10 Outdoor Fun Activities And Gifts For Kids!
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Fun Outdoor Activities And Gifts For Kids!
Why Not Turn Off the TV and Video Games, And Encourage The Kids To Play Outside For A While?
Many kids today seem nearly glued to their X-Boxes, DSs, Playstations, Wiis, Gamecubes, TVs or other electronic devices. But what ever happened to good ol' outdoor fun?
The kids in our neighborhood are unlike many in that they play outside a great deal. One of their favorite places to play is the vacant lot beside our house. Below you will find 10 of their most favorite things to do on a vacant lot. This lens (a lens is a one page website on Squidoo) is the first of a series on fun things for kids to do without a tv or computer screen!
Sure, none of these ideas listed here are new. But that's just the point. The outdoor games and activities we played as children were lots of fun! Don't you think?
Come take a stroll down memory lane, and maybe you'll even get inspired to have a "no electronics day" at your house every now and then...
I've even leave a space on the page for you to share some of your favorite outside childhood games and activities!
#1. Watergun fun!
Outdoor Activities And Gifts For Kids
Spraying one another with a stream of water! What fun on a hot summer day!
Turning the hose on someone who came running by as we were refilling our waterguns was such fun too!
At my son's karate school, they have "water fight night" once a month during the warmer months. All the kids wear their swimsuits and run around the parking lot (from which cars have been restricted) shooting not only each other, but also their karate instructors! Now how fun is that?!
Playing with waterguns often goes on closer to home too. The neighborhood kids all love it!
Waterguns
Click on a watergun to find out more about it or to make a purchase.
#2. Remote Control Vehicles
Build A Dirt Track For Your Remote Control Vehicle
Remote Control Vehicles Can Be Lots Of Fun!
When my son was a little younger, a remote control was number one on his Christmas list every year! He and his friends would race them!
Next the fun begins; driving their remote control cars over the track! Steering these as they travel quickly on a bumpy dirt track isn't as easy as one might think!
There are different trails branching off the main one, so there's a variety of ways to go. The main trail leads you, in a round about way, back to the start too, so you can keep on going for a while if you'd like!
Remote Control Vehicles On Amazon
RC Boats, Cars, and Helicopters!
#3. Climb a tree!
Fun Outdoor Activities
There was a beautiful dogwood tree in our backyard.
Wanna hear about the fun we had in it?
That wasn't the best part of the tree though. The best part was the branches. My older brother and I used to climb up in them. It was so much fun! Being way up high like that, feeling the breeze upon our skin, gave us such a wonderful feeling of freedom, peace, and joy!
There was one place up in those dogwood branches that was great for sitting. Another place, where the branches criss crossed just right, even offered us a safe place to lie down. Yes, up high in the tree! It was awesome. We'd take a book up there, lie down in the branches, and just read, enjoying the birds singing all around.
We moved to a new house, and thus a new backyard, near the end of my third year of school, but I never forgot my love of climbing trees. I remember even as a young adult climbing a tree just to get back that old feeling!
Here's a photo of my son climbing a tree on the vacant lot beside us.
#4. Ball Games and Other Outdoor Games
Hide & Seek, Freeze Tag, Ball Games, and Other Outdoor games
Active Outdoor Games!
Hide and Seek, Ball Games, and More
Hide-n-seek was always a favorite of mine, inside or out! Places like our vacant lot, where there are lots of places to hide, make it even more fun!
Yes, he's in there. Do you see him?
What's your favorite outdoor children's game?
Have Fun Outside With A Ball!
Balls of all types!
#5. Catch Fireflies..
and then let them go again.
Observing Lightning Bugs light up the dark!
Ah, the memories of warm, summer evenings!
Remember how magical fireflies used to seem to us as children? They carried their own lights with them, and turned them on and off like flashlights!
Catching Fireflies
#6. Wanna dig a hole to China?
Building pretend foxholes or WW1 trenches, even trying to dig to China!
What is it with kids and digging holes?
And yeah, seriously, I do recall trying to dig to China. Okay, I didn't really think I could dig that far, and I guess even if I could have dug straight through the center of the earth, I would have ended up somewhere in the middle of the Indian Ocean rather than China..but it was still a fun game to play! I guess kids just like to dig and explore the world around them!
