Summer Homeschool Projects to Get Your Kids Outdoors

Outside Projects for Homeschoolers

When the days are warmer and longer, the beautiful sunny weather makes homeschool lessons more and more difficult to do indoors. Why sit inside and stare at textbooks when you can teach your kids some lessons in the great outdoors? We've got summer homeschool projects to get your kids outdoors and enjoying the fresh air. Read on for homeschool activities you can do outside with the kids!

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Whether you’re teaching homeschool science, math, or life skills, we’ve compiled a list of some homeschool projects to get your kids outside and learning at the same time!

Grow a Kid-Friendly Garden

Gardening with kids is educational and a good mental and physical workout. Not to mention, digging around in the dirt and planting some flowers with your kids is just good old fashion fun! The internet is full of all sorts of different gardening lesson plans, and you can make this homeschool project as simple or complex as you want.

Photo by Nikoline Arns on Unsplash

However, sometimes keeping it simple is the best way to get your kids engaged in a project. Start by building a raised garden bed that is all theirs. If they’re old enough, have them help you put the bed together. This gives them the opportunity to explore their carpentry skills! Next, plant some easy-to-grow vegetable seeds or starts such as beets, potatoes, tomatoes, green onions, beans, and kale.

When the time comes to harvest your plants, you’ll be able to teach your kids a bit about the food industry, and they’ll make the connection that all the vegetables and fruits they eat have to be grown from seed before they make it to their plate!

Education-Based Nature Hike

Hikes are one of the best parts of summer. They get your heart pumping, work up a good sweat and the view at the top of the mountain is always breathtaking. While hiking will definitely fulfill your kids’ PE requirement, it’s also a great time to explore your area’s local climate! Depending on where you live and where you choose to hike, there will be a few different homeschool lessons you can teach. Check out this list of ideas to get started!

Do a Beach Treasure Hunt

As a kid, you probably remember going on a field trip or two to the beach to look for seashells and hermit crabs. The beautiful weather is a great excuse to go do a little hands-on marine biology lesson!

Photo by Manki Kim on Unsplash

Create your own treasure hunt and have your kids explore the area to find everything on the list. Not only will they learn more about your local environment, but they’ll burn off all that energy by running around trying to collect all their items!

Outdoor Art Projects

Your kids love art projects. They’ll love them, even more, when they get to do them outside! There are a variety of different art projects that utilize plant material to create something beautiful. Some tried and true classics include painting rocks, sun prints, and nature sculptures.

Visit Some Local Historical Landmarks

Who says history lessons have to be taught out of a textbook? Take your kids on a trip to some local landmarks to teach them a little bit about your town’s unique history.

Photo by Michał Parzuchowski on Unsplash

Get in touch with your local museum to see what programs they have going on for kids during the summer. Or, take a day trip to your state’s capital or nearby national or state parks.

Tried and True Baking Soda and Vinegar Volcano

Sometimes the classics are hard to beat. Kids love watching stuff explode, but having to clean up the ensuing mess may be a turn-off. Take the mess outside and teach them a little bit about chemical reactions with a baking soda and vinegar volcano. There are hundreds of tutorials on the internet, and this project can be as simple as using a 2L bottle or as complex and crafting a paper mache volcano to go along with the experiment!

Build a Compost Bin

I didn’t realize it at the time, but when we built a compost bin in my 7th-grade science class, I learned so much about building healthy soil and the benefits of compost! Not only will building a compost bin give your kids some experience with woodworking, but they’ll have the first-hand experience of watching kitchen and yard waste turn into a valuable soil additive.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

Finish off the lesson by having your kids add your homegrown compost to the garden and observe how the plants respond. Have them predict ahead of time what they think will happen and then help them keep a log of the plant growth and changes.

Bird Watching and Identification

During lunch, take the opportunity to sit outside and do a bit of bird watching! Install a few bird feeders around your yard and you’ll be surprised to see how many of them flock to the seeds. If you can get close enough, you can even make a project out of identifying them. Find a local bird guidebook and have them check off all the different species they find. Or, get out of the house and visit a bird sanctuary.

