Nature Activities for Kids

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Welcome back to the Weekly Kids Co-op, I look forward to reading your posts each week.  Last week I shared a fun round up all about Learning With Seeds.  Spring is here and we are loving playing outside and enjoying Mother Nature.  As a result I decided to to feature Nature Activities for Kids.  Let’s turn off the screens and take out kids outside to enjoy some fresh air!

Nature Activities for kidsLots of great ideas for Learning and Playing with Nature:

If you were featured this week, feel free to grab a Housing A Forest button.

Come back every Thursday to see if your creative ideas were featured and link up any new ideas! (I will be using one image and a link back to your blog.)

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I am loving the week long Play Inspired with Nature series that I am doing with Growing A Jeweled Rose this week.  Check out the links below for what we have shared already.  We have lots more planned for this week so make sure you check back!

Play Inspired by Nature

Mud Play Recipe ~ This recipe is for the perfect Princess Mud Pie!

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud ~ lots of fun ways to get messy and creative with mud

Rainy Day Puddle Play ~ I don’t think that I have ever seen a more magical  mud puddle!

5 fun way to Paint in the Rain ~ fun ways to get creative the next time it rains.

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Weekly Kids Co-op



Rain Painting

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Yesterday I introduced our exciting week long Play inspired by Nature series.  I am having so much fun collaborating with Crystal from Growing a Jeweled Rose.  Yesterday we both played in the MUD and had a blast.  If you missed it you can find our mud posts here and here. Today we are both “singing in the rain, just singing in the rain” 🙂  OK, I’m not sure I heard any singing, but we did have lots of fun Rain Painting.

Play Inspired by Nature

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My kids love painting, so we decided to take it outdoors and paint with Mother Nature.  Day 2 of Play Inspired by Nature series ~ Rain Painting.  We have done this before, and it is always a hit.  We actually experimented with 5 different painting mediums to see which we like the best.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

Rain painting with Broken water color cakes ~ We used a cheap watercolor set, I think found at the dollar store.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

The kids popped the cakes out the the container and then broke them into little pieces with a hammer.  This was my sons favorite part:)  They placed our in a baggie to try and contain all the broken pieces.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

The kids sprinkled the watercolor bits onto a water color paper and set it out in the rain.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

After a while, I was surprised that the watercolors did not run and bleed more.  So we placed a piece of plastic wrap over the entire paper and proceeded to squish the colorful bits.  They had softened in the rain, and the kids really enjoyed watching the colors squish and spread under the plastic.  We may try it again with a different brand of watercolors to see if we can get better results.

Rain Painting with Powdered Tempera Paint ~ Powdered Tempera Paint is relatively inexpensive, and is really easy to use.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

Instead of mixing it with water to make paint, we sprinkled it onto our paper dry.  As the rain drops hit the powder, it turned into paint.
5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

It gave a very textural look to the painting.  I think it would look great in a rainbow of colors!  Just make sure to sprinkle the paint lightly.  The larger clumps did not work as well as the thin sprinkled areas.

Rain Painting with Washable Markers ~ This is one of the easiest ways to paint in the rain.  All you need is a few markers, a piece of heavy paper and some imagination.  The rain will blur and soften your image as the color bleed and run together.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the RainRain painting with Watercolor Crayons ~ I have posted about my love for watercolor crayons before.  Since they also bleed when wet, we thought it would be fun to see what they did in the rain.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

Simple sharpen your watercolor crayons with a pencil sharpener and sprinkle the shavings onto your paper and let the rain do the rest.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

I love how the colors pooled together.  Notice the larger “spots”, they were created with larger chucks of watercolor crayons.

Rain Painting with Food Coloring ~ This is how we have painted in the rain before.  We always have food coloring on hand so it is our go to method.

5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

We have found it works best if the paper is wet when you apply the food coloring.  So we took our paper and food coloring outside.  Once the rain soaked the paper, the kids dropped food coloring onto it.    5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

They love picking up the tray and watching the colors swirl and mix.

