I am a person who relies on a schedule, a loose schedule, but a schedule nonetheless. Likewise, my kiddos also thrive when they know both their parents’ expectations when it comes to various parts of the day. And because I am more academic than what I would call “outdoorsy,” it is vital for our homeschool experience that we incorporate Homeschool Outdoor Activities throughout the week!
Homeschooling can be a long slog through the day with repetitive worksheets, reading book after book after book, and going here and there to every co-op or group gathering. Why not make the everyday activities that you naturally do as a family a part of the homeschool education experience? These homeschool outdoor activities don’t have to be formal or rigid; they can be done seamlessly with a few alterations in how we view education!
And let me tell you…my view of “education” has changed over the last 18 years as a public teacher and homeschooling mom!
Here are 25 Simple Homeschool Outdoor Activities that promote learning and don’t cost a pretty penny!
(Great Blue Heron in my local park)
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25 Simple Homeschool Outdoor Activities for Walking Around the Neighborhood
This simple act of walking might seem basic and boring; however, when my family walks, we engage with what we are doing. I am constantly talking with my girls about what we are seeing, hearing, smelling, and touching! It is most definitely NOT mundane. With a few tweaks, you can incorporate science, grammar, geography, vocabulary, and mathematics, all by strolling around your area or having fun in myriad homeschool outdoor activities!
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Science
At the park near our house, we have a pond, a small walking area, a basketball court, a pool, and a playground. It is not a fancy park, but it is our park! We consistently see new wildlife. One of our favorite parts of this park is the variety of birds. As soon as we get there, my older daughter is looking for the birds, so we take a moment, note the different colors and sizes, and look up the names. Many times, we get to see them eating, swimming, flying, etc. We have seen the following birds all in our own park:
- Great Blue Heron
- Egret
- Mallard Duck
- Pidgeon
- Geese
- Scarlet Ibis
- Cormorant *My favorite!
- Hawk
5 Ways to Integrate Science as a part of your Homeschool Outdoor Activities
- Identify different types of birds and their traits.
- Locate various insects, take pics, and catalog the names.
- Choose 5 plants to learn about based on your walk; do a little research after you get home.
- Chat about the variety of trees and their characteristics.
- Take soil samples of varied surfaces and compare/contrast each.
(Giant Katydid in our backyard)
Mathematics
Another thing we focus on is numbers. Now, for littles, we simply work to identify numbers and count various flowers, birds, houses, etc. With older kids, you can bring a tape measure, and you can measure various objects while on your walk. Or you can discuss the different house numbers and encourage your kiddos to say the numbers correctly.
Even years are important. Our park was opened in 1955; you and your child can have a discussion about years and how to pronounce them. After you take your walk, you can map out how many steps you took or how many blocks, kilometers, or miles you all walked. These may be simple calculations; however, the process is something we can easily teach our kids as we participate in homeschool outdoor activities!
5 Ways to Integrate Mathematics as a part of your Homeschool Outdoor Activities
- Take measurements of objects: height, width, breadth.
- Note directions and how many steps, feet, yards, miles, etc. you walk!
- Discuss any numbers you encounter on houses, signs, cars, etc.
- Check out different shapes as you walk; name them and describe their purposes.
- Simply COUNT! Examine the various amounts of objects, people, places, etc.
Vocabulary
Learning vocabulary, as we all know, is vital to reading comprehension and writing ability. With a focus on Homeschool Outdoor Activities, we can integrate vocabulary for any age.
For example, with a three-year-old, I might go over the various colors around us as we walk and talk. Sometimes, I will try to get my daughter, Abbie, to engage through what something is not. I might say that a van is blue or a flower is pink, but the van is actually yellow or the flower is purple. She has to actually think about what I tell her, and then she critically responds to my supposed assertions.
For older kids, you might challenge them with more specific words; note, I did not say higher level words, although you could use them if you wanted. Instead of saying a house is white, you might describe the house as beige, or you might say an actual name of a flower (if you know it), instead of just the common name. Kids with large vocabularies tend to be successful in many disciplines, and we as parents can add to that knowledge!
5 Ways to Integrate Vocabulary as a part of your Homeschool Outdoor Activities
- Discuss colors and get more and more specific with older kids.
- Stop and look up words for foliage you might not know.
- Sing songs as you walk; my eldest loves this!
- Play “I Spy.”
- Chat about synonyms or antonyms that could be used to describe a specific location.
Geography
A simple way to discuss geography might be to go over basic directions like North, South, East, and West. Yes, we might know these, but our children probably do not. You can chat about roads and names, the grids that pervade public planning, or how everything is arranged in your city by checking out Google Maps. After living in Jacksonville for the last 15 years, even I don’t know much about the area.
I feel like I am constantly learning about different parts of the city, which is why homeschool outdoor activities are so necessary! After your walk, you could have your kids look at other parts of the city to compare and contrast! We want our kids to be aware and think about how and why certain neighborhoods are organized.
5 Ways to Integrate Geography as a part of your Homeschool Outdoor Activities
- Print out a map of your area, and note various locations along the way such as specific roads, parks, buildings, etc.
- Discuss geographical terms like latitude and longitude; using your phone, you can figure out how your location might change when you change direction!
- Describe the weather: temperature, humidity, clouds, sun, or anything that contributes to the current conditions; you might even discuss how the weather might change.
- Imagine what your surroundings looked like 5, 10, 15, or even 25 years ago. Our park is over 50 years old, so there are obvious changes.
- Compare and contrast the settings of your homeschool outdoor activities.
- How does one home look different from another home?
- What are the most important parts of a park?
- What are the various surfaces you encounter as you walk, and what are their purposes?
Click below for a fun poetry activity that teaches students to write descriptively about where they live!
Grammar
I am not a huge fan of teaching grammar in isolation, but I know that sometimes, it is necessary. When I can, however, I try to make it easy and include it in my homeschool outdoor activities!
For example, we add on -ly to make adverbs all the time. As you walk, describe how each person is walking!
Additionally, we can use tons of adjectives to describe various objects around us! I love challenging my daughters with words, phrases, and sentences that help them communicate effectively.
5 Ways to Integrate Grammar as a part of your Homeschool Outdoor Activities
- Pick an interesting object or place as you walk, and use 5 adjectives to describe it!
- If you want to review adverbs, as you walk, you can walk in different ways. Your kids could even act out how they might walk:
- quickly
- slowly
- hurriedly
- excitedly
- loudly
- Identify the nouns (people, places, objects, and ideas) around you. How are they related or different?
- As you walk, note the actions you take to teach verbs. Kids can keep track of all their actions!
- walk
- talk
- jog
- hop
- chat
- sing
- Learn about prepositions and apply them:
- I walk over the road.
- We travel under a bridge.
- You sing in a park.
- They run across the playground.
- We play around the yard.
With a simple walk, we can integrate almost ANY type of learning into this everyday experience. Enjoy these easy homeschool outdoor activities, even if you don’t school at home 🙂 Just keep walking, just keep walking, just keep walking, walking, walking!
Do you need a homeschool evaluation for the state of Florida? >>>> CLICK HERE<<<<
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