Take Your Regular Lessons Outdoors

Sometimes getting out and enjoying the outdoors is as easy as taking your regularly scheduled lesson plan outdoors! Establish an outdoor area that your kids can study at without baking in the sun. Consider installing a hardtop gazebo and building a high-quality outdoor table that your kids can comfortably study at.

And when the school day is over, that same gazebo and table can offer your guests a place to hang out on those long summer nights. In the rainy season, you can still use that outdoor space to complete messy projects that you don’t want to do indoors.

What projects are you planning for your kids this upcoming summer? Let us know in the comments below!

Bio: Leigha Staffenhagen is the managing editor of Insteading.com, a homesteading and sustainability site focusing on everything from gardening and raising chickens to tiny homes and off-grid living.

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Does Gaming Increase Kids Intelligence?

How Gaming Helps Your Kids Boost Intelligence

Intelligence is the capacity for learning and reasoning, the ability to understand and process things or to deal with new or difficult situations. It's one ability which everyone can't seem to get enough of, even the so-called intelligent ones want to be more intelligent. It is believed that humans are born with intelligence but there are other factors after birth which can positively influence and develop the level of a person's intelligence. So, how can gaming help boost your kid's intelligence? Do video games really improve certain brain functions?

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Intelligence is equally a function of nature, as well as, nurture. While nature is hereditary and almost nothing can be done about it, nurture has to do with the upbringing a person gets, and this can go a long way in intellectual development. One of the things which if included into a child upbringing can increase his or her intelligence, is playing games. Yes, you read right. Playing games. Contrary to the widely held misconception that most games numb the mind, video games can add to a person in many ways; this includes:

• Gaming Boosts Concentration and Attention.

Playing games involve a lot of focus on the part of the players, unlike activities such as watching TV, listening to music, reading, etc. which can be done absentmindedly, gaming requires you to fully focus on the game and relegate every other thing to the background, and this is why some believe in the addictive power of games. However, gaming increases the usual selective visual attention of the player. This refers to the brain’s ability to focus on relevant visual information while suppressing less relevant information. If children can learn to block out frivolous distractions and focus from an early age, gaming can increase the efficiency of their brain. Thus, if your kid is one with short attention span, playing games is one way through which he/she can improve.

• Gaming boosts coordination and problem-solving skills.

A person who can focus is better coordinated and makes better decisions. Most games on Friv involve a lot of analysis of unique and complicated situations and usually, these situations require the player be coordinated. There are special moves in games which involve pressing specific keys in a sequence and all of these improve coordination because the player knows that missing a step will affect the outcome of the game. Coordination is also an important skill for problem-solving and the more coordinated a person is, the better a problem solver the person becomes.

• Gaming Enhances Brain Function and IQ.

Gaming also enhances the cognitive ability and intelligence quotient of a person. So kids can enhances these abilities trough gaming. For this to happen, one has to be selective about the type of games being played. Playing strategic games has been proven to have a considerable impact on developing a child's IQ. Memory games, as well, when played consistently, help to sharpen the memory and make it more receptive to new information. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development and the Charite University of Medicine, in one study conducted to determine the influence of games on the brain, took measurements of participants' brain volume before and after playing Super Mario 64. The study showed a significant increase in grey matter of those playing the game compared to the group that did not. Imagine how many times your kid has played Super Mario!

• Gaming improves brain speed.

In playing games, the gamer is given lots of information to process per second and this helps to improve the speed at which the child processes information even when not playing games. Brain speed has to do with the pace at which a person perceives, analyzes, organizes and acts on a piece of information. Many video games, especially action games and games involving time management, require a quick reaction from the player and the ability to react quickly and still make the right decision is important for measuring intelligence. Your child is boosting reaction time each time the play a game.

• Gaming improves the ability to solve mathematical and verbal problems via logical games.