While the kids were waiting for the rain to do its magic, they hit the streets with chalk.  Drawing with chalk on a wet sidewalk is one of our favorite rainy day activities.   5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

Chalk takes on a whole new texture when wet and the colors are twice as vibrant.5 Fun Ways to Paint in the Rain

If you are still looking for more ways to play in the rain and stomp in puddles, check out our  Rainy Days, Clouds and Puddles posts.  There are lots of outdoor rainy day play ideas, along with a fun science experiment.

Rainy Days, Clouds and Puddles

What is your favorite way to Play in the Rain?

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Make sure to stop by Growing A Jeweled Rose and check out Crystals Rainy Day Activities ~ Puddle Play.  Her girls always have a great time stomping and getting creative with puddles!

 rainy day puddle play

Also check out Monster Puddle Stomping and Halloween Puddle Jumping Fun

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You might also enjoy the learning through movement series being shared by members of:

The PLAY Group

Gross Motor Addition Game

Number Hunt

Add It Up

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Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

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I am so excited to announce a week long Play Inspired By Nature series that I am doing with my good friend Crystal from Growing A Jeweled Rose.  Each day, both of us will be posting exciting ideas on how to enjoy nature with your kids.  By the end of the week we will have shared 10 exciting ideas all focused on going outside and exploring nature with our kids.  I can’t wait to share what we have been creating and exploring.

Play Inspired by Nature

play inspired by natureTo kick off our series both Crystal and myself are exploring mud together with our kids today:)  Yep, we are diving right into good old fashioned mud play and loving it!

If you click on the image on the right you will be taken to Growing A Jeweled Rose site.  Make sure to check out her amazing Mud Play Recipes.  We are both really excited to be bringing you our Play Inspired By Nature series!  Hope you have as much fun as we do:)

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Now onto this weeks post, Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud.

Mud Mud Glorious Mud

As a kid I loved playing in the mud.  I grew up on a farm with plenty of space to splash in puddles and play in the mud.  Me and my brother would spend hours digging trenches with the heels of our boots to connect mud puddles.  We would also build simple mud dams to stop other puddles from escaping.  Little did we know we were budding engineers.

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

Wanting to give my kids a similar experience (but limited to a small urban backyard) we had to get creative.  Let me tell you the kids had a blast!  We started by digging a hole in one of my side annual gardens, and filling it with water.  It became and instant puddle that my kids couldn’t resist jumping in.  I’ve mentioned before that my kids are puddle magnets.

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

We added some dirt to a large pot and the kids stirred in water to make soupy mud.  They started out with a stick, but soon jumped in with hands and feet.  There is nothing quite like squishing mud in between your toes:)
Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

Next we rolled out a huge piece of white paper.   Mixed up a little mud and water and started creating art!  They painted with mud, then rolled it, stamped it and finger painted with it.  The process was completely amazing and the kids LOVED every minute of it!

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

Soon the paint brushes were set aside for some good old fashioned Mud Prints.  The kids loved stamping their muddy feet and hands on the paper creating fun designs and patterns.  We chose to do create our mud prints on a large piece of paper, but the sidewalk is another great canvas.  Plus that would make the set up that much simpler:)

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

Tips for setting up your own mud play adventure:

  •  Embrace the mess.  Playing in mud is not only fun, but the kids are learning at the same time!
  • Set up a mud pie kitchen.  Check out this amazing outdoor mud pie kitchen.  Lots of yummy mud pies, cookies and cupcakes have been created there!
  • Bring in the trucks!  Kids love playing with dump trucks in the sand, so why not the mud too.
  • Have a bucket of clean water on hand to rinse of little muddy feet and hands and a hose near by for the larger clean ups:)
  • Outdoor clothes are a must!  Paying in the mud is going to get messy, so be prepared.  I can’t remember where I heard this, but “there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing! So true.
  • Laugh!  The most important ingredient in any mud pie kitchen is to have fun and don’t worry about the mess!

