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How often do you hear the phrase “kids these days” when it comes to technology? It seems like kids are glued to their screens all day long and don’t get outside enough. But is this true? With busy lives, many of us find that we can barely keep up with our work commitments – let alone find time for exercise or family time. Thankfully, there are some easy ways to get your children playing outdoors! Here are four ideas for how you can encourage healthy habits in your kids today.
1. Encourage Outdoor Play by Giving your Kids a Yard that is Safe and Fun
If you’re looking for ways to get your kids playing outdoors, the best place to start is with their yard. Whether you live in a house or an apartment building, there are boundless possibilities when it comes to encouraging outdoor play on your property.
First of all, make sure that any space outside is safe and free from hazards such as broken glass or other dangerous items lying around. You should also check out our article about creating a ‘safe zone’ for children here. If possible, try adding some new toys and equipment so your child’s backyard can become more fun! This might include things like tents, trampolines, swing sets, or even water activities! As long as these additions encourage creativity and play, it’s a win-win for both you and your child.
If possible, ensure that the backyard is large enough to accommodate bike riding or other modes of transportation besides walking. This will allow children to get around outside without having to rely on their parents so much! If there are walkways in front of your house, make sure these have some sidewalk lighting so kids can still safely commute even when the sun goes down. And don’t forget – try getting them involved with gardening too! You may be surprised by how quickly they learn new skills and develop an interest in taking care of plants.
2. Offer New Types of Toys to Encourage Creativity Outside
Another way to get children to play outdoors is by offering them new types of toys. This doesn’t just mean buying your kids an iPad or other electronic devices – it means finding ways for them to be creative and learn through play!
For example, if you want your child to ride their bike outside more often, why not look at some balance bikes? These are designed without pedals so that young children can safely practice balancing on two wheels. Once they’re confident enough with this skill, you can add the pedals when they’re ready.
Similarly, outdoor tents allow kids to use their imagination while creating mini-worlds away from prying eyes. You may think that these are only suitable for camping trips but try setting up one indoors too.
When you do this, please encourage them to bring the tent outside to use it as a fort or hideaway spot in their backyard! It’s amazing what cool ideas kids can come up with when given some space and time to play around. And if your children are interested in science, try getting them involved with indoor weather experiments. This is an easy way for them to learn about things like barometric pressure and other meteorological concepts without going far from home. There are plenty of gifts for outdoorsy kids that you can get.
3. Make Sure you have Plenty of Water-based Activities Available
A great way to encourage healthy play is by having plenty of water-based activities available. While some people may think of swimming pools or theme parks when they hear this term, there are many other options too! If you’re looking for outdoor toys that’ll get your kids active, consider the following:
Sprinklers These devices can be used both indoors & outdoors (depending on their size). Place them in the ground and connect a hose so children can run through them while getting drenched! For even more fun, try attaching sprinkler heads at different levels, so kids have to jump over streams as well. They love creating obstacle courses like this!
Wading Pools Wading pools are perfect summertime activities for kids because they’re safe and easy to use. While you might worry about them drowning, these pools have a built-in depth limit, so children can’t go under the water without an adult’s help. Plus, they only need enough depth to cover their legs, so it is quite hard to injure yourself in one of these things.
Slip n’ Slides If your backyard has plenty of space available (or if you rent out commercial storage units ), consider setting up some slip n’ slide for your child or grandkids to enjoy on hot days! You don’t even need anything fancy – attach a plastic sheet over some slope and add a bit of water.
These are just some ideas for how you can encourage active outdoor play in your home or office space. Of course, if there isn’t enough room for this kind of stuff, then don’t worry – it’s easy to find affordable ways to set up a yard that’ll let kids enjoy the sunshine safely!
4. Create a Space in the Backyard for Playing Sports
If your child is interested in playing sports outside, make sure you set up a space where they can do this. This doesn’t necessarily mean building an expensive basketball court or putting down new turf for soccer, either! You could, for example, create some makeshift goals using large bins and tape (or even hoops created out of old coat hangers). There are many ways to get creative when making space for play – use your imagination!
Of course, if you’re on a tight budget, then set aside part of the yard as ‘sports only’ is good enough. This means that children won’t accidentally damage their toys by bumping into them while chasing after balls.
Finally, don’t forget about adding seating for when they need a rest. Even kids get tired sometimes, and if there’s nowhere comfortable for them to sit then, they might end up getting grumpy (or worse, give up trying).
That’s all you need to do to encourage outdoor play – now it’s just down to your children! If you can create an inviting space that gets their imagination working, then this is half the battle won already. And of course, make sure everything is safe & secure before letting anyone outside. You don’t want accidents or injuries occurring because the equipment isn’t maintained properly! A watched kettle never boils – remember that saying next time things start to go wrong with your garden too.
To find out more about how to get your kids playing outdoors, visit our blog! We have created a list of 4 ways that you can do so. If you want even more information on the subject, we recommend reading some articles from other blogs. All in all, parents and teachers need to encourage children who are not already interested in outdoor play to create opportunities to explore their environment and be active.
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