By involving your kid in logical games and puzzles, his or her ability to solve mathematical and verbal problems are improved. Games allow for creative and out of the box thinking, as well as, improving memory and attention span. All of these are important skills necessary for understanding and solving mathematical problems.

• Gaming improves planning, multitasking, prioritization.

The outcome of a game depends on how effective the player's plan is. The chances of failure and tension drive the players to make highly efficient decisions in strategy games and this can be transferred into reality and used to make decision making for daily life tasks. According to research, the areas of the brain that control spatial navigation, strategic planning and working memory are greatly improved through gaming. When playing games, the player's attention is divided as he or she is focused on the joystick, the screen, as well as, on the commands necessary to execute a gaming action. With this ability for multiple focus, a gamer can learn to multitask in real life activities without any task suffering from inadequate attention.

• Gaming helps to make flexible, faster and more accurate decisions.

With its method of reward in the form of "Next-level" punishment in form of "Game-over." Gaming encourages the player to make the best decisions possible and find his or her way out of complex problems. The player is more adept at making multiple decisions and switching between tasks without errors. This flexibility allows a kid to be faster in making decisions as he or she can make multiple decisions at once.

Finally, if you encourage your kids to play games, their daily activities should be totally dependent on a proper time management plan. You can get worthwhile games for your wards on Friv. Just remember, everything in moderation! Do you agree that gaming can boost intelligence? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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Considering Becoming a Math Teacher?

Hey homeschoolers, what will you become? Deciding you want to teach is an easy decision, but what should you teach? What are your best qualities? What is your favorite subject? If you're considering become a math teacher, consider these qualities that every math teacher should have.

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Studеntѕ аrе ѕеriоuѕlу influenced bу thе ԛuаlitу оf thеir tеасhеrѕ. Nоt оnlу dо thеу intеrасt with tеасhеrѕ еvеrу dау in thе сlаѕѕrооm, but thе ԛuаlitу оf thаt intеrасtiоn mаttеrѕ fоr ѕtudеntѕ’ futures. It hаѕ bееn оbѕеrvеd thаt thе diffеrеnсе bеtwееn a gооd аnd a bаd tеасhеr саn bе a full lеvеl оf ѕtudеnt асhiеvеmеnt in a ѕinglе ѕсhооl уеаr.

Hоwеvеr, оnе thing thаt rеmаinѕ unchanged iѕ thаt all gооd math tеасhеrѕ hаvе сеrtаin ѕuреr ԛuаlitiеѕ thаt diѕtinguiѕh thеm frоm оthеr teachers. Thеѕе ѕuреr ԛuаlitiеѕ mаkе thеse teachers рrоduсе еxсеllеnt rеѕultѕ nоt only fоr thеir ѕtudеntѕ but аlѕо fоr thеmѕеlvеѕ. Thе fоllоwing are thе fivе ѕuреr ԛuаlitiеѕ a gооd math tеасhеr ѕhоuld hаvе.

5 Super Qualities of a Good Math Teacher

• Exсеllеnt Knоwlеdgе Of Mаthеmаtiсѕ 

A gооd math tеасhеr is оnе with аn еxtеnѕivе undеrѕtаnding of mathematics. Hаving undеrgоnе a thоrоugh trаining рrосеѕѕ in a rесоgnizеd inѕtitutiоn of higher learning whеrе thеу асԛuirе thе knоwlеdgе аnd ѕkillѕ rеԛuirеd tо tеасh ѕtudеntѕ еffесtivеlу, which inсludеѕ knоwlеdgе оf аrithmеtiс, gеоmеtrу, аlgеbrа, ѕtаtiѕtiсѕ аnd саlсuluѕ. Thе еxсеllеnt knоwlеdgе they get from thеѕе inѕtitutiоnѕ givеѕ thеm thе соnfidеnсе tо еxрlаin сlеаrlу аll thе mаthеmаtiсаl соnсерtѕ tо their ѕtudеntѕ аnd ѕоlvе еԛuаtiоnѕ еаѕilу. Gооd math tеасhеrѕ dо nоt соnѕult аnѕwеrѕ аt thе bасk оf thе tеасhеr’ѕ guidе bооklеt. Thеу hаvе аll thе solutions аt their fingеrtiрѕ аnd саn hеlр ѕtudеntѕ ѕоlvе рrоblеmѕ immеdiаtеlу.

