Creative Family Fun

Your one-stop shop for kids activities and family fun

Outdoor Play

Backyard Color Match Game for Toddlers

By

Looking for a fun toddler activity to get them moving and learning?

Head to the backyard for an active color match game for toddlers. It’s a great way to learn colors while practicing gross motor skills.

Get your little ones moving with this fun Backyard Color Match Game for Toddlers. They'll run, have fun, and learn a lot!

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Backyard Color Match Game for Toddlers

This toddler game is all about running around and having fun, so you’ll need quite a bit of space. We played the game in our backyard. It will also work inside as long as you have enough room to move around safely.

Supplies Needed

Colored place markers (one for each color you want to practice). We used large balls, buckets, and a cone.

Objects/toys of different colors. Make sure the color of these objects match the place markers. We had 2 of each color (one for each child). We used small balls, toy ducks, cups, etc.

How to this color matching game for toddlers

Spread the colored place markers (balls, buckets, cones, etc) around your playing area. The farther they are away from each other, the more running your kids will do.

Start by practicing the names of the colors.

Call out a color and have your child run to it.

Can you find the orange cone?

If more than one child is playing be sure to talk to them about how to touch the place markers. (My toddler wanted to pick everything up.)

Say: “Run to the green bucket and touch it with your hand.”

Once you have named all of the colors, it’s time to introduce the color matching.

Ask your child to choose a small toy. Then, ask him its color. “What color is the duck?”

Have your child take the toy to the matching colored place marker. “Can you take the yellow duck to the yellow ball?”

Get your little ones moving with this fun Backyard Color Match Movement Game for Toddlers. They'll run, have fun, and learn a lot!

Continue matching the small objects to the place markers.

Be sure to say the colors each time.

Backyard Match Game for Toddlers #2

Ready to mix it up a little? Our second game practices colors and following directions. Once you’ve finished the color match game, try this one. Leave all of the toys matched up.

The goal of game 2 is to move the toys around.

Call out a color and a toy. Then name a colored place marker. “Can you place the green frog on the pink bucket?”

Get your little ones moving with this fun Backyard Color Match Movement Game for Toddlers. They'll run, have fun, and learn a lot!

The game practices colors and following directions.

You can also use it to practice positional words like on, in, next to, etc. “Can you place the blue duck next to the orange cone?” “Put the pink ball inside the green bucket.”

Get your little ones moving with this fun Backyard Color Match Movement Game for Toddlers. They'll run, have fun, and learn a lot!

You may also like one of these color games for toddlers

Go on a Colorful Scavenger Hunt

Rainbow Texture Explorations for Toddlers

Butterfly Color Match

Fun Color Games for Toddlers

Color Sorter Water Bin at Teaching 2’s and 3’s

My recommended toddler activity resource

t’s so beneficial to have fun activities to do with your toddler. My friend Jamie from Hands On As We Grow has got a great free 7-Day Toddler Activity Challenge. You’ll have fun and make memories with these age-appropriate and simple activities. They’re the best! You can follow this link to sign up for the FREE 7-Day Toddler Challenge.

Join our community for fun family activities

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Outdoor ABC Game on the Driveway

By

With a preschooler, sometimes you just need to get them moving.

So, I decided to sneak a little learning in with our moving and created a simple outdoor abc game.

This Driveway ABC Game is easy. It’s fun. And, it’s a great way to review the alphabet.

Grab your sidewalk chalk, go outside, and have some fun learning the alphabet with this fun outdoor abc game you can play on your driveway.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Supplies Needed:

Sidewalk chalk

Large dice (can be played with small dice if that’s all you have)

Large stretch of concrete. You can use a driveway or a sidewalk.

Set-up and play your outdoor ABC game

I drew a long, winding path on our driveway and divided it up into sections.

I then wrote one letter in each section.

When it was time to play, my preschooler threw our giant die and moved that many spaces.

When she stopped, she had to say each letter she stepped on out loud.

The concept was easy and she had a blast. We played it again and again. Not only was she reviewing her letter, but she was running all over the place chasing the die.

When I drew our game, I wrote the letters in alphabetical order ending at “k”.  I didn’t make a very long game board. Feel free to mix up the letters and add additional letters if you want to make a more challenging game.