Last year my son and I learned about the trenches of WWI as part of our homeschool program. My son was fascinated by all that he learned. Therefore I guess it's only natural that he and the neighborhood kids began to dig their own pretend trenches and foxholes to play in! (And yes they were truly grateful that they didn't have to LIVE in those trenches, but just play in them for an hour or so at a time! They do know that real war is not a game!)
Boy am I glad all this digging goes on on a vacant lot, and not in our own yard!
#7. Ride Bikes or Scooters!
Riding Bikes Has Long Been A Pleasure Of Childhood
But don't forget your helmet!
I bet many of you have a similar story to tell.
Sure, the neighborhood kids all love riding bikes in our cul-de-sac, but they also enjoy riding them on the vacant lot. I think they LIKE going bumpity bumpity over the rocks and tuffs of grass, and especially down the hill to the road below! After they'd built the track for their remote controls though, they often used it for riding bikes too!
Mountain Bikes
Click on a picture to find our more about that bike or to make a purchase.
Scooters - What Fun Scooters Can Be!
Great Outdoor Fun For Kids!
#8. Use Your Imagination!
Let's Pretend...
Use Your Imagination As You Play Outside
Did you take sticks and pebbles to build miniature doll houses and use twig people as the dolls? Did you draw on or cut a large cardboard box and turn it into a castle, clubhouse or a rocket to the moon?
Did you pretend you were royalty? Or a bad guy or a cop? Or maybe you role played being a settler on the prairie? Perhaps you were Lewis Or Clark, exploring the west? Or the Vikings or the Pilgrims making journeys across the ocean? Maybe you were Leonardo da Vinci in your imagination? Or a doctor or veterinarian?
When you're using your imagination, the sky's the limit!
Tell us your story!
What did you like to pretend when you were a kid?
Fetching blurbs now... please stand byI loved using my imagination, and often pretended...
Evelyn_Saenz says:
We used to build houses in the woods, search for fairy rings, make villages from twigs and acorns and splash in the brook. There were miles of woods and fields to play in. One day we made mud pies and turned them into shampoo, using the mud to "wash" our hair. Our mother sent us out of the house and locked the door until meal time.
Posted December 06, 2011
OhMe says:
I was always very imaginative and could find something to play with like May Pops
Posted December 06, 2011
stephanieelizabeth says:
I used to pretend that the window in our kitchen was the serving window at the McDonalds drive through, and me and my sister (2 years older) would take turns taking each others orders, and when we asked for French fries, we would cut up pieces of buttered toast and give them to each other. My other sister (six years older) would often make forts for us to play in. My mum used to play shopping games with food, where there would be different bowls of things kids like, such as potato chips and we would each be given like $3 and we would get to choose what we wanted with the amount of money we had. I'm not quite sure how that worked because my mum kept us on a healthy diet most of the time. I also used to play teacher alot and test my sister on her spelling.
Posted September 10, 2011
HarmonyArtMom says:
We had a playhouse so it was so many things...all the neighborhood kids came to play with us in our "fort".
Posted March 17, 2011
Tipi says:
We were outside all the time and had the advantage of a huge yard with woods all around us and more woods and a rock hill just across the road. We played "pretend" everything, dug to China, climbed trees, rode bikes and used our imaginations. I just had fun thinking of all that!
Posted January 08, 2011
Big_Joe says:
Me and a friend used to lean 2x4's on a fence, nail carpet saddles on them and play "High Chaperal" on old western we liked to watch.
Them were the good old days... Great lens, reminds me of all the fun you can have without sitting in the house.
Posted December 07, 2010
Upon-Request says:
Fun lens - We had a vacant lot at the end of our street. Some days it was filled with kids. Thanks for the memories
Posted November 28, 2009
Bonnie says:
My little bicycle was my horse. I rode it all around an empty church parking lot. The parking spaces were "stalls". Later when I was a teen, I used to find a comfy tree to climb and read....
Posted October 19, 2009
aj2008 says:
We used to try to dig to Australia, then there was the den in the woods......and lots of bike rides.
