebrates the autumn season. Both of these actives are a throwback to my own childhood and were very nostalgic for me! It was fun doing some activities with the kids that I did when I was a kid!

Option 1 – melted crayon shaving leaves

For the first crayon art project, you’ll need:

• a cloth towel
• crayons
• a vegetable peeler or scissors
• wax paper
• an iron
• construction paper

Obviously, with that list of supplies, it’s important for an adult to be around to help out with the project! Depending on how old your kids are, you’ll either have them make crayon shavings using whatever tool you have around, or you’ll have them pick the colors and you can do the shavings for them. Put all the shavings in a pile and set aside.

Next, use construction paper to cut out the trunk and branches of a tree (or several!). You will use it to create a fall scene on the wax paper. You can do one tree with some construction paper grass, multiple trees, whatever you like! Once you have the parts of your scene cut out from construction paper, place them on a sheet of wax paper to begin creating your fall scene.

After the construction paper parts are in place, have your child take the crayon shavings and sprinkle them wherever they want fall leaves to be. Once everything is where you want it to be, place a second sheet of wax paper on top. Then place the towel on top of everything. Use a hot iron (job for a grownup!) to seal the two pieces of wax paper together. This will also create a beautiful effect with the crayon shavings because it will melt them together! So much fun!

Option 2 – leaf rubbings

The second fall art activity you could do with crayons is make leaf rubbings! My kids LOVE doing this. It’s such a simple, timeless activity. When the kids see the leaf prints starting to appear, they light up with joy! My kids could do a hundred leaf rubbings and still be excited every time they see the leaf print appearing on the paper.

If you’ve never done this before, you only need some paper (computer paper works great), crayons, and leaves! Any leaves will do – they don’t have to be fall-colored. Place the leaf underneath the sheet of paper, hold it down carefully, and rub the SIDE part of an unwrapped crayon back and forth on top of the paper. You’ll see the shape of the leaf appearing on the paper!  Leave them on the larger sheets of paper or cut them out. As my kids would say- easy, peasy, lemon-squeezy!

Favorite fall books and activities for kids

And there you have it! 5 beautiful fall books and activities for kids. Not only will you and the kids love these beautiful books, but the accompanying activities are some that the whole family will enjoy! This should definitely keep your little ones active, inspired, and excited about reading and nature.

What’s your favorite fall book for kids?

About the author

Hi there, I’m Chelsea! I’m a photographer, mother of two busy boys, and sunshine and fresh air addict. We live in Virginia Beach, Virginia and spend as much time outdoors as we possibly can! We spend most of our time exploring the beach, inlets, and nature trails nearby. We love biking, hiking, paddleboarding, kayaking, building forts, and playing in the sand! During the warm months, you can find us enjoying the Chesapeake Bay almost every night until long after the sun goes down. We’re doing our best to reduce our carbon footprint and always try to leave every trail cleaner than it was when we arrived.

You can find Chelsea online in the following locations:
Instagram: @dimples.and.the.blonde
Client work: @chelsea.lyn.photography
Website: dimplesandtheblonde.com

More RWMC posts from Chelsea:

• 15 Water Activities for Kids & Ways to Get Active on the Water
• Earth Day Activities for Kids
• Healing Anxiety with Nature
• Beginner’s Guide to Stand-Up Paddleboarding with Kids
• Eco-Friendly Holidays
• Skateboarding with Kids 101

The post 5 Fantastic Fall Books and Activities for Kids appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Getting out can be difficult

This past winter began with the best intentions of spending lots of time outside and doing lots of outdoor exploration. We were excited to bear witness to the changes that happen during the cold season. We love learning about creatures and wintertime habitats as they survive the cold temperatures. Watching the sky colors change, catching snowflakes, and sliding about on frozen paths were all on our winter bucket list. There is so much beauty and wonder in our world during the winter season.

However, as the winter passed, we also began to feel it’s brutality. Record-breaking lows, piles and piles of snow, slippery ice, power outages, school closures, early darkness and dangerous road conditions kept us inside more than we expected. As beautiful as the winter can be, it can also feel isolating and dreary. We faced one polar vortex after another. The negative temperatures and brutal conditions halted our winter outdoor play. Even after properly bundling up, sometimes it was just too much for the kids to endure and enjoy.