Other variations of this outdoor alphabet game:

Use lower case letters instead of upper case

Use the letters in your child’s name for an easy name recognition game

Write the entire alphabet or only the ones that are challenging to your child

Use sight words instead of letters for kids who are already alphabet experts

Grab your sidewalk chalk, go outside, and have some fun learning your ABCs with this fun outdoor alphabet game you can play on your driveway.

Our outdoor abc game got rained away after only playing it once, but I know we’ll do this again. After all, it’s so much fun to learn while playing a gross motor game!

Grab your sidewalk chalk, go outside, and have some fun learning your ABCs with this fun outdoor alphabet game you can play on your driveway.

You may also like one of these fun outdoor learning ideas:

Outdoor Shape Activity: Driveway Shape Maze

Go Outside: Shape Hopscotch

Go Outside: Counting Walk

Garden Flower Ten Frame at Rainy Day Mum

My recommended alphabet resources

It’s so much fun to learn your ABC’s with a game. If you don’t want to head outside, here are some fun game you might want to try.

Do you want to do more activities with your kids?

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

Outdoor Shape Activities for Kids

By

Whenever the weather is nice, it’s always so much fun to take your learning outside.

You can play, explore, and learn all at the same time.

These fun outdoor shape activities for kids are great ways to play and learn with your toddlers and preschoolers.

Your ides will be having so much fun, they won’t even realize how much they are learning.

Toddlers and preschoolers will love learning outside with these simple and fun Outdoor Shape Activities for Kids. Learning can be so much fun!

Get moving, explore nature, and get creative with all of these fun ideas.

They’re perfect for anytime of the year and a great excuse to get outside and learn with play.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Fun Outdoor Shape Activities

Learn shapes with a fun sidewalk game when you play our version of Shape Hopscotch.

Find your way through our Driveway Shape Maze and learn all about shapes as you go.

Grab a camera and hunt for shapes when you go on our fun Outdoor Shape Hunt.

Get your wiggles out by Running Circles and other shapes with our fun driveway game.

Explore big shapes by measuring, walking, and creating them with your body with this geometry game from Simple Play Ideas.

Create shapes with rocks with this fun idea from Mrs. Plemons’ Kindergarten. (You’ll find several other cool rock ideas in this post too!)

Play in bubbles with this bubbly water shape sorting game from Fantastic Fun and Learning.

Find and erase shapes with water with this fun activity from Hands On As We Grow.

Build shapes with acorns with this simple idea from Creative Little Explorers.

Use nature treasures to create shapes with this fun activity from NurtureStore.

I don’t know about you, but I’d love to do all of these outdoor shape activities! Which ones do you think you’re going to try with your kids?

Toddlers and preschoolers will love learning outside with these simple and fun Outdoor Shape Activities for Kids. Learning can be so much fun!

You may also enjoy one of these other fun outdoor activities:

10 Fun Walk Ideas for Families

Driveway ABC Game

Silly Races

You can find all of our toddler activities at this link.

Toddlers and preschoolers will love learning outside with these simple and fun Outdoor Shape Activities for Kids. Learning can be so much fun!

My recommended shape resources

It’s so much fun to learn shapes through play. You can play these fun outside games or try one of these great shape toys for toddlers. Here are a few more playful ways to learn shapes:

Do more fun activities with your kids

Join our fun Facebook community, Creative Family Fun for Busy Families, for daily activities that are great for kids and families. We’ll chat, share, and have fun. It’s a safe and private place to share ideas for family and kids activities.

I’d love for you to join me! Just click the link below, request to join, and answer the questions (they’re easy, I promise). Come join the fun! Join the Creative Family Fun for Busy Families community here.

10 Fun Walk Ideas for Families

By

Going on a walk is not only good exercise, it’s also a lot of fun. And, it’s a easy and simple family fun idea.

In case you want to add a little variety to your neighborhood walk, here are 10 fun walk ideas for families.

So, let’s get outside, get moving, and have some fun with our family.

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun with your kids. Perfect for all ages..