Posted August 17, 2009
ajgodinho says:
Oh yeah, we played pretend games when we were kids and though we didn't have a vacant lot next to our house, we did find vacant lots elsewhere to play. In our backyard, we pretended we were a famous band - this was with my siblings (two older sisters and a younger brothers) - We were the BGs 'cos all our nick names started with B and our last name started with G! ;)
Posted August 16, 2009
puzzlemaker says:
Yes, we pretended all the time. We had a horse pasture to play in and did play in it every single day. There was a creek through the middle of it which was always a source of interest.
Posted August 14, 2009
Momtothezoo says:
My best friend, Terri Petersen, had a phenominal imagination and totally pulled me into her adventures...we had wonderful summers together living within the realms of anything our minds could create!
Posted August 14, 2009
Nah, who cares about imaginations?!
#9. Explore Nature and Collect Things
Explore the wonders of nature!
Even keep a written record of them, if you'd like!
What about Rolypolys and Granddaddy Long-Legs? Remember looking for either of them when you were a kid? I do. Rolypolys, anyway. I wasn't as fond of Granddaddy Long Legs! I had friends who used to search for them though!
Did you collect rocks, leaves, feathers, seeds, or anything else you found out in nature? My son has quite a few nature collections, including everything from feathers to rocks to bones!
Why not suggest your kids grab a notebook and pencil and record some of their findings and discoveries? It could be a notebook just for nature observations and drawings!
Or maybe they'd like to start a new nature collection?
#10. Run, Jump, Or Create an Obstacle Course!
Vacant Lots Usually Allow Plenty Of Room For Being Active!
So run and jump all you want!
More Outdoor Fun Gifts
Sleds, Ladderball, Horseshoes, Boochie Ball, Badminton, VolleyBall, and Baseball!
Sleds Are Great Outdoor Gifts!
Perfect for snowy outdoor fun!
Outdoor Games For The Family!
Bring the whole family outside for some fun!
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What Was Your Favorite Childhood Game To Play?
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We'd love to hear!
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I'd love to hear from you!
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vallain
Jan 7, 2012 @ 10:37 pm | delete
- We lived in the country and had a marvelous time playing in the creek. We caught crawdads, minnows and baby snapping turtles. We built dams and waded and splashed about. Now that was real fun.
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FlaminCatDesigns
Dec 7, 2011 @ 8:47 am | delete
- Summertime was the best. We could play outside until the neighborhood streetlights came on. I was always outside as a kid.
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Evelyn_Saenz
Dec 6, 2011 @ 1:17 pm | delete
- Lots of fun remembering the imaginative things we did as children. How hard it seems now to capture our children's attention long enough for them to get outside and play.
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OhMe
Dec 6, 2011 @ 9:02 am | delete
- Enjoyed my return visit to this great page with 10 Things for Kids To Do On A Vacant Lot
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Timewarp
Nov 6, 2011 @ 9:09 pm | delete
- Great lens, I forgot about how much fun I would have at the vacant lot near my childhood home. Riding our BMX and building jumps was a big thing, we got hurt a few times but that was good for a kid!
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wordstock
Aug 31, 2011 @ 8:10 am | delete
- Coming from a generation where we did not watch TV, this brings back so many memories. We used to play hide and seek running the four blocks of our neighborhood. Can't let our kids do that now. These are great ideas and so much fun.
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Pukeko
Aug 21, 2011 @ 7:56 am | delete
- My girls would love to hang out with your kids too. So much outdoor fun.
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HarmonyArtMom
Mar 17, 2011 @ 12:21 pm | delete
- My boys would love to hang out with your boys. :)
Thanks so much for sharing this lens. I am going to feature it soon on blog and I have added it to my favorites, lensrolled it to my outdoor lenses, and added a special blessing today.
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Momsbusy247 Feb 12, 2011 @ 10:02 pm | delete
- Amen to turning off the TV and making kids go outside and play... our world might just be a better place if children learned to socialize instead of play shootem up games on Xbox, etc.
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Tipi
Jan 8, 2011 @ 10:50 am | delete
- Let the children play outside and set their imaginations free!
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