-OVERVIEW OF APRIL’S CHALLENGES (275-246)
-OVERVIEW OF MARCH’S CHALLENGES (306-276)
-OVERVIEW OF FEBRUARY’S CHALLENGES (334-337)
-OVERVIEW OF MONTH ONE OF THE 365 DAY NATURE PLAY CHALLENGE (365-335)
Throughout 2025 my daughter (aged 10) and I are taking on a challenge. Every day we are going to do something fun outside in the natural world. It doesn’t have to be long or big or complicated. The idea is that if we do it, maybe we’ll get into the habit of doing it more. We’ll post daily to instagram and facebook and blog twice a week explaining what we’ve done and how it went. We’re not particularly hardy or sporty so aren’t anticipating great feats of any kind. We’re hoping we’ll get some good new ideas and have some fun.
For more information see an idea and a family challenge or check in to the blog posts below. We’ll expand this site as we go and hopefully it will become a helpful resource for anyone else out there looking for ways to get the kids outside.
Playing with clouds. What stories can you see?: 276 – Making stories with the clouds (31/3/25); 212 – More cloud stories (1/6/25)
NO ELECTRONICS! day: 213 (31/5/25)
Activities for ten year olds in the Wye Valley: 216 – Stroking a baby donkey (30/5/25); 215 – Canoeing on the Wye (30/5/25); 214 – Walking with butterflies (30/5/25)
Nature play ideas for Spring in the local park: 304 – Feeding squirrels (3/3/25); 299 – Listening hide & seek (6/3/25); 263 – Drawing in the earth (and finding weird white stuff that maybe should be avoided) (12/04/25); 261 – Nature walk in Crouch End (13/04/25); 259 – Running away from the responsible adult (16/4/25); 222 – Exploring a tree with friends (24/5/25); 220 – Finding baby conkers and helicopters (26/5/25); 218 – Perfume ingredients, litter picking and hide and seek (28/5/25); 217 – Guess what? (27/5/25)
Visiting farms with kids and finding friendly (happy) animals: 298 – Lambs (9/3/25); 268 – Visiting a farm zoo (8/4/25); 219 – Baby animals at the zoo (27/5/25)
The 365 day nature play challenge SUNDIAL day: 236 – Sundials (10/5/25); 221 – Working out which way the wind is blowing (25/5/25)
Five minute nature play challenges: 331 – Catkins (4/2/25); 330 – Hunt the snowdrop (5/2/25); 315 – Watching raindrops (20/2/25); 314 – Exploring the bushes by the supermarket (21/2/25); 248 – Blowing and plucking dandelions (28/4/25); 225 – Listening to the rain (21/5/25); 223 – Listening to the birds at twilight (23/5/25)
Gentle experiments kids can do with insects outside: 237 – Testing ants’ taste preferences (9/5/25); 234 – Exploring spiders webs (12/5/25); 224 – Chasing butterflies (22/5/25)
Watching and making nests and spotting baby birds with children: 230 – Spotting a swan on her nest (16/5/25); 227 – Making a nest (19/5/25); 226 – Finding a place for the nest (20/5/25)
Days out with the kids: Discovering rocks, stones and fossils: 229 – Discovering a huge lump of coal in Cardiff Bay (18/5/25)
Playing in the woods with kids: 250 – A walk in the woods (26/4/25); 235 – ‘Guess the leaf’ games (11/5/25); 228 – Making things for the fairies (18/5/25).
Introducing kids to frogspawn and tadpoles: 295 – Spotting frogspawn by the light of the full moon (12/3/25); 288 – Checking in on the frogspawn… and finding tadpoles (19/3/25); 274 – Checking in on the tadpoles… (2/4/25); 245 – Another tadpole check in (1/5/25); 231 – The last tadpole check in in…for now (15/5/25)
Planting things and playing with flowers: 297 – Planting seeds (10/3/25); 290 – Pressing daffodils (17/3/25); 252 – Sewing wild flowers (24/4/25); 238 – Planting beans and building a climber for the runners. 232 – Planting tomato plants (14/5/25)
Ways to play on very rainy days: 361 – A rainy day: playing with gutters (6/1/25); 260 – Watching seagulls in the rain (15/4/25); 233 – Negotiating thunderstorms (13/5/25)
Things for kids to spot when travelling & walking: 287 – Birds (20/3/25); 279 – Nests (28/3/25); 249 – Another bird spotting day (27/4/25); 239 – Spotting nesting roof sparrows (7/5/25); 276 – Making stories with clouds (31/3/25); 271 – Spotting things on the motorway (5/4/25)
Does playing with pets count as a nature play challenge?: 258 – Making kitten toys (17-18/4/25); 257 – Welcoming a new member of the family (19/4/25); 240 – Practising kitten stroking skills (6/5/25); 255 – Making an obstacle course for the bunnies (21/4/25)
Nature detectives: fun ways to explore outdoors with kids: 241 – Tracking deer at Margam Park (5/5/25); 244 – Tracking footprints on the beach (2/5/25); 265 – Being nature detectives in a rural garden (10/4/25); 321 – looking for bird and animal tracks in the mud (14/2/25)
A year of playing with the small garden pond: 363 – Breaking the pond ice (3/1/25); 278 – Emptying the garden pond (29/3/25); 242 – Getting fish for the garden pond (4/5/25)
Rockpools, tides, shells and crabs and how to enjoy them with kids: 243 – Waiting for the tide to go out on Sully Island (3/5/25)
Fun things to do with kids outdoors on hot sunny days: 247 – Walking on the shadows (29/4/25); 246 – Making rainbows with the garden hose (30/4/25)
Playing by rivers as a family (winter and spring) : 347 – Playing by the river in winter and spotting monsters (19/1/25); 262 – Playing with tides and waves (13/4/25); 251 – Making boats and racing them (25/4/25)