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

The kids also made some great mud sculptures that I missed getting pictures of.  Apparently we were having too much fun playing:)

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

We also added colored water and syringes.  Magic potions, mud and glitter are a win in my girls book.
Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud

We also made adorable mud drawings.  Mud is a very forgiving medium to work with.  Smooth a thin layer of mud over surface, (a sidewalk or a piece of cardboard work great)  and use a stick as a pencil.  My kids loved making these simple Subjective Mud Drawings.  The best part is, if you don’t like how your drawing is turning out, just smear the mud smooth and start all over.

Mud, Mud, Glorious Mud We also found a number of wonderful worms during our adventure.  The kids thought it was great fun to spot a little worm wiggling though their art work.

Do you embrace muddy play at your house?

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My sweet friend Crystal from Growing A Jeweled Rose is the Queen of Messy Play and if you are looking for some more great ideas on how to play with mud make sure to check out her Mud Play Recipes.  

Mud Pie Recipes

I also love the MUD PARTY that she threw for her kids!

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You might also enjoy the learning through movement series being shared by members of:

The PLAY Group

Gross Motor Addition Game

Number Hunt

Add It Up

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How to Chalk Hair

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DIY Washable Hair Color ~ How to Chalk Hair

Hair Chalking is a fun way to add color to your hair temporarily.  I love the fact that it washes right out in the shower and my kids love it because of all the fun color combinations.  Learn how to chalk hair in just a few easy steps.

How to Chalk Hair ~ DIY Washable Hair Color

Hair chalking is a quick, easy and inexpensive way to all a little temporary color to your hair or your kids.  I love the vibrant pink!  You could stick to your favorite color, go ombre, color the ends or try a whole rainbow of colors.  It is up to you:)

How to Chalk Hair

This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.

Materials needed to begin:

  • Chalk Pastels ~ sold at art supply stores.  The cheaper student quality chalks work great!
  • Spray bottle
  • Towel to go over your shoulders ~ it can get messy
  • Rubber gloves ~ I did not use them, but if messy hands are not your thing then you might want to put on a pair.

How to Chalk Hair

How to Chalk Hair

  1. Wet the strand of hair you want to chalk.  It is best to work in small sections.
  2. Starting at the top of the strand you want colored, gently rub the chalk pastel over the wet strand.  You may need to rub the color on the hair a few times to achieve the desired color.
  3. You could also try just dipping the tip of the chalk in water and rubbing it on the hair as well.  Both techniques work great.  You may want to play around a little to see which you like better.
  4. Let your hair air dry and then heat set with a flat or curling iron.  The colors will pop once your hair is dry.
  5. Shake off the excess pigment and you are all set!
  6. When you are ready to remove the color, simply wash with shampoo.  It may stain the hair slightly if you have lighter hair, but it will fade quickly with repeated washes.

How to Chalk Hair

If you plan on adding more than one color of chalk to your hair, start with the lightest color first and gradually go darker.  Switch up the colors, go crazy and have fun.  Since it is temporary, it is like an invitation to go wild and be carefree!

How to Chalk Hair

Tips for making your chalk last a little longer:

  • Use hairspray to set the chalk
  • Heat set dry hair with either a flat iron or a curling iron ~ this will brighten the color and set it so it does not rub off as easily.
  • Don’t brush your hair, or play with it too much.
  • Braids look great and will keep your hair from moving and rubbing the chalk off.
  • We have not had any problems with color transferring to clothing, however if you are worried about it wear something that matches your new hair color.
  • Sleep with an old pillow case in case the color transfers.
  • The chalk can dry out your hair, so make sure to use a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner when washing it out.

How to Chalk Hair

I love this fun temporary look.  What color combination are you going to try?

Learning With Seeds

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I am itching to start digging in my garden. There is something about the smell of spring in the air that makes me want to play in the dirt. The kids started a few seeds started indoors, so we are slowly gearing up for spring. With seeds on the brain, I decided to feature a number of posts from the Weekly Kids Co-op that all encourage Learning with Seeds.  

Learning with Seeds

If you were featured this week, feel free to grab a Housing A Forest button.

Come back every Thursday to see if your creative ideas were featured and link up any new ideas! (I will be using one image and a link back to your blog.)

If you don’t want to miss out on any of the fun we are having at Housing A Forest, make sure to follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, Google + and Twitter.

Weekly Kids Co-op