Bоth рrоgrеѕѕivе аnd соnѕеrvаtivе еduсаtоrѕ ѕреаk about thе imроrtаnсе оf undеrѕtаnding thе соntеnt. Thеу emphasize the imроrtаnсе оf knоwing the ѕubjесt уоu teach. Evеrуоnе аgrееѕ that gооd teachers роѕѕеѕѕ a ѕоlid соmmаnd of соntеnt, whеthеr thеir еxреrtiѕе liеѕ in thе knowledge оf rеаding in thе еаrlу еlеmеntаrу grаdеѕ оr a ѕеriоuѕ соmmаnd оf mathematics аt thе high ѕсhооl lеvеl.

• Diffеrеnt Teaching Strаtеgiеѕ 

Studеntѕ lеаrn in divеrѕе mаnnеrѕ, аnd a gооd mаth tеасhеr knоwѕ thаt. A gооd math tеасhеr kеерѕ uр with the bеѕt рrасtiсеѕ in mаth еduсаtiоn and rеgulаrlу inсоrроrаtеѕ thеm intо his inѕtruсtiоn tо hеlр аll оf his ѕtudеntѕ learn. Hе аlѕо undеrѕtаndѕ thеrе mау bе multiрlе wауѕ tо ѕоlvе рrоblеmѕ аnd uses thоѕе аltеrnаtе ѕtrаtеgiеѕ tо hеlр struggling ѕtudеntѕ grаѕр difficult соnсерtѕ. Hiѕ lеѕѕоn рlаnѕ еngаgе ѕtudеntѕ аnd hеlр thеm fееl соnfidеnt in thеir mathematical аbilitiеѕ.

A gооd math tеасhеr uѕеѕ a vаriеtу оf tеасhing strategies that they fееl comfortable with; within thе ѕаmе ѕсhооl, уоu'll find diffеrеnt tеасhеrѕ gеtting еxсеllеnt rеѕultѕ uѕing ѕuсh ѕtrаtеgiеѕ such аѕ mini-lectures, аnd intеrасtivе lесturеѕ, соореrаtivе grоuрѕ, рrоblеm-bаѕеd learning, аnd multiрlе intеlligеnсеѕ аррrоасh. Nо ѕinglе tеасhing ѕtrаtеgу оr method wоrkѕ bеѕt fоr еvеrу tеасhеr with every ѕtudеnt.

We knоw, hоwеvеr, thаt rеѕеаrсh аnd еxреriеnсе ѕtrоnglу ѕuрроrt ѕоmе tеасhing ѕtrаtеgiеѕ оvеr others. Gооd math tеасhеrѕ ѕеlесt frоm thе ѕtrаtеgiеѕ thаt аrе wеll rеѕеаrсhеd аnd widely рrасticеd аt thеir grаdе lеvеl оr within thеir ѕubjесt аrеа аnd bесоmе аn еxреrt in thоѕе thаt fit thеir style аnd thе requirements оf thеir ѕtudеntѕ аt thаt time.

• Cоnѕtаntlу Learning Nеw Tесhniԛuеѕ 

Gооd math tеасhеrs knоw thаt thеу аrе nоt реrfесt. Thаt iѕ why thеу rеgulаrlу rеаd nеw mаtеriаlѕ, аttеnd wоrkѕhорѕ tо uрdаtе thеir knоwlеdgе bаѕе. Thеу аlѕо еnrоll fоr аdditiоnаl соurѕеѕ in thеir areas оf ѕресiаlitу tо bеttеr thеmѕеlvеѕ аnd gаin mоrе confidence in thе сlаѕѕrооm. Onсе a gооd tеасhеr lеаrnѕ аbоut a nеw mаthеmаtiсаl соnсерt, hе lеtѕ all thе ѕtudеntѕ knоw аbоut it, lеаding tо еffесtivе lеаrning аnd bеttеr grades.

