We are at the height of summer break and you may be running out of ideas on how to keep your little ones entertained while out of school. I have lots of ideas, and none of them require you purchasing anything!
It can be difficult to do, but it’s possible to use your environment and a little imagination to create an enticing and enriching experience for your child outside. Not all of these ideas may work for your child, but hopefully you can find something that sounds applicable to your little ones.
- Scavenger Hunt
I would decide on anywhere between 3 to 10 items in any outside space (this could be your backyard, on a walk at a trail, in the park). Write them down in a notes app on your phone (if your child can read), or pull up google images of the items. Let your child know what they’re to be looking for! Then model the expectation.
Here is an example script:
“I need to check my map/list!”
“First I need to find a bird!”
“Let’s look for a bird.”
“Hmmm, I don’t see any over here, let’s check this spot.”
“I found one!”
“Okay what’s next on our list?”
You can continue on for each item on your list. After you’ve found all of the items, you can talk about what your child found and where the items were. You can talk about what you could have done differently to find an item faster and discuss what was challenging. Try to use more comments versus questions when you’re on your search.
If your child is using an AAC device, use core words like “I see,” “look,” and “where?”. Use the category/group pages to discuss what is seen (nature, animals, birds, bugs).
Language concepts targeted during this activity: Expressive and receptive vocabulary, critical thinking, problem solving, reflexive questioning, literacy (if your child is reading the list).
- Obstacle Course
No, really you don’t need to buy anything for this! Collect leaves (the bigger the better), rocks, twigs. Set them up in an obstacle course fashion. If your child is speaking, have them decide which ones you are to go over, across, etc. They can also decide the start and end point. If your child isn’t speaking, then maybe they can point to where they want to start. In any stage of language, do your best to follow your child’s lead (as long as safety isn’t a concern). Let them pave the way (even if it doesn’t quite make sense to you).
If your child is working on following instructions, give them instructions just above their level. If they can follow 1-step, try to give them a 2-step. “Jump over the stick, then stomp on the big leaf!”
If something goes wrong, discuss what you could have done differently to make the path work better.
If your child is using AAC, use the nature folder, use location words (under, on, over, off, etc.
Language concepts targeted during this activity: Planning, problem solving, reflexive questioning, receptive language- following instructions.
- Water!
If you have a hose, let’s use the hose! I know we’re permanently in a drought….but water can be magical for kids outside. If you don’t have a hose, fill up a bucket or a few plastic containers/bowls. We’re taking these OUTSIDE! I’m not recommending this inside ;)
You can use a sponge, or not. But we’re basically washing everything! You can “wash” the concrete, wash the dirty toys that have been hanging out and collecting cobwebs outside, wash tables and chairs, wash your feet, literally anything! You can even add soap if you’re feeling crazy!
Use water, but make it functional. Now it may not be the best clean job BUT water can be so calming for kids.
If you have competitive kids, you can set a timer for 10 minutes and see who can clean the most items in that time! Have them recap what they washed and how they did it.
If you have a child who is eager to please, YOU tell them what they will be cleaning after they finish each wash job. A scavenger hunt and wash situation all in one!
If your child is using AAC, I would recommend having a low tech printed out/laminated version of their home page and some related outside folders like nature, toys, animals, etc. Water and AAC devices don’t get along!
Language concepts targeted during this activity: Planning, reflexive questioning, receptive language- following instructions.
- Piles
Okay, this one may not seem fun at first, but depending on your child it may be a hit! Many kiddos love to collect items. Let’s make it a little more structured while outside. I would start with designating your pile area. Then you will put one of the items in the pile area to get the pile started.
This could take place at a park, on a trail, or in your backyard. This can include nature items, or even random toys at home. Maybe you have a ton of random toys in the backyard. Try this prompt: “Hmmm, I wonder how many car toys we can get into this pile?” (ball toys, rocks, sticks, leaves, etc). Show them what to do! You start collecting too. You may have to help them for a while until they get the hang of it.
When you feel like your child has had enough collecting, let’s count how many of each item we have. We can talk about which pile has the most, which pile has the least, etc.
If you have a pen and paper you can bring from inside, then you can create a chart to talk about it more!
If your child is using an AAC device, you can go to different category pages like nature, vehicles, or toys and you can also reference the numbers page. You can use the describing words pages to talk about big/little/more/less.
Language concepts targeted during this activity: Categorizing, receptive language- following instructions, expressive language, quantitative concepts.
- Let them explore without pressure.
This is your chance to work on following your child’s lead. Observe what they are drawn to outside. Imitate their actions, sounds, words. Wait for them to initiate communication with you. Take the pressure off. I know this sounds counterintuitive, but it is an effective strategy that can go a long way.
Reducing the pressure on communication and focusing on observing your child can promote positive interactions. Once you take time to observe, then you can respond and talk about what they are interested in.
Take note of what your child is interested in:
- Are they watching the shadows on the ground or wall?
- Maybe a good chance to discuss what a shadow is!
- Are they looking up in the sky?
- Maybe we can talk more about everything we could possibly see in the sky and even what doesn’t go in the sky.
- Are they running back and forth in the yard?
- Perhaps we can suggest an obstacle course, a race, or red light green light! Or we can talk about animals who run fast!
- Are they climbing on every surface?
- Let’s talk about what kinds of surfaces are easier or more difficult to climb and why.
- Are they acting out pretend scenes?
- Can we ask to join and see what character they assign us? Let them be the director! Just play along :)
I hope something in this article has inspired you to use what you have outside to encourage language! I would love to hear how you used these activity ideas with your kiddos!
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Email: mackenzie@communicationblooms.org
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