Ideas to Set Up Your Backyard for Unstructured Play

Outdoor playtime for your kids is beneficial in many ways. They get to soak in all the vitamin D from the sun, improve their motor skills, play with friends, and appreciate the environment. But setting up an outdoor play area can be challenging. You need to consider space, their likes and dislikes, safety, and so much more. That doesn’t mean setting up an outdoor area is impossible. Use the following ideas to give your children the best outdoor experience.

Create backyard “rooms” for comfort and privacy

You can create an indoor feel outside by creating spaces that offer privacy. Your children will enjoy playing and hanging out with their friends in these “rooms.” It also gives you a chance to enjoy some calmness and silence in the main house. Take advantage of the trees and corners in your backyard for creative spaces,

Some ideas for outdoor “rooms” include:

• An outdoor treehouse
• A tent with customized interiors
• A backyard playhouse
• An outdoor kitchen

A kid’s garden

Creating a kid’s garden is an excellent way to keep your children outside. Gardening not only keeps them occupied but it offers a learning experience. Dig up a section of your backyard and turn it into a kid’s garden. Ask for their involvement in planting vegetables, flowers, and other plants.

Kids love creating things from scratch; therefore, gardening is a brilliant way for them to take care of a project from scratch.

Kid-friendly backyard toys

The more the toys, the better for the children; kids can never get enough of their toys. Therefore, you can include kid-friendly backyard toys to keep them outdoors longer. Some efficient and kid-friendly toys include:

• Loose parts for playing such as log slices
• Gardening sets
• Swings
• Building sets
• Sand and water tables
• Drawing sets

Backyard sand play

Kids love to create a mess, and playing with sand is a happy place for most kids. It also offers sensory stimulation. You can dig up a sandpit in a section of your backyard and gather up enough soil for the kids. Purchase necessary scooping tools, such as spoons, shovels, cups, and bins to make playtime fun. Ensure all the tools are kid-friendly.

They can build sandcastles, scooping and pouring as much sand as they please. You can even add water into the mix.

Outdoor art & creativity for a kid-friendly backyard

An outdoor art and creativity section will also keep your kids outside for hours. They can paint and draw while enjoying some fresh air. But the best part of outdoor art and creativity sections is the relief of worrying about paint splashes and dribbles on your walls. You can put up a creative wall and include a board, chalk, paint brushes, etc.

Backyard water play

Water play is the best way to improve a child’s motor skills and enhance sensory stimulation. Kids enjoy playing in the kiddie pool, running through sprinklers, and blowing bubbles or water balloons. Take advantage of the sunny days and turn your backyard into a water park.

You can include a water foundation, wide kiddie pools, or create DIY water balloons. If you’re into gardening with your little ones, create a stream and ask them to help to water the plants. Create fun family moments with water play.

Outdoor play is essential for your children. They need to enhance their physical development and become one with nature. Hopefully, these ideas will help turn your backyard into a kid’s outdoor haven.