Backyard play ideas: Easy ways to have fun with kids! How to make use of your garden
When your child is little or a family member isn’t feeling well, it can be hard to get out to the park or go on outings.
That’s why I recommend playing in the yard.
Since the yard is on your property, it’s easy to play there, you can keep an eye on your child with peace of mind, and it’s great that you don’t have to worry about finding a restroom or drinks.
In this article, I’ll introduce simple yard games and toys, beginner-friendly DIY play equipment, and nature play ideas.
Find activities that suit your yard and enjoy fun time at home!
Backyard play ideas. Easy fun with kids! Ways to use your yard (1–10)
Hopscotch Ring
Ken-ken-pa is a game where you alternate landing on one foot and on both feet according to squares drawn on the ground.
By using rings instead of drawing directly on the ground, you can enjoy the game without worrying about cleanup.
Since you only need to place the rings, it’s easy to change the layout, which is another advantage—try incorporating various patterns.
Usually, the maximum is two adjacent squares for a two-foot landing, but it might be interesting to include patterns with three or more squares and see how players choose to navigate them.
Drawing with chalk
When you draw as usual, you often work on paper of a fixed size, and you might feel you can’t really stretch out and draw freely.
If you could use something larger than paper as your canvas and paint freely, wouldn’t that boost your excitement? Try using chalk to draw on the concrete area in your yard.
Chalk has unique colors and a distinctive feel, so you can enjoy the differences from your usual drawing materials.
It’s also nice that you can leave your artwork somewhere you’ll see in everyday life, and the easy cleanup is an important plus.
trampoline
When you think about enjoying a trampoline, you might imagine you have to go out to an athletic facility, and that it would be difficult otherwise.
However, if it’s a small size, you can actually set one up at home.
Because bouncing transfers rebound force to your body and requires you to use your entire body to jump, it’s a fun way to get a full-body workout.
Lightly bouncing is enjoyable on its own, but adding small tricks—like tapping your knees in midair—can introduce a game-like element and make it even more fun.
Since vibrations can carry indoors, it may be ideal to place it in the yard, with safety in mind.
sandbox
One of the fun aspects of playing in the sand is coming up with your own ways to play using a bed of sand.
Digging with a shovel or packing sand into different shapes can help foster flexible creativity.
While many people may think sandboxes only exist in parks, you can actually build one yourself if you have space in your yard.
By choosing the sand and other materials carefully, you can create a sandbox that feels safer and more secure than shared ones.
You can let children play freely in the sandbox, or you might give them some tools as hints to spark ideas.
playing house
Isn’t it fair to say that make-believe house play is a traditional game that recreates household roles? It typically involves acting out chores, and because it doesn’t require a large space, it can be enjoyed even in a small area of the yard.
Since it’s a game where children freely act out family life, it may also offer a chance to see how they perceive their family’s everyday behavior.
Using familiar toys to recreate chores can also help develop their creativity.
soap bubble
Soap bubbles float softly through the air, and when you blow them outside they reflect the sunlight beautifully.
There are many types of bubble solutions sold, and if you choose well, you can make bubbles that stay afloat longer.
Blowing through a ring to send them off is the classic method, but there are also toys that automatically release fine bubbles, so you can enjoy them in various ways.
How the bubbles rise changes depending on how much wind there is, so it’s best to play on days when it isn’t too windy.
home vegetable garden
When Chinese cabbage starts appearing in stores, it feels like winter, and when you see cucumbers and tomatoes, it feels like summer.
Many of us sense the seasons by the vegetables lined up at the greengrocer.
How about enjoying a home garden as part of your child’s emotional education? With just one short row, you can grow two or three kinds of vegetables.
Even without a large yard, you can grow vegetables in plastic bags or milk cartons.
Green onions are the easiest, so start by trying to grow those! Vegetables you grow yourself taste better, and it might even help your child overcome a dislike of veggies.