As summer winds down and we approach the early days of fall, there’s still plenty of time to enjoy outdoor maker activities. While July’s Parks and Recreation Month may have passed, the pleasant weather of late summer and early autumn provides perfect opportunities to get creative outside. Let’s explore some engaging maker activities you can enjoy in your local parks or backyard as the seasons change.
Park-Based Activities
Local parks offer great spaces for outdoor creativity. Map making is a great activity to do at your local park. Make a map of the route to the park, or consider exploring your local park and making a map of the whole park or something specific, like favorite areas and well-known landmarks. Photography is an excellent park activity! Through your lens, capture the changing colors of leaves and the transition of seasons. Get outside and enjoy nature while also making something.
Messy Outdoor Fun
Take advantage of the remaining warm days for some messy activities. Kids love to make elephant toothpaste, but it is definitely an activity best done outside due to its foamy nature. Gardening can be messy but oh so rewarding when what is planted grows. Plant fall vegetables or prepare your garden for next spring. The cork raft challenge is fun and engaging and will help keep them cool as they test their creations. You could even end a lingering hot day by making your own ice cream!
Artistic Projects
The changing light and colors of late summer and early fall will inspire creativity in your aspiring artists! Sun prints capture the essence of summer flowers or fallen leaves. They even work well using construction paper. Make an excellent summer souvenir outdoor-themed impression using salt dough or clay to create lasting memories of your outdoor adventures. Shadow chalk art is a fun activity that involves no cleanup since it will wash away with the rain but looks beautiful while it is there. Budding film directors can make a stop-motion movie filmed entirely outside. Editing can even be saved for a rainy day inside.
Engineering Challenges
Engage budding engineers with these outdoor projects. Try the egg drop project, where children design protective enclosures for eggs that allow the raw egg to be dropped and not break. Challenge them to make an outdoor game using only materials found outside. Engage them in designing and building a butterfly or other wildlife habitat to support local fauna. By building a working solar oven, take advantage of the still-strong sun to cook lunch or snacks! Plan ahead for a more extensive project. Work on inventing something new for next year’s Outdoor Life Contest from Instructables!
As the seasons change, these outdoor maker activities offer wonderful opportunities to connect with nature, learn new skills, and create lasting memories. Whether you’re enjoying the last warm days of summer or embracing the crisp air of early fall, there’s always a perfect outdoor project waiting to be made. As always, look for more resources highlighted by TeachersFirst and related TeachersFirst blog posts. Happy making!