This is also the time when seasonal depression can set in. We can feel trapped in our own homes and hopeless in winter. We crave sun, warmth, and the reawakening that spring brings. Kids feel this, too. After the initial appeal of sensory bins, indoor tea parties, new holiday toys, living room obstacle courses, dance parties, and basement forts has worn off, we just want to get back outside and into nature. We desperately want to hike, camp, fish,  garden, swim, and enjoy the beauty of our outdoor world. 

Incorporating nature into your life

I’ve found that there are may ways to combat the wintertime woes, which can also be used year-round to improve your mood and mindset. Incorporating more nature and natural elements into our daily rhythm has been therapeutic and rejuvenating. Bringing bits of the outdoors into your “indoor life” is a great way to stay connected to all the beautiful things nature provides. These elements reduce stress, relieve anxiety and refocus your attention when it’s not practical or possible to get outside. By incorporating these ideas into your daily life and routine, you can keep a healthy, positive outdoor mindset year-round.

Here are a few small things you can do to incorporate nature into your daily indoor life.

1. Sprinkle plants in every room

Bringing more plants into your home is a great way to incorporate nature into your life. Pick out a selection of plants that are easy to grow indoors. Consider where you’ll place them in your home and how much sunlight they’ll get. Make taking care of the plants a family-centered activity. Let your children choose plants for their bedrooms and let them be responsible for their own plants. Feeling ambitious, try growing an avocado from a seed. Adding plants throughout your home is such a fun hobby and a great way to get your kids involved. Plus, plants help reduce the number of airborne pollutants in your home, so it’s a win for everyone!

2. Choose natural items as decor

Another way to incorporate nature into your home is to use natural items as home decor. When choosing storage bins, accessories, and colors for your interiors, consider choosing natural-made or natural-looking items. Select a color palette inspired by your favorite garden or landscape. White and grey stone pair well in minimalist settings. Wood furnishings can be dressed up or down to suit any theme. Taupe, tan and camel are trendy neutral beachy colors that pair well with nature-inspired wall coverings or rugs. Incorporate decorative items made from wood, stone, antlers, branches/stumps, driftwood, pebbles or other textures found in nature. Paint a mural of trees or frame pressed flowers. Buy wicker baskets for storage and shelves.

3. Natural scents

You can also bring the smell of nature into your home.  You can find candles, wax melters, diffusers, and sprays in many natural scents like pine, rain, fresh cut grass, citrus, oregano, lavender or lilac. There are so many different applications to bring scents into your home to excite your sense of smell and fill your space with something fresh and natural.

4. Nature journaling

Nature journaling is a great hobby that you can do both in and outdoors with a focus on nature’s fine details. Gather a quality-made journal, pens, colored pencils, and some watercolors. Or just some scrap paper and your kids’ crayons! No need to be fancy. Take your time and draw nature. You can draw what you see, copy from a photo or sketch from memory. If you need extra inspiration, go sit in a forest and journal about every detail. If you can’t draw, find a nature-themed coloring book – there are great ones for both kids and adults. Getting creative by practicing this stress-relieving form of expression is a great way to unwind with nature.

5. Indoor Herb Gardens

Incorporate nature into your life by bringing the garden indoors. You might be surprised to know how easy it is to grow edible plants in your home. All year! Simple clay pots of herbs next to a window are always a good place to start. Basil is an easy choice and will provide lots of yummy leaves for salads, pesto, pastas, and more. Turn your countertop or windowsill into a small garden with pots of your favorite herbs such as rosemary, mint, and thyme.  You can also regrow some vegetables from kitchen scraps. Try your green thumb on regrowing celery stalks, green onions and romaine hearts from leftovers. Countertop hydroponics gardens are another neat way to garden indoors. It’s easier than you think to grow everything you need to make your own salsas, salads, and more inside your home!

6. Edible flowers and fresh herbs

Another way to bring the outdoors in is to opt for edible fresh flowers and herbs to garnish and cook with.  You can do this easily by freezing them directly into ice cubes to add to your drinks. You can cut up herbs and flowers and use them to brighten up a salad or garnish a plate. Adding these bright bites into your daily meals will not only please your palate but give you a boost of antioxidants and vitamins. You can grow your own (see above) or find them at a natural grocer or your local farmer’s market.