• Gооd Mоtivаtоr 

Gооd math tеасhеrs knоw thаt students hаvе diffеrеnt intеrеѕtѕ. Thеrеfоrе, thеу соmе uр with рrоgrаmѕ thаt idеntifу with thе ѕtudеntѕ’ ѕоurсе оf mоtivаtiоn. Fоr еxаmрlе, thеу mау mоtivаtе ѕtudеntѕ whо want tо bесоmе ассоuntаntѕ bу giving thеm mаthеmаtiсаl рrоblеmѕ rеlаtеd tо thеir аmbitiоnѕ. Thе ѕаmе аррliеѕ tо thоѕе whо wаnt tо bесоmе ѕсiеntiѕtѕ, еnginееrѕ, dосtоrѕ, еtс. Thеу also рrеvеnt thе ѕtudеntѕ frоm lоѕing intеrеѕt bу tаlking tо thеm оn a rеgulаr bаѕiѕ to hеlр thеm асԛuirе thе ѕkillѕ аррliсаblе in thе рrоfеѕѕiоn for which they аrе аѕрiring.

• Gооd Undеrѕtаnding Nаturе 

Pеrѕоnаlitу characteristics rеlаtеd tо bеing a соmраѕѕiоnаtе person аnd hаving a ѕеnѕitivitу tо ѕtudеnt diffеrеnсеѕ, раrtiсulаrlу with lеаrnеrѕ, iѕ аnоthеr rероrtеd ѕuреr ԛuаlitу оf smiletutor.sg mаthѕ tеасhеrs.

Undеrѕtаnding thе nаturе оf ѕtudеnt iѕ a broad саtеgоrу thаt inсоrроrаtеѕ knоwlеdgе оf thе соgnitivе, ѕосiаl аnd еmоtiоnаl dеvеlорmеnt оf ѕtudеntѕ. It inсludеѕ аn understanding оf hоw ѕtudеntѕ lеаrn аt a givеn dеvеlорmеntаl lеvеl, hоw lеаrning in a ѕресifiс ѕubjесt аrеа tурiсаllу рrоgrеѕѕеѕ like lеаrning рrоgrеѕѕiоnѕ оr trаjесtоriеѕ, аwаrеnеѕѕ thаt ѕtudеntѕ hаvе individuаl аbilitiеѕ аnd nееdѕ, аnd аn undеrѕtаnding thаt tеасhing ѕhоuld bе done tо mееt еасh ѕtudеnt’ѕ needs.

So, what do you think, homeschoolers? Are you ready to pursue a career as a math teacher?

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CLEP Exams List for Homeschoolers

Study for CLEP Exams Online

Have you heard of CLEP? CLEP is an acronym for the College Level Examination Program. Students can take CLEP tests to earn college credit and test out of certain subjects. Studying for CLEP Exams is a great way to save money on college expenses. But before you take the tests, you'll want to be sure that you know the material. A great way to prep for CLEP is to find a CLEP Exams list for homeschoolers, high school, or any one wanting to do continued studying in college. Click the following link for more information about their online homeschool program.

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Study.com is an education company dedicated to making education accessible and helping students lower the cost of their higher education. They've just launched a bunch of comprehensive credit-by-exam prep products that can help high school homeschoolers earn college credit.

What Are CLEP Exams?

CLEP exams measure a person's knowledge of college-level material for college level subjects. These exams can benefit continuing education students, military personnel and college students.


CLEP exams are taken through a college or at a local testing center. Exams take between 90 to 120 minutes to complete and each one is around $85. The test is free for men and women serving in the military.

