ChristusG Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 My girls don't seem to know what to do when they go outside. I'm thinking "Seriously?????" I practically lived outside when I was a kid. We live in a normal suburban neighborhood. Normal average sized, fenced backyards. There's no trees in our backyard due to the fact that we have an inground pool. We have a measly little metal swingset that they use sometimes. They have a sandbox and a Step 2 climber. And we also have a water table, which they love. However, like today, I didn't want to drag out the water table and have wet, dirty kids to clean up because we have to leave to pick up my dad in an hour. Anyways, I sent the kids out to play. They were like "What can we do??" I told them to pretend, use their imagination. They are awesome at this indoors and can play together for hours, making villages, building things with Trio blocks, setting up towns for their people and animals. But when I send them outside, all that creativity seems to fly out the window. If you live in a suburban neighborhood with not too many trees, no woods to roam in, smallish to average sized lots....what do your kids do? When we go in the front, they ride bikes, trikes, use sidewalk chalk, etc. But I have to be out there with them. I like to send them in the back by themselves sometimes and they just don't seem to know what to do back there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK_Mom4 Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Think props. Some old shower curtains cut in half for capes. Some old garbage can lids for shields and sticks for swords. Bubbles....tons of bubbles get blown in my backyard. Jump ropes for tying up pirates. Hula hoops. Some buckets for carrying things. Cardboard boxes for making forts (these don't last long....). Balls to kick and throw. Tonka trucks to drive/ride on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 When my boys were between 6 and 10, we lived in one of those neighborhoods. They played out front, mostly, with other kids. When they did go outside in the backyard, they played ball or hunted around for bugs. When we moved here, ds spent a good deal of time digging a hole in the backyard. It ended up about 5 feet deep and about 3 feet across. He even screened the dirt ala archeology and found some cool stuff--completely on his own. Weird, huh? Dd has a tree house--she spends time out there by herself. Sometimes she draws, or gathers bark, or copies Morse Code on the bark, or makes grass dolls, or reads, or...a hundred other "tiny" things. Maybe you could bring some blocks outside on a blanket, or give them a patch to garden in, or play tea party with little leaf plates/grass tea/acorn cups--you know, the sort of make believe you do outside. You could also get some outdoor toys--like croquet and t-ball, and have them play that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 We paint the sidewalk and driveway with sidewalk chalk. They could do this for hours and it always turns into some kind of imaginative play. ETA: Just saw you meant in the backyard. What about pop up tents or something that could be a "fort"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KrissiK Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Well, we live on a quiet street in town with lots of kids, so they all go out in the front and play ball and ride bike. Sidewalk chalk is always a hit, though. Bubbles are fun. We have a dirt area in the back yard with shovels, pails, dump trucks and other things for building roads, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BMW Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 We had lots of cars and dump trucks and made roads all around the flower beds... (mom wasn't too keen on the flowers anyway... lol). We played with old boxes!!! I loved to make "soup" with dirt, small sticks and leaves. I would also take larger leaves and use them as "taco" shells and fill them with grass and pebbles for pretend tacos... And my brother would "torture" me, making me watch him pull apart bugs... why I didn't just close my eyes is beyond me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauranc Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 My kids play: Frisbee, set up obstacle courses, soccer, croquet, cricket, they bring out playmobil and pretend they're racing horses... 'sword' fight, my daughter sometimes brings a towel outside and brings fairies to play with.. they jump rope.. We set up the beach cabana and they hang out in that... My youngest would really like for my husband to tie rope from tree to tree (one high and one low) so he can have a ropes course. We are considering that. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sherry in OH Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Paleontologists - they dig in the mud looking for dinosaur bones. When forbidden to do that, they pretend they are dinosaurs, play on their swing set, fight over the toy lawnmower, play with trucks, or ride bike. They have soccer and basketballs but rarely use them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 We have a Rainbow play structure Teather Ball Play house Bikes, plasma cars, heavy duty tricycle, scooters, sit-and-scoot, wagon, doll stroller, (when they were younger they had Little Tykes scooter cars) Balls of all kinds Small traffic cones for game boundaries Squirt guns/super soakers hula hoop jump ropes small pool with toys. outdoor tents hose and buckets LOL Big comforter to lay on and play with other toys on Butterfly net, bug catching supplies and a habitat (plastic tub with lid) for what ever was caught that day. Side walk chalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted March 2, 2011 Author Share Posted March 2, 2011 I really like the idea of a dirt area! Kids love dirt! I wonder how much it would cost to bring in a small hill of dirt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 balls I have a big bucket with a variety of balls that are not allowed in the house Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 I really like the idea of a dirt area! Kids love dirt! I wonder how much it would cost to bring in a small hill of dirt? IDK, but could you buy some bags of topsoil at the home store? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted March 2, 2011 Author Share Posted March 2, 2011 IDK, but could you buy some bags of topsoil at the home store? Ooh, good idea! Is that the kind that can have all sorts of junk in it though? I bought some organic garden soil last fall and it had some pieces of glass, plastic tubes, etc. I got online and it said that was normal to find. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cougarmom4 Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 I agree with the props suggestion. Maybe it would help to offer a few ideas with the prop--my dd loves to take a stuffed animal or two out with her and ends up setting up some imaginary setting of rescuing the animal or something like that. Maybe you could make a jar w/imaginative ideas that they could play outside...you know, write out a few 'situations', let them find a few props, and send them off on their mission. Pirates, a winter storm coming, treasure hunt, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegularMom Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 (edited) My girls love to build fairy houses. You can google them, and get all sorts of ideas on it, if you like. I also encourage things like digging and jumping rope. My 7yo likes to play brick factory which is just a lot of rock smashing (sigh), but she loves it. They chase fireflies in the summer, and hunt for salamanders whenever they can. They also hunt for 4-leaf clovers in the summer. And they also like to cloud-watch. But honestly, I've never had qualms about letting them be bored outside. If they say there's nothing to do, I shrug and send them back out. They always seem to find something to do. Edited March 3, 2011 by RegularMom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted March 3, 2011 Author Share Posted March 3, 2011 Thanks for the great ideas! What y'all said about props, I do think that's what it's all about. They always bring their little people and animals outside to play. But I think that I'll get some swords, maybe a stroller, and things like that to keep outdoors. I don't want them dragging their inside toys outside and then having to worry about cleaning them up again. I don't mind doing that to plastic people, but not doll strollers and such. I'm off to check out craigslist for some things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in TN Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Today they got out some shovels and were digging for buried treasure. Not pretty for the yard, but hours of fun. They also like to pick up fallen sticks, acorns, rocks, leaves, moss, and other outdoorsey nature stuff and make fairy houses and villages. If there are any large fallen branches after a storm, they'll sometimes make a child-sized Tee-pee type fort. We have a couple of old blankets that they can use outside, also. We have a medium sized tree in the front yard that they can climb - we nailed some small boards in the trunk for a ladder (I know, not great for the tree). That's their favorite spot outside - they often play that they are princesses trapped in the dragon's prison and have to be rescued by the prince/little brother. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomOfOneFunOne Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 My girls don't seem to know what to do when they go outside. I'm thinking "Seriously?????" I practically lived outside when I was a kid. We live in a normal suburban neighborhood. Normal average sized, fenced backyards. There's no trees in our backyard due to the fact that we have an inground pool. We have a measly little metal swingset that they use sometimes. They have a sandbox and a Step 2 climber. And we also have a water table, which they love. However, like today, I didn't want to drag out the water table and have wet, dirty kids to clean up because we have to leave to pick up my dad in an hour. Anyways, I sent the kids out to play. They were like "What can we do??" I told them to pretend, use their imagination. They are awesome at this indoors and can play together for hours, making villages, building things with Trio blocks, setting up towns for their people and animals. But when I send them outside, all that creativity seems to fly out the window. If you live in a suburban neighborhood with not too many trees, no woods to roam in, smallish to average sized lots....what do your kids do? When we go in the front, they ride bikes, trikes, use sidewalk chalk, etc. But I have to be out there with them. I like to send them in the back by themselves sometimes and they just don't seem to know what to do back there. Well, alone my daughter climbs trees (we have two that are good for that), finds comfy places to read, plays soccer with the dog, plays with the chickens, swings in my hammock, looks for four-leaf clovers, earns money ($5/bucket for walnuts), takes her dolls out for tea parties, et c. play in the hose/mud, try to catch birds/squirrels. With friends (or a sibling if she had one) she does a lot of the same things but we have a small storage shed that she and a friend kind of converted to a little house. There are things in there that have to stay (hay, saw horses, ck feed and scratch tubs, et c) that they rearranged and made "furniture." They like to play in there if it isnt' too hot. When she has friends over they play a lot of imagination things, too. One of them will be a captive princess and the other is her long lost sister who comes to save