7. Soundscapes

Tap into your auditory sense by bringing the sound of the outdoors inside. Create a nature-themed playlist that you can listen to at home, in the office, or on your commute to work. Nature has its own music – ocean/wave sounds, gentle rain, whale songs, thunderstorms, bird calls or a crackling campfire.  Close your eyes, listen carefully and connect yourself to the sound of nature for instant relaxation and stress-relief. Kids really enjoy these sounds, too and you can incorporate them into so many daily activities. Next time you’re playing with your kids, turn on the playlist and see how they react. Pretend you’re SCUBA diving while listening to whale sounds. Or hide out in a blanket fort in the basement while listening to a thunderstorm track. The meditating and playtime possibilities are endless.

8. Scroll nature

If you’re going to be online, incorporate nature into your media by following accounts and pages that share amazing shots and videos of nature, wildlife and outdoor activities. Consider this time as research to get inspired by new adventures and activities when you get back out there. Relax by looking at photos of the depths of the oceans, wildlife in the desserts, or camping under the stars. Overload your feed with all things nature. Stay connected with local farmers, garden shops, florists, and state parks. Find online nature-based communities and become involved – this is a great way to also meet other like-minded parents in your area and make new friends. Incorporating nature into screen time is a great escape to beautiful places and a nice break from the daily grind.  

9. Nature studies

Find a good nature study book or nature-based curriculum and follow along with the activities to learn new things about the outdoors. Set up a bird feeder outside your window and place a bird guide and binoculars next to it for easy access. Read about wildlife habitats, local flora and fauna, and study trail maps for hikes you’d like to go on. Learning about nature can be done through books when being outside to study isn’t possible. Learn about the plants that grow in your area and identify the trees in your neighborhood. Review animal track guide to figure out who made those footprints in your yard. There are so many ways to study nature on a daily basis that will inspire many adventures to come.  

10. Garden dreams

It’s never too early to start planning your outdoor garden space and figuring out what you’ll plant this year. Use the time and preparations indoors to kickstart a thriving outdoor garden. Research what zone you’re in, what plants grow best there and when to start planting. Learn about soil types. Start indoor seedlings. Stroll through your local nursery to get ideas and ask questions. Collect planters and supplies during the offseason when things are on sale. Gardening can be a year-long adventure and a part of your routine every day. And when you’re ready, choose some easy vegetables to grow with kids and work on your garden together.

11. Find a sunny spot

Pay attention to the times of days when the sun is shining through the windows of your home and find that super sunny spot to warm yourself and soak in the sunshine. Set up tables in that spot, play areas or cozy sitting spaces. Add a comfy chair and some pillows and turn it into a reading nook. Rotate your houseplants in this sunny spot. Notice how the light changes in that location throughout the day and at different times of the year. During the perfect time of day, when the sun is shining through, sit, play, and enjoy it’s warmth.

12. Fresh flowers

Decorating your home with bouquets of fresh flowers are a wonderful way to incorporate nature into your daily indoor life. Grab a bouquet of cut flowers during your next grocery trip. Take time to hold each flower and smell its fragrance. Carefully trim off leaves and snip the end of the stems. Place all the flowers in a vase or spit them up into lots of smaller bouquets. Spread them throughout your home in places where you spend a lot of time: next to your bed, on the kitchen counter, or on a mantle. Seeing bright bouquets can bring so much freshness and happiness to your indoor space.

13. Nature-themed play

To keep your kids connected to nature while playing indoors, choose toys that incorporate nature into your children’s daily lives. Look for toys inspired by nature or made from natural materials like wood and stone. Create nature-themed sensory bins. Bring in bowls of snow for the kids to play with and eat! Paint on collected leaves, sticks and rocks. Use loose flowers and let them make their own arrangements, dissect them to see all of their parts or use them to make flower jewelry or crowns. Create little worlds of landscapes and leave animal figures inside. Creating natural themed play areas is so satisfying for parents and kiddos and will encourage them to be curious about the world outside.

14. Nature documentaries

When getting outside isn’t possible, take advantage of the vast selection of earth and natural wonder documentaries on your streaming services. These exciting series can take you to places you’ve never even heard of and introduce you to animals you never knew existed! Choose episodes of places you dream of going or wish to revisit.  Watch as life cycles change, seasons pass, and animals travel. The calming voices and beautiful cinematography are captivating to all ages. Discuss what you see with little ones and ask them lots of questions about their favorites and interests. Use what you see to incorporate into play area themes, sounds, and journaling when you need a fresh perspective. 

