56 Fun Backyard Activities for Toddlers

Backyard play offers countless benefits for toddlers, promoting physical, cognitive, and emotional growth.

As children run, jump, and explore, they build strength, coordination, and motor skills. Outdoor play also sparks creativity and problem-solving, helping toddlers develop essential cognitive abilities.

On an emotional level, spending time outside allows kids to learn about nature, gain confidence, and navigate social interactions through play with siblings or peers.

For parents, backyard activities provide a break from screens while encouraging independence.

With numerous outdoor play options, parents can create a safe and enjoyable environment that fosters self-discovery.

Why Backyard Play is Essential for Toddlers

Outdoor play is vital for toddlers’ development, as it enhances motor skills, coordination, creativity, and social skills through activities such as climbing, running, drawing with chalk, and building sandcastles.

Outdoor play benefits toddlers’ health, boosting vitamin D, strengthening bones, and supporting immunity. It also helps prevent obesity by encouraging physical activity.

The emotional benefits of nature include calming young children, reducing stress, boosting mood, and enhancing overall well-being. The sights, sounds, and smells offer sensory stimulation that helps toddlers manage emotions and relax.

Many parents find that transforming their backyards into play areas is a cost-effective and suitable way to bond with their children.

Active Play Activities

1. DIY Obstacle Course

Create a fun obstacle course using household items to improve coordination, balance, and motor skills. You can use pillows, cones, or ropes to design a series of challenges, such as crawling, jumping, or balancing.

What you’ll need: Pillows, cones, jump ropes, chairs, blankets.
How to do it: Set up the course in your backyard and explain each obstacle to your toddler. Time their completion or encourage them to race against siblings or friends.

2. Balance Bike Riding

A balance bike helps toddlers develop their balance and coordination before learning to ride a regular bicycle. It’s a great outdoor activity that enhances motor skills and promotes independence.

What you’ll need: a balance bike, a helmet, and an open area.
How to do it: Show your toddler how to sit on the bike and gently push off to glide. Please encourage them to practice balancing and steering.

3. Jumping Games (Hopscotch, etc.)

Jumping games, such as hopscotch or simple jumping challenges, can improve coordination and help toddlers burn off excess energy.

What you’ll need: Chalk or tape for hopscotch, an open space.
How to do it: Draw a hopscotch grid on the ground or set up a jumping path. Toddlers can jump through the squares or challenge themselves to jump over lines.

4. Sidewalk Chalk Runway

Sidewalk chalk can be used to create a runway or path for your toddler to walk, hop, or dance along. This encourages creative movement and color recognition.

What you’ll need: Sidewalk chalk.
How to do it: Draw colorful shapes, numbers, or lines on the pavement. Guide your toddler along the path to follow or jump between the shapes.

5. Nature Relay Races

Create relay races that involve running, jumping, or even crawling to reach certain points. It promotes physical activity and teamwork.

What you’ll need: Cones, small objects to run around or through, timer.
How to do it: Set up a racecourse with cones or markers. Toddlers can race to different stations and perform tasks like jumping or balancing before reaching the finish line.

6. Bean Bag Toss

A bean bag toss helps toddlers develop hand-eye coordination and focus. They’ll have fun aiming and tossing the bags into a target or bucket.

What you’ll need: Bean bags, buckets, or marked targets.
How to do it: Set up different targets at varying distances. Let your toddler aim and toss bean bags into the targets. You can make it competitive by counting the number of successful tosses.

7. T-ball Practice

T-ball is an excellent way to introduce toddlers to sports and enhance their hand-eye coordination. The soft ball makes it easy for them to hit, and the bat helps develop their grip.

What you’ll need: T-ball set (bat, ball, tee).
How to do it: Set up the tee with a soft ball. Let your toddler take turns hitting the ball off the tee, focusing on form and timing.

8. Kiddie Pool Splashing

A kiddie pool is a perfect way for toddlers to cool off and have fun outdoors. It promotes water play, helping them develop sensory and motor skills.

