101 Things For Kids To Do Outside – Book Review

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If you are wondering how to get your kids out for play in a fresh air and looking for outdoor play ideas here is wonderful resource. 101 Things For Kids To Outside, written by award wining garden designer and mother of three children, Dawn Isaac, is a practical guide for kids outdoor activities addressed to children. Full of crafts, games, garden projects and nature walk activities will give kids ideas how to spend quality outdoor time, instead of hanging in front of the TV.

When I received this book I instantly thought: ‘Wow, we are never gonna get bored!’ I couldn’t wait to try out few of the activities that catch my eye. Cool ideas inspired me to go out right away. I am sure every parent will find many ideas for their kids and lots of them will inspire them to think about some new projects.

My favourite are garden activities. While research about author, I was very happy when found out that Dawn runs her website Little Green Fingers about getting children hooked to gardening. If your family is in love with garden activities, this is great resource too. There you fill find few of her other books, like 101 Kids Activities For Kids To Do On A Rainy Day and Garden Crafts For Children.

But lets back to the activities from 101 Things For Kids To Outside. I made this cute plant twig pot, following instructions. My 15 month old daughter helped me to collect twigs in the yard and she helped me to sort them, as she is still to young to do this project by herself. So we enjoyed together in the lovely Sunday afternoon. Older kids ( 9-11 years) will have no trouble for setting up and complete all the activities from the book by themselves. There is also plenty of stuff from the book to do with younger kids, but they will need help and supervision while playing. And after all, you can enjoy time spent together.

Some of the activities from the book are:

Make a nature walk bracelet
Create rubber boot fashion
Construct a water wall
Make a rain gauge
Paint snow
Build a human sundial
Create moonlight garden
Have a blindfold shootout
Cook with sun
Grow a potato tower
Create your own nature exhibit

Each activity starts with short pitch, followed with list of materials needed and easy to follow instructions. In most projects there is simple graphic design and where needed schematic drawing is provided. Beside that, there is always useful tip or idea how to extend play.

What I did not like about this book are the activities with catching animals, like bugs. I consider that animals are not met for play. But in the end, when I went throughout whole book and thought about it deeper, I realized that observing end exploring wildlife is normal and natural way of learning and growing up. As long as the animals are not being hurt or kept in capture. And then I liked the book even more, it gave me valuable lesson for my little one, reminding me what is important on my child’s journey. Great thing I noticed, along with each wildlife activity, where the animals are involved, author instructed to return them into their natural habitat unharmed. It is obvious that author was really thinking in a way that children would act and react. Also, in water activities, near ocean, river or ponds, she gave caution attention.

I especially liked how all the activities are organized and nicely categorized in the end of the book. Here is the list of categories:

Party or group activities
Activities for children 4-7 years
Activities for children 8-11 years
Quick projects (about an hour projects)
Longer projects (half a day or few days)
Seasonal activities and projects: Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter
Games
Gardening projects
Craft projects
Wildlife lovers projects
Beach
Nature walks
Park activities

This way you can have a quick look and easy search activity for any occasion or season.

I think 101 Things For Kids To Do Outside book would be great gift for any child. Kids are gonna love how the book is written in a humorous language, filled with quality colour photographs and funny graphics, which gives it special charm. Book would also be resourceful to any parent, teacher or caregivers. So there is plenty of fun ideas not only for children but for families to enjoy together. And the most important thing – with 101 Things For Kids To Do Outside, your kids will never gonna be bored again.