15. Display nature art

Displaying nature art on the wall of your home is another easy way to incorporate nature into your indoor space. Shop thrift stores and find vintage paintings of landscapes, wildlife, herbs, plants or other natural elements. Order canvases of photos of your kids/family on your latest adventure or enjoying nature. Purchase prints from your most admired nature photographer or a local artist. Display projects that you and your family have created together, such as pressed leaves or flowers.  Switch them out through the season or with holiday decor.

16. Open the curtains

Bringing the outdoors in can be as simple as adding more light to your day. Make a morning ritual of opening the curtains and let the fresh light fill your space. This can be just as invigorating as your morning coffee and is a wonderful natural way to start your day. Bringing natural light into your home is so much better on your eyes, and aesthetically pleasing. More light will improve your mood and help your body adjust to the day. 

17. Plan celebrations

There are so many wonderful ways to celebrate nature, the seasons and holidays. Plan celebrations around the changing of the season or the full moon. Plan a garden tea party or a May Day celebration in the middle of winter. Check out some of the more obscure holidays and plan a celebration around them, such as World Wetlands Day, World Bird Day, World Soil Day, International Mountain Day and World Animal Day. Craft natural decor, design invitations, and plan a fresh menu when you are needing some nature inspiration.

18. Indoor magic gardens

Kids love creating imaginative worlds, so play to that strength using natural elements. Painted rocks, figures, and tiny accessories can turn any potted plant into a magical world. Use your child’s favorite dinosaurs, fairies, or lego figures to create a magic forest around a plant and make it special to them. Adding whimsical touches into your house plants is an inviting way to add some more focus onto them. Choose one item and move it around regularly and make a game of who notices first. 

19. Pressed flowers

Save flowers throughout the year from your bouquets, gardens, or dandelions given by kids. Find a couple of heavy books and press flowers inside sheets of wax paper. Wait a few days to reopen the pages to reveal a preserved flattened flower. These are delicate reminders of bright blooms that will lighten your space and bring back precious memories. Use the flowers in artwork and hang them on the wall. Glue them onto paper and create cards and stationery to send to friends and loved ones. Cut them up and use them to make an organic confetti mix.  

20. Botanical baths

Finally, one last way to incorporate more nature into your daily life is to literally bathe in it! Fill your tub with bubbles, salts, scents of your choice and a sprinkle of fresh or dried flower petals. This is the perfect way to warm up after a long winter day. Unwind in a botanical bliss and transport yourself to a luxurious spa after the kids are in bed. The flower petals are a perfect touch of nature to a relaxing indoor bath.

Bringing nature indoors

These are just a few fun ways to incorporate more nature into your day. If you’re looking to make some changes and bring the outdoors in, I recommend starting small. Choose one thing from these ideas and grow from there. You do not have to be an outdoorsy naturalist to reap the amazing benefits of bringing nature into your daily routines. Look for moments to bring in small touches and add them all year long. You will appreciate them during long winter days and throughout the year. Especially on days when getting outdoors wasn’t feasible. Incorporating nature into your life is important for all ages and lifestyles and can add so much value to your days.

About the author

Jessica Jackson is a homeschooling mother of three. She currently has roots planted near Kansas City, Missouri where her and her family live, grow, and explore. Growing up in Colorado, Jessica has been an avid nature explorer, hiker, and camping enthusiast since childhood. She spent some time living in the Caribbean, exploring beaches, ocean life, and island landscapes before settling into motherhood. Jessica enjoys photographing, nature journaling, and sharing about her family’s adventures.

Instagram: @irieideas

The post 20 Ways to Incorporate Nature into your Daily Life appeared first on RUN WILD MY CHILD.

Beginner’s guide to essential oils

I’m pretty sure you have at least heard the words “Essential Oils” being murmured within the last few years. It is more likely that you have at least one friend or family member who drones on and on about the greatness of those magical little bottles (guilty). But what exactly is an essential oil? In the most basic of terms an essential oil is a highly concentrated plant extract. That extract consists of all the goodness that keeps plants healthy. And lucky for us, those extracts can do much of the same for our bodies. And that, my friends, is super exciting, because it allows us to have some natural alternatives to many everyday needs. There are three main ways to use essential oils; topically, aromatically, and internally.

How to use essential oils:

Internally:

I’m actually not going to discuss internally here because it’s extremely important to use only high grade therapeutic grade oils for this. And since I can’t come into each one of your homes & make sure that’s what you are using, I’ll just leave you with that warning. I also personally believe that essential oils work great without having to use this method. So we will be moving right along, but I did want you to know that with the right essential oils, it is an option.