What you’ll need: a kiddie pool, water toys, and towels.
How to do it: Fill the pool with water and add toys like floating animals, cups for pouring, or balls to chase. Encourage splashing, sitting, or lying down in the pool.

9. Water Balloon Toss

The water balloon toss is a fun way to cool off and improve coordination. The gentle tossing adds a playful challenge as toddlers try not to burst the balloon.

What you’ll need: Water balloons.
How to do it: Fill the balloons with water and pair up toddlers for a game of tossing. Start close together and increase the distance as they get more comfortable.

10. Freeze Dance

Freeze dance is a fun and energetic way to get toddlers moving while practicing listening and control. Toddlers dance when the music plays and freeze when it stops.

What you’ll need: A Music player.
How to do it: Play music and let your toddler dance freely. Stop the music randomly, and have them freeze in place. Restart the music after a few seconds.

11. Mini Trampoline Jumping

A mini trampoline is perfect for toddlers to jump safely while improving balance, strength, and coordination.

What you’ll need: a mini trampoline, a safety mat, and supervision.
How to do it: Encourage your toddler to jump up and down on the trampoline, starting slowly. You can even add simple games like “jump as high as you can” or “jump to the rhythm of the music.”

12. Roll the Ball Game

This simple activity helps toddlers improve their hand-eye coordination. Rolling a ball back and forth is a fun activity that can be enjoyed both inside and outside.

What you’ll need: a soft ball and an open space.
How to do it: Sit across from your toddler and gently roll the ball to them. Please encourage them to roll the ball back and forth, varying the distance.

13. Frisbee Throwing

Throwing a Frisbee improves a toddler’s coordination and timing. It also encourages outdoor fun with family or friends.

What you’ll need: Frisbee.
How to do it: Show your toddler how to hold the Frisbee and throw it. Start with short throws and gradually increase the distance as they get better at catching.

14. Scootering Around

A scooter is an excellent way for toddlers to improve their leg strength and balance. This activity can be a fun way for them to practice speed and coordination.

What you’ll need: a toddler scooter, a helmet, and open space.
How to do it: Have your toddler stand on the scooter and push off with one foot. Guide them in a safe area, helping them to balance and steer the scooter.

Water & Sensory Play Activities

15. Water Tables

Water tables are a fantastic way for toddlers to engage in sensory play. Toddlers can scoop, pour, and splash, helping to improve hand-eye coordination while exploring textures and water movement.

What you’ll need: Water table, water toys, cups.
How to do it: Fill the water table with water, and let your toddler explore. Provide cups, sponges, and small toys for pouring and scooping.

16. Mud Kitchen

A mud kitchen encourages toddlers to explore natural materials and develop imaginative play skills. Mixing mud, sticks, and leaves can be a fun and messy way to spark creativity.

What you’ll need: Mud, kitchen tools (spoons, bowls), a safe outdoor space.
How to do it: Set up a designated area for the mud kitchen with pots and pans, letting toddlers pretend to cook and create mud concoctions.

17. Sprinkler Fun

A sprinkler is a simple and enjoyable way for toddlers to cool off and get active. Running through sprinklers helps children develop agility, balance, and coordination.

What you’ll need: a garden sprinkler, towels, and swimwear.
How to do it: Set up the sprinkler in the backyard. Let your toddler run through the water, jumping, twirling, and enjoying the cool splashes.

18. Nature Scavenger Hunt

A nature scavenger hunt is an exciting way to engage toddlers with the outdoors. They’ll search for various objects, such as leaves, rocks, flowers, and insects.

What you’ll need: A list of nature items, bags, or baskets.
How to do it: Create a list of items for toddlers to find around the yard, such as a red leaf, a smooth rock, or a flower. Guide them as they search for each item.

19. Water Painting with Brushes

Water painting is a simple and relaxing activity that introduces toddlers to art while using water as the medium. They can “paint” with water on outdoor surfaces.

