Cheap & Easy Outdoor Activities For 3-5 Year Olds

This post may contain affiliated links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my link, at no extra cost to you. Read the full disclosure statement here.

This blog post is all about outdoor activities for 3-5 year olds.

As a daycare provider, I believe in getting outdoor play as often as possible! Seriously, we are outside from 8-12 and again at 3, weather permitting.

That is why I have compiled a list of some of our favorite outdoor activities for 3-5 year olds!

I hope this list of outdoor activities helps you beat some of the boredom and create a sense of creativity in your toddlers!

LIST OF OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

Water Play

1. sponge toss~ fill a bucket or two with water and sponges and throw them at each other
2. water painting ~ fill a bucket of water and the kids use paintbrushes to "paint" the sidewalk
3. sprinkler~ one of our favorite activities we love this sprinkler
4. water balloon toss~ toss at each other or turn it into an educational activity with numbers, letters, and/or letter sounds
5. sink or float~ this is a repeated offender
6. water table~ I've had this water table for 5 years now

Nature Activities

1. rock painting~ kids paint rocks, or you paint the letters of their name on rocks and they dig them up and put them in order
2. stick building~ collect sticks and see what they can build and you get your yard cleaned win~win
3. nature bracelet~ place tape inside out on their wrist then go a nature walk to find different flowers to put on the bracelet
4. bug hunt~ you can imagine this will always be a winner

Gross Motor & Movement

1. obstacle course~ use items around your house to create an obstacle course that allows the children to practice climbing under, over, and balance
2. hopscotch~ use traditionally or turn it into a number recognition and counting game
3. red light, green light or Simon says~ classic listening to directions games
4. shadow tag~ a kid is it, and they run around chasing the shadows of the other kids
5. jump over the rope~ put the rope on the ground and have them jump over, use a stick if you don't have a rope

Imaginative Play

1. mud kitchen~ I put old pots, pans, and utensils outside in a dirt pile and called it a mud kitchen. You can build one with pallets or old containers.
2. binoculars~ build binoculars with two toilet paper rolls and go on a hunt
3. magic potion~ water in a big pot and let them put grass, flowers, and other objects they find in it and stir around
4. story time~ take the learning outside

Science Experiments

1. exploding sidewalk chalk~ mix baking soda, cornstarch, and vinegar in a baggie shake it up and now you have fizzing chalk to use
2. ice play~ freeze small toys, numbers, or letters in water and have the children attempt to free them 
3. melted crayons~ don't throw out the small broken crayons instead, place them outside in the sun to melt you can use molds like these and now have fun-designed crayons
4. vinegar & baking soda volcanoes~ build a volcano with dirt or use old apples let the kids mix and watch the fun
5. rainbow paint~ mix shaving cream with food coloring in a cup and let the kids paint

Active Play

1. kick the can~ kick an empty can at a target 
2. paper airplane race~ build paper airplanes and see who goes further
3. bubble chase~ blow bubbles and let them have fun chasing them
4.  diy bowling~ using old milk jugs or pop bottles set them up as pins and use a ball to bowl

Sensory Play

1. mud pie contest~ who made the best mud pie
2. oobleck play~ mix water and cornstarch for a messy but fun time
3. shaving cream fun~ put shaving cream on the sidewalk for them to finger-paint 
4. colored ice play~ freeze water with food coloring it and the children use paintbrushes and a cup of water to unthaw or use the colored frozen ice to paint paper

Classic Outdoor Games

1. Simon says~ call out movements for kids to do
2. duck, duck, goose~ sit in a circle, one kid is it and goes around saying duck, duck, goose taping the kid's heads then is chased by the kid that was wold goose
3. freeze dance~ put on music dance and freeze when the music stops
4. nature scavenger hunt~ going around looking for things in nature

Relaxing Outdoor Activities

1. cloud watching~ lay down in the grass and watch the clouds move
2. outdoor picnic~ this is equal to eating McDonald's at my daycare they love them that much
3. wind chime~ make a wind chime out of sticks, string, and beads

Outdoor play doesn't have to be complicated or expensive to be fun, engaging, and educational!

Join my newsletter so you can continue to receive more play ideas and educational learning outdoors!