Ready to get outside and explore? These outdoor nature activities combine science, STEM, art, and hands-on observation to help kids discover the world around them. From building shelters and studying insects to creating nature-inspired art, these simple activities encourage curiosity, creativity, and a love of the outdoors.
Perfect for preschoolers through elementary-aged kids, these nature activities work well for classrooms, homeschool, summer camps, and backyard adventures.
Whether you’re planning a week of outdoor learning or simply heading outside for the afternoon, you’ll find plenty of easy ideas below.
Nature Activities You’ll Find
- Nature science investigations
- Outdoor STEM challenges
- Nature art projects
- Gardening activities
- Wildlife observation
- Nature journaling
- Citizen science
- Seasonal outdoor exploration
Get Ready for Outdoor Exploration
You don’t need expensive equipment to enjoy nature science. Gather a few simple tools in a basket so kids are always ready to investigate.
You might include:
- Magnifying glass
- Binoculars
- Nature journal
- Colored pencils
- Clipboard
- Small ruler
- Camera
- Field guides
- Collection container (when appropriate)
Tip: One of the best science tools is simply slowing down and looking closely!
Nature Science Activities
Explore the natural world through observation and simple investigations.
Soil Science: Compare soil from different locations. Observe the color, texture, moisture, rocks, roots, worms, and insects you find.
Explore Water Sources: Collect water from a pond, stream, lake, or puddle and investigate what you can discover with a magnifying glass or microscope.
Weather Station: Make a DIY rain gauge, anemometer, and more! Track daily temperatures, rainfall, cloud cover, and wind speed. Record observations over several weeks to discover weather patterns. Set up a pine cone weather station!
Cloud Identification: Look up and learn to identify common cloud types. Use your observations to predict changing weather.
Rock Investigation: Start a rock collection or compare rocks you discover on a hike. Observe color, texture, hardness, and patterns.
Plant Investigation: Choose one plant or tree to observe throughout the season. Record changes with drawings, measurements, and notes.
Macro Refractions: Discover how tiny water droplets act like miniature magnifying lenses with this simple macro refractions science experiment.
Color Absorbs Heat: Discover why dark-colored objects feel hotter in the sunshine. Compare different colors in this easy outdoor science experiment to learn how light energy changes into heat.
Citizen Science: Join a real scientific research project by recording birds, insects, weather, or plants in your area, or start your own!
Outdoor STEM Challenges
Use natural materials to solve problems and think like an engineer.
Build an Animal Shelter: Design and build a shelter for a woodland animal using only natural materials.
Build a Stick Fort: Experiment with different building techniques to create a sturdy fort.
Nature Boats: Can you build a boat that floats using only materials you find outdoors?
Build a Bee Hotel: Create a simple shelter to support native pollinators in your garden.
Build a Sun Shelter: Design a structure that provides shade while learning about the Sun’s energy.
Solar Oven: Build a simple solar oven and explore how the Sun’s energy can be used to cook food or melt treats. It’s a fun way to investigate heat transfer and renewable energy.
Homemade Compass: Make a simple homemade compass and practice finding directions outside.
Nature Art Activities
Combine creativity with outdoor exploration using materials collected from nature.
Nature Hammer Art: Transform fresh flowers and leaves into colorful natural prints. Kids can explore plant pigments while creating one-of-a-kind artwork.
Nature Brushes: Paint with pine needles, leaves, grasses, flowers, and sticks instead of traditional paintbrushes.
Chlorophyll Prints: Discover the green pigment inside leaves by creating simple chlorophyll prints.
Leaf Printing: Explore leaf shapes, veins, and textures with colorful paint prints.
Nature Weaving: Collect grasses, flowers, and leaves to weave into a simple loom.
Leaf Rubbing: Explore parts of the leaf through a classic technique to expose textures
Scientific Illustration: Slow down and carefully draw plants, flowers, insects, or shells just like real naturalists.
Nature Observation Activities
Encourage kids to notice the details all around them.
Bird Watching: Identify birds visiting your yard or neighborhood and record your observations.
Nature Journal: Draw, measure, label, and write about interesting discoveries during every outdoor adventure. Included in our Nature Projects Pack.
Ideas include:
- Plant growth
- Insect sketches
- Weather tracking
- Animal observations
- Leaf collections
- Seasonal changes
Nature Photography: Create a photo journal of your favorite outdoor discoveries throughout the year. We’ve enjoyed exploring the patterns in flowers!
Geocaching: Turn a hike into a real-world treasure hunt using GPS.
Stargazing: Explore constellations, the Moon, and planets after sunset.
Gardening Activities
Gardening is one of the best long-term nature science investigations.
Plant vegetables, herbs, flowers, or plants in containers, and observe how they change over time. Measure growth, investigate pollinators, and learn what plants need to survive.
👉 Explore more: Gardening Activities for Kids
Get Started for Free
Not sure where to begin? Download our Nature Guide & Challenge Cards for a quick outdoor activity you can use today.
Then, if you want even more observation pages, scavenger hunts, journals, and worksheets, visit our Printable Nature Activities collection.
Printable Nature Activities Pack
Looking for an easy way to plan a week of outdoor learning?
Our Printable Nature Activities Pack includes nature journaling pages, STEM challenges, observation activities, plant investigations, outdoor science projects, and more—all designed to make nature study simple for home or the classroom.
FAQ Ideas
What are nature activities for kids?
Nature activities encourage kids to explore the outdoors through science investigations, STEM challenges, art projects, gardening, and wildlife observation.
What can kids learn from nature?
Nature helps kids develop observational skills as they learn about plants, animals, weather, rocks, ecosystems, and the physical world through hands-on exploration.
What are easy outdoor science activities?
Simple outdoor science activities include studying soil, observing clouds, testing how colors absorb heat, building a solar oven, exploring pond water, and investigating local plants and rocks.
What supplies do I need for nature activities?
Most activities require only basic supplies like a magnifying glass, clipboard, notebook, pencils, measuring tools, and items found outdoors.
More Outdoor Activities to Explore
If your kids enjoy these nature activities, continue learning with:
- Outdoor STEM Activities
- Outdoor Science Projects
- Outdoor Art Projects
- Summer Camp Activities
- Printable Nature Activities
- Preschool Nature Table
Thanks for the great tips! Our children love geocaching, so that’s one activity I can fully recommend. Last weekend we actually got out on our bikes for the first time this year and did a bit of geocaching together…
It is a lot of fun and can really help younger kids build up those hiking miles on their legs!
wow! so clever though. a simple way for kids fun. I just love this idea. Such a creative thought. kids must love this idea. Thanks for such a good idea to share with us.