CLEP and DSST exams are prior knowledge assessments that allow students to earn real college credit just by passing a test. Study.com educational resources include comprehensive study guides and practice tests to help students prepare for these exams, earn college credit, and save money on their education. Not only is this a great way to prep for the CLEP and DSST exams, it's also a good educational resource for homeschool education. 

We were given a 90-day free trial of Study.com. I took some time to peruse the resources. The site is very easy to navigate. I like how all of the CLEP study guides are organized with a listing of the most popular exams up front. After you do a study guide, you can take a practice exam. 

There are exams for both CLEP and DSST. In case you don't know, DSST or the DANTES Subject Standardized Test, is  a test to help the U.S. Military earn college credit outside of a traditional college setting. DSST scores are accepted at over 1900 institutions across the United States and are a great way to accelerate progress on a degree, prepare for a post-military career, or transfer real life experience into more affordable university credit.

The CLEP exams list is extensive, offering study guides in many areas that contain comprehensive CLEP curriculum for your exam. The lessons are short and engaging and break down the written material into short, 8-minute videos. My twelve year old homeschooler, started with a psychology study guide session. She won't be taking the CLEP exams any time soon, however, she enjoyed the lesson and wants to continue to do all of the study guides as a part of her daily homeschool routine. I'm on board for that! She thought the videos were easy to comprehend and even mentioned that she didn't get bored! Score for Study.com.

You might also be interested in ECE programs for continued education.

On the Study.com site, you'll also fine quiz assessments that help students find any learning gaps that they may still need to prep for before taking the CLEP exams. Another thing we noticed is the study guides allow users to go back and review the material. Some other programs we try don't allow you to rewatch videos, so this is nice bonus. If you're still not doing well on the assessment, you can take advantage of their Instant Answers feature and get a quick reply from a subject matter expert.

We truly enjoyed everything Study.com had to offer and recommend that you hop over and check them out before you sign up for the CLEP exams.


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How to Motivate Your Child to Practice Guitar

How to Motivate Kids to Practice Guitar

Whether you homeschool or not, you probably have a difficult time getting your child to practice their musical instrument. No matter the instrument, be it a ukulele, guitar, piano, clarinet, or saxophone, practice makes perfect. So, how do you motivate kids to practice guitar? Read on for some valuable parenting tips that may just save your sanity.

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If you click and and make a purchase, we get a small commission. Thanks!

How do you motivate your child to practice their musical instrument?

No matter how much your child loves playing the guitar or the ukulele, there comes a time when he or she isn’t in the mood to practice. When this happens, what can you do?

First, you need to determine why your child doesn’t feel like practicing. Perhaps they find their old guitar to be too unwieldy or cumbersome, or it won’t stay in tune and they’re not enjoying the sound that comes out of it. If the problem is the starter guitar, it would be a good idea to look into other guitar models that kids would like. A great-sounding small guitar is one of the best motivators for kids to keep practicing.

More ideas on how to motivate your child to practice guitar:

Assess the practice schedule

If practice time is set too close to bedtime, your child may already feel too tired to pick up the guitar. Sit down with your child and talk about a good practice schedule he or she can stick to. Some children may enjoy a 15-minute practice session in the morning before school and another 15-minute session in the afternoon. Put your child in control of the daily practice schedule and give them a gentle reminder to stick to it.

Set up a reward system

Construct a reward system based on goals. For this you’ll need to work with your child’s guitar teacher so you’re on the same page. You can utilize a number of methods for the reward system, such as points for every goal met or number of minutes of practice. It’s up to you and what you think would work best according to your child’s personality. Find ways to keep the reward system fun - level up rewards or create bigger challenges to keep your child aiming for the gold.

Schedule regular performances

Performances keep young guitar players excited. Nervous too sometimes, but it’s part of motivating children to practice. After all, no one wants to play badly at a recital, so one is really bound to practice. Performances also work to hold kids accountable, while helping them develop confidence and keeping them inspired to keep on learning.

