Here it is! My list of 30 Activity Ideas to inspire families to spend time outdoors as part of the annual Wildlife Trusts 30 Days Wild Challenge.
What is the 30 Days Wild Challenge?
The 30 Days Wild Challenge is an annual event organised by the Wildlife Trust, where they encourage everyone to do 1 wild thing a day throughout the month of June. You can sign up to recieve a pack full of ideas and a wall chart to track your progress or you can simply just do your own thing.
List of 30 activity ideas for 30 Days Wild
These are suggestions and activities that we have done over the years, not in one month! The most important thing is to just take a moment each day and spend it outdoors.
1. GO ON A MINIBEAST HUNT
With over 25,000 different types of minibeasts in the UK ALONE you won’t have to go far to spot some of these wonderful creepy crawlies.
For a free, printable Minibeast Scavenger Hunt please go here.
2. MAKE A DAISY CHAIN
A traditional activity that is still loved today.
3. FIND A SPITTLE BUG
Next time you walk past some Cuckoo Spit, a white, froathy blob found on plant stems, gently remove some of the bubbles and see if you can spot a Spittle Bug. A very small, green – yellowy Froghopper nymph.
4. GO PUDDLE JUMPING
Put your wellies on……. or new shoes if you’re like my son and go puddle jumping!
5. MAKE S’MORES
What’s not to like about squashing a roasted marshmallow between two chocolate biscuits! If you can’t have a fire try roasting the marshmallows over tea light candles.
6. GROW SALAD LEAVES
Sow some ‘Cut & Come Again’ Salad Leaves and in 4-6 weeks times kids will be enjoy harvesting and eating handfuls of tasty leaves.
Follow our step by step guide to growing salad leaves with kids
7. MAKE DANDELION PLAYDOUGH
Squashy, textured and naturally dyed, Dandelion playdough is a treat for all sensory play lovers.
Try our simple Naturally Dyed Dandelion Playdough Recipe.
8. GO ON A BEAR HUNT
Grab some of the kids favourite teddy bears and hide them in your local woods, park or garden for them to find.
9. MAKE A MINI POND
Making a mini pond is a fantastic way of attracting local wildlife to your garden or balcony. With-in less than a year of making ours we welcomed birds, frogs and newts to our pond.
To make your own follow these instructions from the RSPB Family Wild Challenge
10. GO ON A NATURE COLOUR HUNT
There is so much colour to be found in nature. Take the kids on a Nature Colour Hunt and see if you can find all the colours of the rainbow!
Download our free, printable Rainbow Nature Hunt.
11. FLOWER PRINTING
Flower printing is a lot of fun especially for younger kids who, for some reason love bashing the last drop of colour out of the flowers with the hammer! All you need is some paper, a hammer and a handful of colourful flowers.
Here are the instructions for Hammering Flower Prints.
12. TRY WILD SWIMMING
Take a dip on the wild side and enjoy some wild swimming or splashing!
13. GO ON A NIGHT TIME WALK
It doesn’t get more simple than going for a night time walk around the block but for some reason kids seem to love it! For bonus fun points give them a torch or lantern to carry.
14. PLAY TRACK & SEEK
I have so many fun memories of playing arrow tracking as a kid. This game is best played in the woods and is great for large families and groups.
Give one person 2-3 minutes to go off to find a hiding place. They have to leave a trail of arrows made out of sticks for the seekers to follow. Once they have found a hiding place they leave a cross made out of sticks to let the seekers know they are with in this area.
15. FIND THE EMPTY MINE TRAILS OF A MOTH CATERPILLAR
It was whilst me and the kids were doing 30 Days Wild a few years ago that I learned about these tiny trails made by moth caterpillars that are often found on bramble leaves.
16. MAKE A DINOSAUR PRINT
This activity is well worth the effort! Make a LIFESIZE Triceratops foot print in the garden for the kidsw to discover. First download and construct the template linked below. Next put some sand on the ground and place your template on top, pushing down on it to make a print.
Download Triceratops Foot Print Template And Instructions.
17. CATCH A FISH WITH A NET AND POT
Catching small minnows and sticklebacks is best done on a really warm afternoon. Look closely in the shallows of lakes and streams to catch a glimpse of these little fish. Try using nets on sticks and clear jam jars or pots to try and catch some.
18. GO ON A BIKE RIDE
Burn of some energy by going on a long bike ride.
19. GO BUTTERFLY SPOTTING
On a warm, sunny day go for a walk around your local area and see how many butterflies you can spot. If you have trouble spotting any, try heading to an area that has lots of nettles and brambles.
Download our Caterpillar and Butterfly Identification Sheet.
20. MAKE A PRE-HISTORIC TOOL
Challenge the kids to make a pre-historic axe or speare using only natural materials that they find.
21. FLY A KITE
Wait for a windy day and take a kite out for a flight. If you havn’t got a kite you could always tie some string to an empty carrier bag and watch it fly.
22. GO CRABBING
Head down to the coast and enjoy a day crabbing.
23. PLAY POOH STICKS
Grab some sticks or pine cones, find a bridge and have a game of Pooh Sticks.
24. CAMP IN THE GARDEN
Make a camp in the garden and sleep out under the stars.
25. BLOW BUBBLES OUTSIDE
Take the bubbles outside and have fun trying to catch them before they blow away.
26. MAKE A FLOWER SUN CATCHER
Brighten up windows by bringing the outdoors inside with homemade flower sun catchers. There’s multiple ways of making these but we found laminating petals to be the easiest method.
For step by step instructions plese read A Quick DIY Nature Craft For Kids by Wild Orchard Homestead.
27. FIND ANIMAL TRACKS
After a rainy day go for a walk in some woods, nature reserve or somewhere with muddy paths and see how many animal tracks you can spot.
28. TRY LIGHTING A FIRE WITH FLINT AND STEEL
Pop the matches away and have a go at starting a fire with a flint and steel. It takes a little practicing but once you get the hang of it, it won’t be long before you have flames.
29. MAKE A CLAY HEDGEHOG
Using air drying clay, twigs and stones make a little hedgehog for the garden.
30. GO PADDLING IN A STREAM
Find a stream, take of your shoes and go for a paddle or take some digger toys, buckets, pots and little toy figures and let the kids create their own little play zone.
Well there it is, 30 ideas for 30DaysWild! I hope you have enjoyed this list.These are just suggestions of activities that we have done over the years and not all in one month! The most important thing is that you enjoy your time outside as a family.
I personally find my kids enjoy a small walk with some packed jam sandwiches and chocolate bar just as rewarding as a full blown camp out. I’d love to hear some of the ways you like to enjoy the great outdoors. Do you have any ideas that could be added to the list? If so, leave them in a comment below!
PIN FOR LATER!
This has me so excited for all that summer has to offer. Thank you for the inspiration!
So many fun ideas for kids and adults. A perfect way to kick start the summer!
So many good ideas! Can’t wait to do these with my boys!
These are great ideas! I want to spend more time outside with my kids, but we don’t always know what to do and this gives us lots of possibilities! Thanks for sharing!
So now I am going to try each of these, will send you pics of how we do. Thanks for the inspiration
These outdoor activities are great for the entire family! Thank you for sharing!!!