Outdoor Fun for Kids During Autumn: Enjoy Autumn to the Fullest

Autumn is the most magical time of the year. The weather gets crispy. The leaves change to stunning colors of red, orange, and yellow. Kids can enjoy tons of Autumn activities. Autumn is the perfect time for kids to learn and connect with nature and have fun with the family. Spend this beautiful Season doing fun outdoor Autumn activities with your kids.

Autumn Themed Gardening

One of the best ways to keep kids engaged outdoors during Autumn is with simple gardening tasks. Autumn is perfect for pruning, composting, mulching, and collecting dried leaves. You can make this fun by turning them into little games. For example, who can collect the most leaves? Or, make the best leaf pile to jump in. Kids love feeling like they’re helping, and gardening teaches them how to care for and about the environment.

Picking Fruits From the Garden

When the season turns to autumn, and there are fruit trees and berry bushes in your garden, it becomes the ideal chance to gather your treasures. Kids experience the thrill of capturing ripe fruit, and there are no other fruits like the ones you pluck off the vine as they are the best. Fruits to pick in fall are an abundance. Apples, pears, and various berries are quite common in the garden. If you have dewberry, wild strawberry, and black raspberry plants, you are in for a delicious seasonal treat. You can teach the children how to preserve the fruit for the winter months by making preserves or jams, and involve them in the harvesting craft; there are many recipes for this.

Creative Arts and Crafts

Children can be inspired by autumn’s fallen leaves and pumpkins in an endless variety of creative projects. They can make scarecrows, paint flower pots and plant markers, or use the markers they made for the bulbs or seeds they’ve just planted. With dried pumpkins or gourds, they can also craft wonderful lanterns. There are many autumn crafts for artistically inclined children. Participants in these creative activities will also be using a variety of materials and textures.

Leaf Collages and Leaf Pressing

Every autumn season, children can gather leaves of all colors, shapes, and sizes and use dried leaves to make awesome collages. This will help them soak in the educational and fun experiences to be had in the autumn. Children can do some awesome discovering and educating in another fun nature activity. Learning to preserve flowers and leaves by identifying their different kinds will help them remember the showing, changing leaves and appreciate nature. This will help them see different shapes and colors and appreciate the natural beauty in it.

Birdwatching

Another fun educational and nature experience to have in the autumn is observing and watching birds. Children also will enjoy the different activities and get some exercise in. Many children also are more active enough at the cooler weather to get some fun exercises in. Watching birds helps them learn more about the wildlife that is around them while also learning about the different birds in the area. While they get binoculars and a local guide of the birds in the area to help them identify species, they will learn fun facts about the migratory birds in the area as well.

Fall Themed Game

There are plenty of games for kids in the fall. You could do an autumn-colored scavenger hunt where you look for and collect different fall colors. One fall-themed game is to have a competition to see who can find a pumpkin the quickest. Another game you can do is catch a falling leaf before it touches the ground. Depending on the kids around you, you can also do the classic sack races, tug-of-war, and even an obstacle course using fallen sticks and leaves that goes along with the other fallen leaf games.

Autumn Walk and Nature Hikes

The Fall is a great time to go on a walk or a hike to enjoy the beautiful colors seen from the leaves changing. This is one of the best times to go outdoors and walk around a park or a nature filled area. You can discuss the different kinds of trees that are changing and the season for changes. You can even collect leaves and rocks to use for an art project.

Apple Orchard and Pumpkin Patch Activities

A short visit to an apple orchard or pumpkin patch is one of the most autumn activities to do. They are such a fun way to spend the day. At pumpkin patches, kids are given the opportunity to pick their own pumpkins , go on a hayride, or participate in a corn maze race. Apple orchards often let you pick apples and help give you the opportunity to do fun kitchen activities like pie baking or cider making. These fun kitchen activities help kids learn about food and where it comes from.

Autumn Activities Focusing on Education

This season is a wonderful time for fun and educational activities. One fun gardening example is the planting of a fall garden. Children can learn about the growing processes of different plants for that season, like squash, pumpkins, and certain wild flowers. Children can take an active role in the plant's care and learn about growth processes, soil health, and other seasonal processes. In addition to gardening, changing leaf colors can teach about photosynthesis, and the science around leaf color changing.

Family Bonfire

Lastly, if the weather is right, have a family bonfire. Autumn is the time to be around a fire pit, roast marshmallows, and tell stories. The combination of chilly evening air and heat from the bonfire is just right for making memories with your kids. It can even become a fun activity by getting the kids to gather wood for the fire and arrange a cozy place with blankets and chairs.

Learn More Autumn Gardening Activities at TN Nursery

Would you like to find some fun and unique plants to start growing this autumn? TN Nursery is a great place to go to find all that you need to start gardening. If you want to engage your children in gardening, take a look at our wonderful collection of fruiting plants, blackberries, and wild strawberries. Let your kids learn about the great activities that can be done with the wonders of nature.

FAQs

What are some fall activities for kids?

Fall is full of fun things for kids to do, and so many outdoors. They can play leaf races and make collages from the leaves. They can use lanterns and do some gardening. Birdwatching and apple picking are also great outdoors activities to do while teaching kids about nature.

What is the best outdoor activity for an 8 to 10-year-old child?

For this age, 8 to 10-year-olds, it's best to do things like outdoor scavenger hunts, hiking, or going to a pumpkin patch. They can explore, get some exercise and have fun at the same time. You can also have them use their hands to help with gardening or set up an obstacle course to get them some exercise and problem solving.

Where to go with kids in autumn?

Autumn is the perfect season to enjoy places of nature and of the outdoors such as nature reserves, pumpkin patches, and apple orchards. Visiting farms during the season is also a great time to enjoy special activities like corn mazes, hayrides, and pumpkin picking. Another option is to go on a nice and scenic walk to a forest or park to watch the wildlife and enjoy the fall foliage.

What are some inexpensive fall-themed games?

Some inexpensive activities of the season are leaf scavenger hunts, and pumpkin rolling races. People also like to play games like the sack race, and use their fallen branches and leaves to make what they call an "obstacle course".

What is a popular activity during the autumn season?

The most common seasonal activity is visiting a pumpkin patch. People have fun picking pumpkins, and they also enjoy the corn mazes and hayrides. A lot of families apple picking, it is a fun activity and helps kids learn about the growing and harvesting of fruits.

What are some creative activities for kids?

Kids enjoy making autumn leaf collages, creating scarecrow crafts, and also painting pumpkins. Kids also enjoy making fall season decorations like wreaths and the garden. For example, customized plant markers are a fun activity.

Tammy Sons, Horticulture Expert

Written by Tammy Sons

Tammy Sons is a horticulture expert and the CEO of TN Nursery, specializing in native plants, perennials, ferns, and sustainable gardening. With more than 35 years of hands-on growing experience, she has helped gardeners and restoration teams across the country build thriving, pollinator-friendly landscapes.

Learn more about Tammy →