her and stuff like that. They look for treasure a lot, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleIzumi Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Mine dig in the dirt, plant seeds, "water" eeeeverything with a watering can, play various games with sticks (including sword fighting), and pretend with everything--the fallen tree branch is a boat, the little slide is a podium, the stairs are a mountain, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mimm Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 I have a fenced back yard that my kids have never had an issue finding something to do in. They have a swing set (which is broken down now and needs to be removed) and a sandbox which has gotten tons of play (buy cheap plastic beach toy sets from walmart at the beginning of summer that have buckets and shovels and things). They have a very nice play house built by my father in law that they saw a spider in once and have been afraid of ever since. There is a shed in one corner and behind the shed is the corner of the fence, surrounded in tall bushes and a tree. It's a perfect little hide-away. We've bought inexpensive pools for the back porch for several years (not recently though, they outgrew that a couple years ago). They run around and play in the sprinkler. And a couple weeks ago we just set up the big trampoline that they got for Christmas. They just play games out there. A lot of the same games they play outside. I think the sandbox was the best investment. It's just four wooden walls that my father in law put on the ground and I pulled up all the grass inside and he filled it with sand. He's refilled it a couple times in the 7 years we've lived here. It gets low on sand somehow. :confused: Hours upon hours have been spent in it though. One time they moved several buckets of the sand into the blow up pool. I was not happy. :p ETA: The trampoline is now the feature of the back yard. They hang out on it when they aren't jumping on it. I found them out there with all of their Webkins staging some elaborate game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 (edited) When we lived in town, my kids were all about the sand pit, mud in the sand pit, building with leaves, twigs, and weeds in the sand pit, and making tents & forts everywhere. :tongue_smilie: Once, my dh trimmed a large front yard tree, and the kids made a teepee with all the slender branches. It was a neighborhood staple until it finally collapsed. They also had a tiny tree house they painted multiple times...lol. They were also always doing some sort of chalk art on the patio and in the driveway, bubbles, and painting the house and lawn furniture with with water was also popular. Edited March 3, 2011 by LibraryLover Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerrie in VA Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Forts: Hollow bush, lean-to, tent Bubbles, chalk Picnic with a surprise wrapped in shiny foil Kick ball Croquet Bean bag toss type games Leaf/texture rubbings Scavenger hunts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 I've got a small yard. We have a sandbox back there that the kids just love. And we bought a big play structure. We call it "the tax refund playpen" and it was worth every penny. I also have a slip and slide and a couple sprinklers for the summer. We got the playstructure at homedepot or lowe's. My husband put it together in an afternoon. He did need some help from a friend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 They chase each other around, build forts, climb trees, chase squirrels, play ball, ride bikes & scooters, search for interesting things to add to their nature collection, pretend they are gardening, make mud pies and grass stew, pretend they are (insert character in the last book we read), build bows & arrows, catapults, pulley systems, and search for sticks that look just like a gun, fill buckets with rocks (:confused::lol:), draw/write with sidewalk chalk, make themselves a real picnic...clean up after the picnic,.... My kids would rather be outside than in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helena Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Fairy gardens in large pots Double dutch jump ropes Badminton Croquet Red rubber ball vinyl parachute vinyl tube (for crawling through) washing day supplies (drying rack, wash board, vintage hankies, plastic dolls) watercolor painting big boxes old sheets I'm planning to build a make-shift stage and curtain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenda in FL Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 When my kids were that age - they didn't do much but swim in the pool! We had some toys outside (sand box, play house). But usually I had to set them up with something - sidewalk chalk, play dough, that sort of thing. They also enjoyed riding their bikes or toys - of course that means I had to be outside with them! I also had to push them outside to play (unless they were swimming - they loved that the most.) Now that they are older - they can find lots of imaginative things to do - with each other and with the neighborhood kids. They love to go outside now, whereas they didn't seem to care for it when they were little. Just give them a couple of more years!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted March 3, 2011 Share Posted March 3, 2011 Your problem is the lack of trees, brush, etc. And the unwillingness to have the kids get wet and dirty. All the fun stuff involves dirt, leaves, mud, etc. Seriously, making "salads" with leaves, mud pies, looking for bugs under bushes, playing archeologist, etc. A perfectly manicured lawn is BORING. Can you add some plants, or let them grow some stuff in pots? A mini garden would help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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