What you’ll need: a large surface (such as a sidewalk or patio), paintbrushes, and water.
How to do it: Give your toddler a paintbrush and a container of water. Let them “paint” on outdoor surfaces, such as concrete or wood, and watch the water evaporate.

20. Sensory Sand Play

Sand play provides sensory experiences that help toddlers develop their tactile skills. They can dig, pour, and shape the sand, mimicking play at the beach or a construction site.

What you’ll need: Sand, sand toys (shovels, molds), a container.
How to do it: Fill a sandbox or a large container with sand. Provide various toys, such as shovels, scoops, and molds, for your toddler to explore textures and create designs.

21. DIY Water Wall

A DIY water wall is a fantastic sensory activity that allows toddlers to experiment with gravity, flow, and various water materials.

What you’ll need: Plastic bottles, PVC pipes, funnels, and a wooden board.
How to do it: Attach the water containers and funnels to a wooden board. Let the water flow through the pipes, allowing toddlers to control the flow and explore the effects of gravity.

22. Plastic Cup Pouring Station

A plastic cup pouring station is an excellent way to encourage the development of fine motor skills. Toddlers can pour water from one cup to another, improving their hand-eye coordination.

What you’ll need: Plastic cups, small buckets or containers, water.
How to do it: Set up several cups in a line or on a tray. Let your toddler pour water from one cup to another, practicing their pouring technique.

23. Soap Bubble Play

Bubbles are a fun and magical way to entertain toddlers. They can chase, pop, and even blow their bubbles, which helps with hand-eye coordination and motor skills.

What you’ll need: Bubble solution, bubble wands, open space.
How to do it: Blow bubbles with a wand and encourage your toddler to pop them. You can also provide a bubble-blowing kit for them to try it on their own.

24. Pool Noodle Water Adventures

Pool noodles are versatile and fun. Toddlers can use them for imaginative play, floating, or balancing in the water.

What you’ll need: pool noodles and water.
How to do it: Lay the pool noodles in the water, and show your toddler how to use them as floats or to navigate through water. They can balance on them or use them for games like races.

25. Ice Cube Excavation

Ice cube excavation is a unique sensory play activity that allows toddlers to explore the texture of ice and engage in the tactile experience of breaking it apart.

What you’ll need: Ice cubes, water, and small plastic toys or figurines.
How to do it: Freeze small toys inside ice cubes, then give your toddler warm water and tools (like plastic spoons) to excavate the toys from the ice.

26. Watering the Plants

Watering the plants allows toddlers to practice responsibility and develop fine motor skills. It’s a simple yet effective way to engage them with nature.

What you’ll need: a small watering can, plants, and water.
How to do it: Show your toddler how to water plants gently with a small watering can. Let them pour water on the soil and observe how the plants grow.

27. Pool with Floating Toys

A pool with floating toys is a fun and relaxing way for toddlers to engage with water and develop sensory play skills while staying cool.

What you’ll need: a kiddie pool, floating toys (such as rubber ducks and balls).
How to do it: Fill the pool and add floating toys for your toddler to play with. They can chase or retrieve the toys, which improves hand-eye coordination and water familiarity.

28. DIY Sensory Bottles

DIY sensory bottles are an engaging way to stimulate your toddler’s senses. Each bottle can feature different materials, such as water, glitter, or small objects, to shake and explore.

What you’ll need: Plastic bottles, glitter, water, beads, and glue.
How to do it: Fill a bottle with water and different small objects (like beads or glitter). Seal the bottle with glue and let your toddler shake and explore the sensory effects inside.

Creative Arts & Crafts Activities

29. Sidewalk Chalk Art

Sidewalk chalk art is an enjoyable and straightforward way to encourage toddlers to express their creativity. Drawing and coloring outdoors help them develop fine motor skills and imagination.