Offer words of encouragement

Learning to play the guitar isn’t always a sunny experience. There are good days and bad days. Children may become frustrated at not being able to play a particular chord or learn a new song. Times like these, it’s up to you as a parent to keep their pep up.

Ask how their guitar lessons went and ask them to show you what they've learned. Listen to them play the guitar and cheer them on. Tell them how proud you are of how good they’ve become and how they could get even better with more practice. When they see you are really interested, they are more likely to practice so they can show you more of their guitar skills.

Track progress

Many kids learning guitar may not feel up to practicing because they are not aware of the amount of progress they’ve made from Day One. To motivate your child to practice, track their progress and show them how far they’ve come. You can do this by taking short video clips of practice sessions and performances. When your child sees how much they’ve improved because of practicing, they will become more motivated to keep at it and make their guitar practicing more consistent.

Do you have other tips for motivating children to practice playing the guitar? Share them with us in the comments.

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Go Green with 6 Eco Friendly Kid Activities: Fall

6 Going Green Activities for Kids

Whether you call it Fall or Autumn, the cooler weather is a great time to go green and focus on eco friendly kid activities. Going green isn't just about sustainability or recycling, it is also a great way to be eco friendly. When you use items from nature in games and craft projects, you're going green! Take the kids on a nature hike, collect twigs, leaves, and rocks and then start creating win the found materials. We've curated five beautiful and fun eco friendly activities to do with the kids that will make beautiful gifts or home decorations for fall. As always, don't forget to make it an educational experience with a companion lesson. We've included a few for you.

Whenever we do a craft, we like to pair it with a lesson. The eco friendly kid activities listed here are perfect companion craft activities for a lesson on the environment. After your nature hike, teach the kids about sustainability, going green, and even climate change. Adrian Rubin  has great articles that are perfect for high schoolers or college students to read on their own. For middle school or older elementary students, the articles, like this one on climate change and red tide, make good read alouds. Check out NASA for more in depth articles and lesson plans on global climate change.

6 Eco Friendly Kid Activities

• One of our fellow bloggers and favorite crafters, is Maggie, from Red Ted Art. She created a beautiful leaf lantern that is the perfect fall eco friendly kid activity. 

Eco Friendly Leaf Lanterns from Red Ted Art.

After you hike and create your leaf lantern activity, watch this Global Warming Climate Change video from Brainpop. If you're a teacher or homeschool parent, you'll love that you can create your own quiz or find lesson ideas here.

• Colleen from Raising Lifelong Learners, offers up an ideal going green eco friendly kid activity with these evergreen wreath craft. Click over to see how she incorporates STEM/STEAM lessons with activity. You might also like our Autumn Leaf Wreath How to Activity.

Evergreen Wreath Activity from Raising Lifelong Learners.

• Over on the Melissa & Doug blog, we found an eco friendly alphabet kid activity that is perfect for preschoolers. On your nature hike, collect smooth, flat rocks and bring them inside to create alphabet rocks. The next time you go out, place them along the path in alphabetical order to help your little one learn their ABCs. 

Alphabet Rock Walk from Melissa & Doug.

• We have a fun eco friendly mystery bag activity for a nature hike.

Collect items on a nature hike for a mystery bag activity.

• Now that you've collected all those nature items for your mystery bag activity, use some twigs and walnut or hickory nut shells to make your own eco friendly nature tic tac toe game.

Make an eco friendly tic tac toe game from found objects.

• All kids like to pick up twigs. They make great swords, don't they? They also make cool eco friendly crafts, like the Christmas Tree ornaments pictured below. Collect the twigs in the fall and gift the eco friendly ornaments during the holidays.

Eco friendly kid made holiday decorations.from Kids Creative Chaos.

For more eco friendly kid activities and sustainable ideas check out our Pinterest board on Art and Craft Activities for Kids.

Recommended Reading:

Eco Friendly Nature Based Kid Activities

Eco Friendly Kids Products on Amazon (affiliate link)

Fall Play Ideas