7 Tips for Getting Kids Outside in Winter… It’s Good for You!

Sadly, we are saying goodbye to Fall (my favorite season). Parents may be tempted to dial back outdoor activities when cold temperatures arrive, but getting outside is good for children and their families! Even in the wintertime. So even if it’s not your favorite season, here are some easy tips for getting kids outside in winter.

These great tips were offered by the TurfMutt environmental education and stewardship program, which encourages families to appreciate and use the outdoors.

7 Tips for Getting Kids Outside in Winter

Do Outdoor Activities That are Fun

Weather that adults consider to be “messy” can be a huge canvas for children and their imaginations. Fall leaf piles, snowball fights, and snow forts offer a wealth of opportunities for parents to play with their children and to explore and experiment in our living landscapes.

Encourage Exploration

Ask your child to look at how the landscape changes with the seasons. Talk about what happens after leaves fall, when snow arrives, when it’s windy, and more, linking these seasonable changes with basic science about clouds, rainfall, temperature changes and the earth.

Try Something New

Try your hands at cross-country skiing, igloo-building, fall or winter hiking, ice fishing, ice skating, snow sculpting, snowshoeing, or something else that your children want to try to give them an appreciation of the outdoors in all seasons.

Do Yardwork Together

How about doing some yardwork as a family? Involve everyone in seasonal yard chores to make the work go faster. Children can help put outdoor toys into storage and help tidy the yard. Just remember that if using outdoor power equipment like a lawn mower or leaf blower for your cleanup, children should be indoors and supervised, and they should not be near equipment when it’s operating.

Increase Your Happy!

Mention how getting outside helps our happiness. Even winter sunshine can make kids happy—literally. Sunlight boosts Vitamin D, which helps regulate emotional and mental moods by increasing serotonin in the brain. Even exposure to weaker sunlight in the winter can cause this joy boost.

Tolerate Some Mess

It’s a given that kids going outside in all sorts of weather will often return wet, muddy and messy. Be prepared for wet and cold kids and get them warmed up when they return from playing outside.

Take Time to Reflect

After your time outdoors, talk to you kids and process what they did. Ask kids to share about what they did outdoors or ask them to write or draw out their activities and observations. Did they see something new? Did something surprise them? What was fun?

Winter Fun Awaits…

Although cold is not my favorite, playing in the snow can be incredibly fun. Especially if you are prepared with the correct warm clothing for winter, there are lots of fun options to explore.  If you live near any ski areas, helping your kids learn to ski may be giving them a lifelong gift of a sport they love.  If you’re in Colorado, check out the kids ski free in Colorado deals for this season!

But there are plenty of free options too, like building a snowman, going sledding, or going on an adventure by taking kids snowshoeing.  Bundle up, and go have some fun in that white stuff!

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