With Canada’s warmest season right on our doorsteps comes more rainy days to take advantage of. Young children can easily grow tired of being required to stay inside all day when it is raining outside. Why not try some activities outside in the rain?
Here are some ideas to try at your centre or home:
- Jump in, over and around any puddle you can find
- Sing and dance in the rain: take inspiration from the famous musical Singin’ in the Rain. You can twirl, turn, skip and jump in the rain!
- Follow the small streams that form in the streets and find out where they lead to…
- Catch rain drops with different parts of your body (hand, finger, foot, tongue, etc.) or your umbrella.
- Take a walk in the rain while taking note of what surrounds you and how the rain affects the plants, flowers and buildings.
- Ask the children to point out similarities and differences between what they see when it’s raining and what it looks like when it is sunny out (for example: birds, worms, the look of the grass, flowers, trees, etc.).
- Let your imagination soar, there is no limit to what you can do in the rain, if you are well-dressed to do so and you are not scared to get a little wet!
References:
Slate, Stephanie. “Rainy days: 20 ways you can get your kids active outside anyway,” Active for Life, April 23, 2014, http://activeforlife.com/fr/les-jours-de-pluie-20-idees-pour-faire-sortir-vos-enfants-malgre-tout/
“La pluie, activités pour enfants avec fiches imprimables”, Educatout.com, http://www.educatout.com/activites/themes/la-pluie.htm