Outdoor Activities for Kids: Beach vs Snow

Those of you who have been part of the CoordiKids family for a while know how we feel about physical activity. You’ll know that our whole team of Paediatric Occupational Therapists and educators are huge proponents of spending time outside.

There are so many natural developmental activities that children benefit from. Simply by spending time exploring their world – running, jumping, kicking a ball, and playing in the leaves.

(This past autumn, we came up with “5 Ways to Get Kids Off Screens and Out the Door this Autumn“. This includes ways to incorporate outdoor activities for kids into your daily routine. Also, neighborhood-wide activities, like Scavenger Hunts and “Capture the Flag” are included.)

So, for this winter, we’ve challenged our team to put together a list of great outdoor activities for kids and for the whole family! No matter where in the world you’re celebrating the holidays, there is something for you.

Are you bundled up in the snow or sunbathing in the sand this winter? Either way, here are some clever ways to get started on your New Year’s Resolution: to spend more time as a family in the Great Outdoors. We’ve even earmarked specific activities that are great for kids who need a little extra proprioceptive or vestibular activity.

Remember – just 15 minutes a day of therapeutic exercise can help your child improve their sensory, motor, or attention deficit challenges!

A note about children who are shy to join in group activities:

As an occupational therapist, I first suggest you make sure your child’s motor skills are developed on par with peers. No child (or adult) likes to fail. Therefore, if a child’s skills are poorer than his or her peers’, he or she will avoid games that highlight the child’s difficulties.

The reason this is such an important topic to me is this.  It can be so difficult to notice the subtle cues in a child’s behaviour that indicate the real reasons they aren’t enjoying physical activity.

Sometimes it’s more than just not wanting to be active. Sometimes they physically can’t accomplish certain tasks or mentally get overwhelmed by certain stimulations. It can simply come down to one of various possible childhood development issues.

So, if your child doesn’t like group activities or sport in general, take a minute to read this article: Childhood Development Issues

Fun Family Outdoor Activities for Winters in the SNOW

1. Build Simple Snow Animals.

Move over, snowmen – it’s time for snow animals! Challenge your kids to each build a different animal to create a snow menagerie! Some suggestions for simple-shaped animals that hold together well in the snow include: caterpillar, snake, turtle, & octopus.

2. Make bird feeders.

Your backyard birdies or neighborhood wildlife would definitely appreciate some easy-to-scavenge meals without getting their paws cold digging in the snow!

You can keep your own hands warm and dry by building the majority of these bird feeders indoors or in the garage before hanging them outside.

A. Hollow out an orange, suspend it from string, and fill it with birdseed.

B. String popcorn on fishing line.

C. Suspend empty toilet paper or paper towel tubes from string, line them inside and out with peanut butter and sprinkle birdseed on top.

D. Collect pine cones (bonus outdoor time!) and smear peanut butter and birdseed between the spines. These can be placed on surfaces or suspended from string.

E. Here’s one for the LEGO lovers who need an extra excuse to work in their LEGO based therapy this winter. Get clever and build a simple plate from LEGO blocks, to fill with birdseed! Or, get even craftier and add shelves and perches…

3. Snow Spray Paint.

Don’t worry, Mom & Dad, it’s just water tinted with food coloring! This is one of those outdoor activities for kids that make adults cringe. But it is harmless! Fill squirt or squeeze bottles with different colors and let the kids make paintings in the snow that require no clean-up!

4. Snow Twister.

Use the above-mentioned spray paint to create a Twister game board in the snow. See how long your kids can last with “Right hand red, Left foot blue” before they tumble down into the snow!

5. Snowball target practice.

Use rocks, leaves, your snow spray paint, or just a stick drawing to create a target in the snow. Time for target practice, using snowballs of course!

6. Build a tall pile and roll down it.

Simple enough, but this is often my grandchildren’s favorite thing to do in the snow. Using various scoops and shovels to pile the snow is great proprioceptive exercise. Furthermore, rolling down the hill is fantastic proprioceptive stimulation.

The rule in our yard is that everyone must add two shovelfuls of snow to the pile before they can jump on it or roll down it. This way, the pile stays nice and high for everyone’s enjoyment. 

And all the kids have to participate in the energy-burning “work”! One of the very best types of outdoor activities for kids!

7. Sled riding.

This classic, obvious choice for fun in the snow is a fantastic vestibular activity. If there are no hills in your area, tie your sled to a rope and have the children take turns being Santa’s reindeer. They take turns pulling the sled for one another (a great proprioceptive activity!)