What you’ll need: Sidewalk chalk, an outdoor surface.
How to do it: Give your toddler colorful chalk and let them draw shapes, animals, or their favorite characters on the sidewalk. Encourage them to use different colors and experiment with patterns.

30. Rock Painting

Rock painting is a creative and sensory-rich activity that allows toddlers to decorate smooth rocks with vibrant colors. It’s an excellent way for them to practice fine motor skills.

What you’ll need: Rocks, paint, brushes, water.
How to do it: Let your toddler paint the rocks with different colors and designs. You can even use them as garden decorations or gifts once finished.

31. Nature Collages

Nature collages help toddlers connect with the outdoors while creating art. They can use leaves, flowers, and other natural materials to create beautiful works of art.

What you’ll need: Leaves, flowers, glue, paper.
How to do it: Go on a nature walk to collect various natural items, then let your toddler glue them onto a piece of paper to create a collage.

32. Leaf Rubbings

Leaf rubbings are a simple way to introduce toddlers to texture and print-making. By rubbing a crayon or pencil over leaves, they can create beautiful textured prints.

What you’ll need: Leaves, paper, crayons, or colored pencils.
How to do it: Place a leaf under a piece of paper and let your toddler rub over it with a crayon or pencil to reveal the leaf’s texture and shape.

33. Paper Plate Masks

Paper plate masks are a fun way for toddlers to use their imagination and creativity. They can turn the plates into animals, superheroes, or anything they like.

What you’ll need: Paper plates, markers, glue, elastic bands, scissors.
How to do it: Help your toddler cut out eye holes in the paper plate and let them decorate it with markers or craft supplies to create a fun mask.

34. Clay Sculpting

Clay sculpting encourages tactile play and fine motor skills as toddlers squish, roll, and mold the clay into various shapes and objects.

What you’ll need: Non-toxic clay, rolling pins, and tools for shaping.
How to do it: Give your toddler a lump of clay and show them how to roll, press, and shape it into different objects like animals, cups, or simple shapes.

35. Bubble Wrap Stamping

Bubble wrap stamping is a sensory activity where toddlers press bubble wrap onto paper to create textured prints. It’s a great activity for learning patterns and textures.

What you’ll need: Bubble wrap, paint, paper.
How to do it: Paint the bubble wrap, press it onto the paper, and lift it to reveal the textured print. Let your toddler experiment with different colors and sizes.

36. Painted Rocks

Painting rocks is another fantastic way for toddlers to express themselves. They can turn the rocks into colorful creatures or abstract designs.

What you’ll need: Rocks, paint, brushes.
How to do it: Allow your toddler to paint rocks with various bright colors and let them dry. Once dry, you can use them for games, as garden decor, or as keepsakes.

37. Flower Petal Prints

Flower petal prints help toddlers appreciate nature while creating art. They can press fresh petals onto paper to make beautiful, natural designs.

What you’ll need: Fresh flower petals, paper, hammer, or rolling pin.
How to do it: Place flower petals on a piece of paper and gently tap them with a hammer or rolling pin to transfer the colors and shapes onto the paper.

38. Paper Airplanes

Making paper airplanes is a classic and simple craft that toddlers can enjoy while practicing their folding skills and learning about flight.

What you’ll need: Paper.
How to do it: Teach your toddler how to fold paper into a simple airplane shape. Let them decorate the plane with colors or stickers before taking it for a flight.

39. Yarn Art

Yarn art encourages creativity as toddlers can use yarn to create pictures, textures, or designs. It helps improve their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

What you’ll need: Yarn, paper, glue.
How to do it: Cut pieces of yarn and glue them onto paper to form shapes, animals, or patterns. Allow your toddler to experiment with various designs and colors.

40. DIY Paint Your Own Flower Pots

Painting flower pots is a fantastic way to combine creativity and gardening. Toddlers can paint their own flower pots, then use them to plant flowers or small plants.

What you’ll need: Flower pots, paints, brushes, and small plants or seeds.
How to do it: Let your toddler paint the flower pot with bright colors and patterns. Once dry, they can plant flowers or herbs inside the pot.

