Spring has arrived, and the weather is gradually warming up, opening the door for some outside fun. But in a world of screens and technology, getting our children excited to go outside for some good, old-fashioned play can be a bit difficult. However, science agrees that going outside, getting active, and enjoying the fresh air can have numerous benefits for your child’s physical and mental health.
In fact, according to Parenting Science, playing outside regularly can help reduce stress levels in children, reduce their chances of experiencing nearsightedness, and improves concentration. When children get outside regularly, they build larger social-emotional cognitive capacities, according to Sanford Health, while also building a stronger immunity to common illnesses and allergies. With all these benefits, it goes without saying that getting outside regularly to play, explore, sing, and dance is an important part for our children’s physical and intellectual development.
The Blossom Shoppe, our debut children’s picture book, focuses on key social-emotional learning skills, including helping children build an appreciation for nature. We at Blossom have created a number of activities and resources inspired by Poppy & Posie’s award-winning story to engage your child and encourage them to explore the great outdoors with you. From singing and dancing to scavenger hunts and more. Check out these fun activities that’ll get you and your child outside, active, and having fun with the Blossom Sisters!
Activity #1: Nature Scavenger Hunt
According to Dr. Gwen Dewar in Parenting Science, one benefit of outdoor play is the opportunity for your child to learn about physical forces and concepts, such as wind, sunlight, plants, and more. And this can definitely be accomplished with our Nature Scavenger Hunt! Join Poppy and Posie as they search for seeds, rocks, leaves, and small creatures. Your child can keep track of the things they find with our activity while also getting out in the sunshine.
We also have a Color Scavenger Hunt that can help your child identify colors in nature. From pink flowers to red cardinals, there are many opportunities for them to see and identify color in the wild. Our Color Scavenger Hunt worksheet can help them keep track of the colors they identify and invites them to discover new colors in the nature surrounding your home.
Activity #2: Song and Dance
Nothing gets us up and moving like song and dance, and the same thing can be said for getting our children outdoors. Our fun musical activities can help your child find the fun in being active by getting them grooving and moving. Whether celebrating the arrival of spring indoors or outdoors, check out our various dancing videos and activities:
The Watering Can Ballet- Our sing + dance-along to The Watering Can Ballet is the perfect way to show your plants some love while also encouraging your children to get outside and dance. Your child will learn popular ballet positions and combinations while showing your garden a little TLC as they dance while watering the plants.
Flower Freeze Dance- Flower Freeze Dance is all about expression and is perfect for playing outside. All you have to do is print and cut out the flower template available on our website, write various activities on each flower (such as dance, giggle, jump, etc.), and place the flowers on the ground in a circle. Have your children stand in front of the flowers in a circle and then turn on our Silly Lily song. While the song plays, encourage your children to dance in a circle and then when the music stops, have them “freeze” in front of a flower. Then, have them perform the action described on the flower. This is a fun game that can also help with word recognition and other tactics that can inspire success in school, in the same vein as Simon Says.
Ring in the Spring Dance- Our Ring in the Spring dance is the perfect way to ring in the spring with your kids. Just grab some handbells, and you and your child will be ready to follow along with the dance, sing along to the song, and welcome the springtime with this fun activity!
Activity #3: Spring Charades
There’s a reason playing charades is often a staple at parties—it’s a ton of fun, and it
turns out it can actually help children with social-emotional learning. According to Centervention, charades can help teach children to identify emotions based on facial expressions, hand gestures, and body movements. Our Spring Charades game is perfect for ringing in the season and encouraging our little ones to get outside to play fun games with family and friends. Our Spring Charades activity focuses on spring-based activities, animals, and more and can be perfect for creating a day of play outdoors.
Activity #4: Garden of Kindness
Everyone appreciates a great act of kindness, especially children. Our Garden of Kindness printable activity encourages children to color in a flower for each act of
kindness they perform. Plus, multiple studies show that being kind to others can help children feel good about themselves as well. According to VeryWell Family, children who show kindness to others have higher levels of self-esteem. To get your children out and about this spring, you can create a list of acts of kindness that’ll get them outside and put smiles on people’s faces, from making a bouquet for a loved one to planting a tree.
While the world still looks a little bit different, there are thankfully numerous ways that we can get outside, reconnect with nature, and have fun with our children. These activities are a great way to help them learn new things, get active and outdoors, and have fun in the process. So, on that note, let’s all ring in the spring together!
Enjoy!
Julia Hettiger
Blog Writer Intern at Blossom
Sources: Harvard Health, Sanford Health, Parenting Science, Centervention, VeryWell Family