Topically:

When we apply oils onto our skin, they are absorbed into our bloodstream through our pores and follicles. I advise that this always be done with carrier oil. Especially when applying to children. Essential oils are very concentrated and therefore very strong. Carrier oil will help to protect the skin & slow the absorption rate of the essential oils. Some popular carrier oils are; coconut oil, olive oil, grapeseed oil, and jojoba oil.

Aromatically:

Inhaling essential oils heightens the senses and can trigger numerous healing responses in the body. Inhaling the fragrance from essential oils triggers our limbic system. This system controls heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, memory, stress levels, and hormone balance. Therefore essential oils can have some profound physiological and psychological effects.  You can simply place a drop or two in the palm of your hand, cup them around your nose and inhale deeply.

Diffusing with a diffuser also falls into the aromatically category. A diffuser disperses the oil in a micro-fine vapor into the air. This allows anyone within the room to benefit from the essential oils.

Essential oil uses:

The second best part of essential oils (the first being that they are chemical free) is how versatile they are. They can be used for everything from stress, bloating, wrinkles, sleep, bruising, colds, to house cleaning and bug repelling. There really is an oil for that!

Essential oil recipes:

We are an essential oil loving family and I try to use them as much as possible in place of store bought products. As a mother and semi health conscious being I love that I can cut some chemicals from our everyday lives. The brand that we use is Young Living. They have proven to work well for us time and time again. I trust the company with the purity and authenticity of their oils. I’ve tested all of these recipes on my family and we approve them all!

Bug repellent:

• 10 drops YL Peppermint
• 12 drops YL Thieves
• 10 drops YL Purification
• ½ cup distilled water
• ½ cup witch hazel
• 10 drops of YL Citronella (this is optional, but I always add for good measure)

Mix together in a spray bottle. Shake before each use. This recipe can be used on dogs as well.

We spend much of our summer touring around to different campgrounds in our trailer and this is our go to bug repellent. It just plain works and smells nice too. I also love that this is another alternative to using Deet.

Owie roller:

• 5 ml roller bottle
• 12 drops YL Frankincense
• 12 drops YL Lavender
• Fill the rest of the bottle with carrier oil of choice

Can be applied to bumps, lumps, scrapes, & bruises. This one is easy to carry and has saved us from many tears on hikes and outdoor explorations. It also increases the healing time of all boo-boos. This clumsy momma gets a lot of use out of this one too.

Immunity booster:

• 5 ml roller bottle
• 15 drops Thieves
• 10 drops Purification
• 10 drops Frankincense
• Fill the rest with carrier oil of choice

This is how we combat all things icky & sickie during the winter months.  We simply roll on to the bottoms of our feet first thing in the morning and last thing before we go to bed at night. AS you can see, we love the roll-ons for the convenience factor. Life is busy, but make them ahead of time and use when needed. I mean, truly, it’s so easy that my 4 and 5 year old can apply it themselves. But it makes all the difference in the world when it comes to how often and for how long we are down with some germ.  If we DO end up catching a bug, I add 10 drops of Oregano Oil to the above combo to kick that booster into overtime!

Tummy tamer:

• 5 ml roller bottle
• 15 drops Digize
• 10 drops Peppermint
• Fill the rest with carrier oil of choice

This one is to have in case of the ever dreaded stomach flu! It is a life saver for those nauseous moments. But the flu and nausea aren’t the only things this one can tame. It’s also extremely helpful for both diarrhea and constipation. I’m not exactly sure how it’s works out for those two opposite issues; I just know that it does. Like I said, family tested and approved.

The Essential things to remember about Essential oils (see what I did there?) are that they very concentrated, brand and grade of the oil does make a difference, and they are extremely versatile. This makes them a fantastic chemical free option for many daily needs.  If you would like some more information you can check out Youngliving.com. My member number is 1597647.

Gale Jenkins is a SAHM to three wonderful, yet exhausting kiddos. Is married to her best friend, who happens to be a ninja disguised as a corporate world MVP. She is an Essential Oil enthusiast. Ok, fine – Essential Oil freak is probably a more accurate description. She is also a wanna be writer, who has all the ideas & wit to be one, but lacks the discipline needed. She spends as much time as possible taking adventures in the family trailer, and when she’s not on the road, she can be found at home, dousing both herself & her children in Essential Oils.

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