41. Homemade Playdough Sculptures

Playdough is ideal for toddlers to develop their creativity and fine motor skills as they mold and shape the dough into various forms and shapes.

What you’ll need: Homemade playdough (or store-bought), tools for shaping (cookie cutters, rolling pins).
How to do it: Provide your toddler with playdough and let them shape and mold it into animals, shapes, or whatever their imagination leads them to create.

42. Nature Stick Bracelets

Nature stick bracelets combine nature walks with crafting, allowing toddlers to use sticks, leaves, and other natural materials to create wearable art.

What you’ll need: Sticks, string, leaves, glue, beads.
How to do it: Help your toddler string sticks and leaves together to form a bracelet. Add beads or other small decorations to personalize their wearable nature craft.

Educational Activities

43. Color Sorting Games

Color sorting games are a fun way to teach toddlers about colors and improve their sorting skills. They can match colored objects and organize them into groups, thereby reinforcing learning interactively.

What you’ll need: Colored toys, containers, or colored paper.
How to do it: Give your toddler a set of colored toys or objects and ask them to sort them into containers or groups by color. You can make it more challenging by adding new colors or objects.

44. Shape Hunts

Shape hunts teach toddlers to recognize different shapes while engaging them in a fun treasure hunt. This activity helps improve their observation skills and shape identification.

What you’ll need: Pre-drawn shapes on paper or objects with different shapes around the yard.
How to do it: Draw or place shapes around your backyard. Ask your toddler to find as many as they can and name each shape they discover.

45. Counting Games with Everyday Items

Counting games help toddlers develop basic math skills. You can use everyday items to encourage counting, such as toys, stones, or even fruits.

What you’ll need: Everyday objects (toys, apples, blocks).
How to do it: Ask your toddler to count out a certain number of objects and then check together to see if they counted correctly. You can also arrange items in groups and count them.

46. Alphabet Scavenger Hunt

An alphabet scavenger hunt helps toddlers practice letter recognition and learn new vocabulary while exploring the outdoors.

What you’ll need: Alphabet list, small objects, or pictures starting with each letter.
How to do it: Create a list of letters and ask your toddler to find objects outside that start with each letter of the alphabet. You can also use flashcards with letters to help guide the hunt.

47. Sensory Walk

A sensory walk allows toddlers to engage their senses while exploring their environment. It helps them observe nature and learn about different textures, smells, and sounds.

What you’ll need: Comfortable shoes for walking, sensory materials (rocks, grass, leaves).
How to do it: Go on a walk in your backyard or a nearby park and encourage your toddler to touch, smell, or listen to various natural elements. Ask them to describe what they feel or hear.

48. Sorting Natural Objects (rocks, leaves, etc.)

Sorting natural objects helps toddlers categorize items by size, shape, color, or texture. This activity fosters critical thinking and enhances cognitive development.

What you’ll need: Leaves, rocks, sticks, flowers, containers.
How to do it: Collect various natural objects and encourage your toddler to sort them into groups based on attributes like size, color, or type.

49. Number Recognition with Outdoor Items

Number recognition is a fundamental skill that can be practiced with outdoor items. This activity teaches toddlers to associate numbers with quantities and objects.

What you’ll need: Outdoor items like stones, sticks, or flowers, as well as paper with numbers written on it.
How to do it: Write numbers on pieces of paper and ask your toddler to collect the corresponding number of items (e.g., 5 rocks for the number 5).

50. Plant a Seed and Observe Growth

Planting seeds and observing their growth is a great way to teach toddlers about nature, patience, and responsibility. It also introduces them to basic scientific concepts, such as plant growth.

What you’ll need: Seeds, pots, soil, water.
How to do it: Help your toddler plant seeds in a small pot. Water them daily and observe how the plants grow over time, discussing the changes you notice.

