We Played Outside ALL Day (And Why I Don't Feel Guilty)

I can vividly remember those first warm days of spring when I was growing up. I remember the smell of everything in bloom. I remember the itchy eyes and runny nose of pollen counts rising! I remember staring longingly out of the classroom windows and how free I felt as I zoomed away for that first bike ride of the year, not to return until dusk. Up north, spring was a little bit sluggish in really arriving, so I truly relished the odd warm day and awaited (sometimes impatiently) the official beginning of the sunny, endless days of spring and summertime.
As a classroom teacher, I was always notorious for being the one to take the kids out NO MATTER WHAT. And when spring arrives? You can bet you'd find us outside for a good chunk of the day. What about school and learning? No problem, we could bring it along. Many times, I'd have the students each carry materials to take lessons outside. Other times, the lesson itself was outdoors: working in the garden, observing parts of plants and trees, planting seeds, looking for worms and bugs...
And now as a home-preschooling Mommy, do I feel guilty if "all we do is play outside all day?" for a day or two or many? Goodness, no! We aren't skipping out on the learning at all. Sometimes, we even bring it along with us, like in this letter G Garden Scavenger Hunt:

And even when "all we do is play," plenty of learning and development is going on for sure:

Garden Nap!

 In our family, the outdoor adventure starts early! (In related news, so does sun protection!) Young toddlers can help in the garden with planting, watering and exploring. Gardening calls upon the development of a variety of skills. The physical activity itself promotes gross and fine motor development as you dig, poke, pinch, sprinkle, cover and water seeds. So much learning occurs in observing the process of a plant from seed to sprout to flower to fruit.

Last year was the first one we planted an outdoor garden. My older gardener was about a year and half when we began. He loved helping pour soil and poke seeds into little holes we made with our fingers. He loved watering the seeds and got such a kick out of observing the growing sprouts we kept in his room until it was warm enough to take them outdoors. We planted a LOT of vegetables and herbs. We grew a LOT of vegetables and herbs. And the summer ended up being really hot, so we ended up not spending quite as much time outside as I'd have hoped. I was early in my pregnancy and very uncomfortable in the heat, so my husband did quite a bit of the watering for us late in the evening when it was cool (or at least dark) enough to be worth the effort (as we don't have a hose hookup outside so we haul water the old fashioned way). Some of our plants grew quite well (bell peppers, carrots, radishes, tomatoes, lettuce, beans and peas). Some did not do so well in that heat (cucumbers and zucchini never made it beyond the flowering stage). We learned a lot and ate quite well! This summer, we will use what we learned and plant a little less so we can enjoy a bit more space in our small plot for playing and observing (and a little less maintenance).

Gardening for young toddlers: it was helpful to have a sensory bin of soil alongside our planting tray so my then young toddler could play and dig without disturbing our newly planted seeds in the process. Gardening themed sensory bins are a great play material for indoors (if you're brave) or outside!

 There is a wealth of materials outside to explore. From plants and soil to worms and rocks. My older son has loved rocks for as long as I can remember. Once he was able to walk, picking up rocks became a big part of our strolls around the neighborhood. Last summer he loved exploring this sensory bin of river rocks purchased from the floral/craft department of our dollar store. They are great to play with on their own, in water, even with sidewalk chalk! Now that he is very into collecting rocks and sticks, wildflowers, pine cones and acorns, we will likely have to create a special container to keep our natural treasures in outdoors! We talk a lot about natural items that are ok/safe to pick up and those that we must leave alone (like wild mushrooms or plants that are unfamiliar as well as not disturbing trees or flowers that are still growing and aren't weeds). My son is also quite passionate about worms and butterflies. Exploring the natural world is a valuable study of science! You need no additional materials, although journaling about your experience can be a great supplement. Taking a scavenger hunt along on a nature walk can also enhance your child's learning as you search for colors in nature, favorite critters, types of plants or trees, and more.

Physical activity outdoors is a great way to introduce staying healthy. Whether you're playing organized sports and games, walking, hiking, cycling or just moving around, exercise is so important at all ages. Talking about intentional, active movement is a great way to inspire a healthy relationship with exercise for children (and adults alike). Furthermore, even the most picky of eaters is more likely to try new vegetables and fruits if they planted, grew them and picked them!

But what if you do not have a gardening space? You can do a lot in containers even indoors, but when it comes to ample room for running around a playing, we love our public parks! One of our favorite field trips is trying out new parks and playgrounds. Playgrounds promote a lot of important childhood educational experiences. Exploring new terrain and equipment is great for gross motor development. Mastering skills of climbing and sliding, swinging and bouncing are all fabulous confidence boosters. Dramatic play is such an inherently natural part of our time outdoors and when other children are involved, important social development also occurs. If we spend our whole morning getting to and playing on a playground, I feel no guilt at all. I know my children are learning a lot even if only through discussion of traffic lights or lawn mowers (language development) or navigating new play equipment (motor development) or meeting new children (social skills).


So what about reading and writing? How do children gain literacy skills outdoors? One of our favorite things to do is bring a book and a blanket outside and read together. Language development is encouraged also through conversation. You're sure to see new and exciting things outside; this is a great way to introduce new vocabulary! And even pre-writing and fine motor skills are developed when you bring along a bucket of chalk in different colors, shapes and sizes!

 Some of our outdoor play is structured and planned. Much of it is not. Much of our outdoor time is left to child-led exploration. If I plan a lesson, my toddler will surely gain knowledge on my target topic. If he discovers cause and effect of pouring water from up, up, up above the sidewalk or uncovers a worm from under the damp, deep soil, the topics he may learn about are infinite! Our play-garden setup is wonderful for this type of child-led play and exploration. It allows us to be outside all together and for my toddler to safely navigate his space mostly independently. Sometimes we might discover something together that inspires an activity or lesson or even just our next play session.


We recently discovered this small head of lettuce coming up where last year's crop went to seed at summer's end. How exciting to have a garden already growing when we haven't even planted yet! And it was the perfect inspiration for our next play-garden toy/accessory theme: our very own mud kitchen.

I have set out a collection of plastic kitchen toys and tools. I am eager to see what my little mud chef will come up with when we get outside. Until then, whether you're indoors or out, I wish you much learning through happy playing!