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Fun Walk Ideas for Families

1. Go on a counting walk. Count the number of trees you see or count the parked cars. Come up with a few things you see routinely on your walks and have the kids count them.

2. Take binoculars and look at your neighborhood up close!

3. Make it a scavenger hunt. Look for something big, something tiny, something rough or something smooth like we did in our backyard scavenger hunt.

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun.

4. Play “I Spy” while you walk along. “I spy something brown and green and taller than a house.” Whoever guesses first gets to come up with the next clue.

5. Go on a color hunt. See how many different colors you can find.

6. Take your camera. Document all the things you see on your walk, then turn it into a book when you get home.

7. Bring a bag and look for nature treasures like we did when we went leaf collecting.

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun.

8. Go on a listening walk. How many different things do you hear on your walk. Here is a fun idea for a listening walk along with a printable checklist.

9. Stop and climb a tree. You can read about the benefits of climbing trees over at Childhood Beckons. If you don’t want to climb a tree, stop and examine a leaf, smell a flower, make a snow angel or jump in a puddle. In other words, enjoy and experience!

10. Find a new-to-you place to go for a hike. Your walk doesn’t have to be around the neighborhood! In case the idea of taking young children on a hike makes you nervous I have some simple tips to make it easy on everyone.

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun.

Even more fun:

Check out this article on finding the balance between outdoor safety and adventure from Teach Preschool. So, why not climb a hill and run back down it!

What is your favorite fun walk ideas for families?

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun.

If you enjoyed these fun walk ideas for families, the above photo is perfect for sharing on Facebook or you can save the photo below on Pinterest.

Family walks are a great way to get exercise and have fun together. Here are 10 fun walk ideas for families that will get you outside and having fun with your kids. Perfect for all ages..

You may also like one of these family fun ideas:

Go on a Family Adventure and Discover a “New To You” Park

June Simple Family Fun Ideas

Top 10 Simple Summer Field Trips

20 Ways to Enjoy a Day at the Pond from Edventures with Kids

Let’s Go On a Listening Walk

By

If you want to add a peaceful element to your next walk with your kids, go on a listening walk.

Take the time to enjoy the peace and quiet or even the hustle and bustle of your neighborhood with this fun walk idea for families.

Listen carefully… what do you hear?

Use your ears to go on a fun listening scavenger hunt while you walk around your neighborhood with this fun walk idea for families, a listening walk.

 

You can take an informal walk where the goal is to see just how many things you can hear.

Do you hear a cricket chirping? A car horn? Tweeting birds?

Emphasize quiet where the only time someone talks is when they want to share what they hear.

This is such a nice way to wind down together as a family at the end of a busy day. Or, it’s a fun morning activity to get the day started.

Disclosure: There are Amazon Affiliate and other affiliate links in this article which means, at no additional cost to you, we could receive compensation for our recommendations. You can read our full disclosure policy on our Disclosure Page for more details.

Use your ears to go on a fun listening scavenger hunt while you walk around your neighborhood with this fun walk idea for families, a listening walk.

You can also bring along a list of items to create a listening scavenger hunt.We keep a stack of lists on a small clipboard that’s easy to grab and take along outside. You can print out our list here or you can make your own lists.

Here are some ideas you can add to you listening walk list:

A dog barking
Cars driving by
An airplane flying overhead
Geese honking
People talking
Children giggling
The wind whispering
Buzzing bees
Crows cawing
A car door slamming

Use your ears to go on a fun listening scavenger hunt while you walk around your neighborhood with this fun walk idea for families.

When making your list, think about the sounds you often hear in your neighborhood. If you live in the country, add a lot of nature sounds. A city walk could include vehicle noises, people, or construction noises.

Print your list here. Prints in landscape format.

Listen and learn about your neighborhood! What sorts of noises would you hear on a walk around your town?

Use your ears to go on a fun listening scavenger hunt while you walk around your neighborhood with this fun walk idea for families, a listening walk.

You may also enjoy one of these outdoor family fun ideas:

Go Outside! Cards

Go Outside: Counting Walk

10 Ways to Make a Walk More Fun

My Five Senses Walk at Great Family Reads

Originally published 8/5/2013, updated March, 2018.