Outdoor Activities for Kids on Rainy Days

by Lyn Lomasi, Write W.A.V.E. Media Staff

Image (c) Lyn Lomasi; All Rights Reserved

You wanted to go outside with the kids today, but instead it's raining on your parade. So what? As long as there's no lightning or other severe weather involved, head out anyway. There are plenty of activities you can do in the rain with the kids. My kids and I love being outdoors and we take every opportunity we get - rain or shine. Here are some of our favorite outdoor activities for rainy days.

Dance

Sing fun songs together and dance in the rain. Rain should be a cause for celebration, not gloominess. The kids might like to do classic childhood song and dance routines or they might be interested on more popular tunes. Either way, turn up the vocals and turn on the moves. Even though it's already raining, this is a good opportunity to teach the kids about Native rain dances.

Sing Silly Songs

You and the kids can also make up silly songs while dancing in the rain. Observe what's going on during the rainfall and sing about that. You might also sing about the silly dance someone is doing. There are also many classic rain songs that you and the kids can sing together. You may have sung them together many times before. If so, it should be easy to come up with something.

Look For Worms

Some of you might be turning up your faces at this one. But this is a great time to study worms. They like to come out during and after a rainfall. Put them in enclosed dark container filled with dirt. Later you can use them for scientific observation. You can even sing silly songs about worms while doing this. It might help take away the creepy part for kids who are afraid to touch them. For ytounger kids, you may also want to use my fun preschool lesson plan on worms.

Just Feel It

Have you ever just stood in the rain and let it fall on you? You and the kids can do this together. Talk about what it feels like. See which animals and insects like to come out in the rain and which ones hide. How long does it take before everyone gets soaked? Is it seconds or minutes? Are there certain clothing items that take longer to wet than others?

Catch The Rain

If you know beforehand that it's going to rain, stick a bucket outside before it starts. Leave it there the entire time it's raining. This can sit there while you and the kids are enjoying the other rainy day activities. Once the rain has stopped, get a ruler and measure how many inches are in the bucket. This is one way to measure the rainfall. Once you're done measuring it, you can reuse the bucket water to water a plant - preferably an indoor one that didn't catch the rain.


*I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network

---