Playing in trees with children who are instinctively cautious: 354 – Tree bouncing (12/1/25); 253 – Climbing trees again (23/4/25)
Nature play ideas: Things for kids to make: 286 – Making pine cone bird feeders (again) (21/3/25); 284 – Making daisy chains (23/3/25); 254 – Finding 5 things to make something with (22/4/25)
Kids play ideas in a small back garden (Spring): 256 – Easter Egg Hunt (20/4/25); 302 – An almost Easter egg hunt in the garden (5/3/25); 306 – Using garden cuttings to make the trampoline into a den (1/3/25); 291 – B improves the trampoline den (16/3/25); 300 – Making things out of garden waste (7/6/25);
The 365 day nature play challenges that didn’t really work: 358 – Big boots ( 8/1/25); 328 – Blowing bubbles in the cold and the dark (7/2/25); 264 – Water pistols at sunset (11/4/25);
Making the most of boat trips with kids: 266 – The first boat trip of the year (9/4/25)
Different ways to stargaze with kids: 341 – A first go at stargazing (25/1/25); 267 – A second attempt at stargazing with nice seats, safety and spring weather (8/4/25)
Looking at the world from a different point of view: 269 – If I were a bird, how would I live? (7/4/25)
Playing with the wind (and getting ready for kite flying): 343 – Playing with the wind (23/1/25); 270 – Preparing for kite flying (6/4/25)
The first day of the challenge revisited. The Stick Igloo: 365 – Starting. The Stick Igloo (1/1/25); 273 – The Stick Igloo returns (3/4/25); 274 – Leaving nesting materials out for the crows (4/4/25)
Playing at being witches outside: 355 – Gathering ingredients for potions (11/1/25); 277 – Gathering potions ingredients again…with a friend (30/3/25); 344 – Pumpkin smashing and cauldron splashing (22/1/25); 329 – Looking for wands in the woods (6/2/25);
Nature play ideas: Things for kids to collect: 301 – Twigs (6/3/25); 303 – Feathers (4/3/25); 296 – Ghost leaves (11/3/25); 282 – Catkins (25/3/25); 280 – Weird squidgy things (27/3/25); 275 – Blossoms (1/4/25)
Scavenger hunts in winter: 352 – The first scavenger hunt (Collecting things) (14/1/25); 319 – A more active sort of scavenger hunt (16/2/25); 294 – Signs of Spring scavenger hunt (13/3/25); 281 – A scavenger hunt for the brownies (26/3/25)
Nature play ideas for a small front garden: 349 – Picking the leaves off the beech hedge (17/1/25); 332 – Chalking the plant shadows (3/2/25); 283 – How many insects can you find in a minute? (24/3/25)
Beach combing in winter with kids: 333 (2/2/25); 285 – Making things out of driftwood and stones on the beach (22/3/25)
Shadows and playing with rainbows: 364 – Indoor rainbow (2/1/25); 335 – School yard shadows (31/1/25); 289 – More fun with hand shadows (18/3/25)
Treasure Hunts in Winter: 348 – The first treasure hunt of the 365 day nature play challenge (18/1/25). 292 – Birthday treasure hunt (15/3/25)
Looking for the moon: 353 – Attempting to watch the wolf moon rise (13/1/25); 323 – Listening for night noises and finally finding the full moon (12/2/25); 293 – Spotting (and then losing) the partial lunar eclipse (14/3/25)
Playing on the beach with kids in Spring: (307 – 28/2/25) with 305 – Returning to the beach to make sandcastles (2/3/25)
Wayfinding for kids: 318 – Trying out wayfinding. Some verbal instructions (17/2/25); 317 – The second wayfinding challenge. Written instructions (18/2/25); 308 – Wayfinding by bike (27/2/25)
Looking for nature play ideas and opportunities in North London: 313 – Making paper boats and looking for somewhere to float them (22/2/25); 312 – Bird watching at Camden Lock Market (23/2/25); 311 – Getting lost on Hampstead Heath (24/2/25); Gathering ‘fallen’ things at Waterlow Park, Highgate (25/2/25); Navigating London by compass (26/2/25).
Winter challenges
Exploring willow sticks: 346 – Playing with willow sticks and getting distracted by the chiminea (20/1/25); 316 – Using the cut willow on the Christmas Tree den (19/2/25)
Playing with the garden tree: 356 – Climbing the garden tree (10/1/25); Hoists & pulleys (the alternative challenge 337) (29/1/25); 325 – Putting a pulley system in the garden tree (10/2/25); 320 – Making an animal feeder (15/2/25)
Playing with sticks: 342 – Finding a good stick (24/1/25); 322 – The return of the stick (13/2/25)
Playing with last years Christmas tree: 359 – Taking the Christmas tree out (7/1/25); 324 – Making last years Christmas tree into a den (11/2/25)
Playing in the sand dunes: 326 – Visiting sand dunes for the first time (9/2/25)
Night time garden adventures: 360 – Exploring the garden in the dark (6/1/25); 327 – Playing with fire (carefully) in the back garden (8/2/25)
Bird challenge week: 339 – Bird spotting (27/1/25); 338 – Feeding the seagulls (28/1/25); 337 – Making peanut butter bird snacks (and getting distracted) (29/1/25); 336 – Making a bird whistle (30/1/25); 334 – Birds in the city (1/2/25)
Pebbles, puddles and lots of splashing: 340 (26/1/25)
Adventures with litter picking: 345 (21/2/25)
Having fun in the fog: 351 – Torches and shadows (15/1/25); 350 – Playing with fog drops (16/1/25)
Sunrise on the beach: 357 (9/1/25)
Taking down the Christmas Lights: 362 (4/1/25)