51. Bug Watching

Bug watching is a fun way to introduce toddlers to nature and the animals that surround them. It helps improve focus, patience, and observation skills.

What you’ll need: a magnifying glass and a bug-catching container.
How to do it: Go on a bug hunt in the backyard, looking for ants, ladybugs, or butterflies. Use a magnifying glass to observe the bugs more closely and talk about their features.

52. Texture Exploration (rough, smooth)

Texture exploration helps toddlers develop tactile awareness by allowing them to feel and compare different textures. This activity also enhances sensory development.

What you’ll need: Various materials with different textures (cloth, stones, sandpaper, leaves).
How to do it: Have your toddler feel and explore different textures. Ask them to identify which are rough and which are smooth, and encourage them to describe how each texture feels.

53. Sun & Shadow Play

Sun and shadow play is a simple but effective way to introduce toddlers to the concept of shadows, light, and the sun. It also encourages outdoor physical activity.

What you’ll need: A sunny day, toys, or objects.
How to do it: Place toys or objects in the sun and observe how they cast shadows. Allow your toddler to experiment with moving objects to observe how the shadows change.

54. Building a Simple Bird Feeder

Building a bird feeder is a creative way to teach toddlers about wildlife while developing fine motor skills. It also offers a chance to engage in a craft project with a purpose.

What you’ll need: Pinecone, peanut butter, bird seed, string.
How to do it: Spread peanut butter on a pinecone, roll it in bird seed, and hang it outside with a string. Watch for birds to visit.

55. Counting Leaves or Flowers

Counting leaves or flowers is a great way to practice numbers while connecting with nature. It also helps improve attention to detail and counting skills.

What you’ll need: Leaves, flowers, or any natural objects.
How to do it: Gather different leaves or flowers and ask your toddler to count how many they have. You can also ask them to sort them by type or color before counting.

56. Sorting Outdoor Toys by Size

Sorting outdoor toys by size helps toddlers develop basic categorization and measurement skills. They’ll also practice organizing items and comparing their relative sizes.

What you’ll need: Outdoor toys (such as balls and blocks).
How to do it: Ask your toddler to sort their outdoor toys into categories based on size. You can have them group toys into “big,” “medium,” and “small” piles.

Tips for Creating a Toddler-Friendly Backyard

Creating a toddler-friendly backyard requires a safe, engaging, sensory-rich setting. Use age-appropriate equipment, shaded areas, and easy-to-clean surfaces for safe exploration and play.

Safety First: Keep the play area free of sharp objects, nails, or potential injury hazards. Cover sharp corners and use soft materials, such as grass, rubber mats, or foam flooring, to cushion falls.

Choose age-appropriate toys: For toddlers, consider sturdy playsets, slides, and ride-ons. Keeping items within reach promotes independence and boosts confidence.

Shaded Areas: Protect your toddler from excessive sun by creating shaded spaces with umbrellas, shade sails, or natural elements, such as trees. Shaded areas allow them to enjoy outdoor activities safely, reducing the risk of sunburn or overheating on hot days.

Easy Cleanup: Select washable outdoor furniture, plastic or wooden toys, and low-maintenance flooring. Keeping the space tidy ensures it’s always ready for your toddler’s next outdoor adventure.

Engage the senses: Incorporate sensory play areas featuring water, sand, or various textures to enhance tactile experiences. Use wind chimes or bird feeders to appeal to the hearing and attract wildlife, fostering a love for nature.

Conclusion

Regular outdoor play is crucial for toddlers’ development, supporting both physical and emotional growth.

By incorporating consistency into their routine, you ensure they make the most of their backyard playtime. As a parent, participating in these activities not only strengthens your bond with your toddler but also sets a positive example.

Consider inviting neighbors or friends over for group play sessions to add social elements and create lasting memories.

A well-balanced, enjoyable backyard can be a wonderful space for your toddler to learn and thrive. Ready to turn your backyard into a toddler paradise? Start planning these fun activities today!