Getting Indoorsy Children to Enjoy Playing Outdoors

Getting Indoorsy Children to Enjoy Playing Outdoors

Growing up, I was definitely a child who preferred being indoors to playing outside. I loved drawing or doing other crafts, reading or just playing with toys but much preferred doing those things in the comfort of the house or my nursery when I was little. I’m still like this but I have two daughters who absolutely love being and playing outdoors which is great as I do believe this is good for children.

It has made me think about ways that you could, as a parent, inspire your indoorsy child to want to play outside and get more active. Here are a few things that I loved or would have loved when I was little and that I think would work for today’s kids too:

• Visiting somewhere exciting that inspires you to be physically active. My sisters and I would walk or ride our bikes to a nearby military obstacle course that was open to the public most days when not in use and that was so much fun! We loved playing on it for hours and, being designed to keep soldiers fit, it was quite a tough course.
• Things that add a bit of fun to getting around. I enjoyed riding my bike but also experimented with skateboarding when I was around 12 years old. This made me enjoy being outdoors more. I considered buying roller skates and have always loved the look of shoes with built-in skates too, like Heelys Skate Shoes available from Skate Hut. They look so much fun!

• Swimming in outdoor pools or lakes or the sea. Growing up in Sweden, we swam a lot in the sea and that was an outdoors activity that I always loved. There are quite a few options for swimming outdoors here in the UK too when the weather is warm enough.
• Packing a picnic! Preparing some yummy food, snacks and drinks to take with you on a fun day out definitely inspired me to stay outdoors for longer as a child. This is something I still like to do nowadays.
• Treasure hunts. Planning a treasure hunt or a challenge outdoors is a great way to inspire kids to play outside. It could be a traditional one with a map and a hidden prize or something like finding certain plants or other items in the garden or the woods.
• Moving indoor activities outdoors. There are many things that we traditionally do in the house that could easily be done in the garden too when the weather is dry — like drawing, painting, playing with Play-Doh or kinetic sand, playing instruments, reading or even building with Lego and much more.

Do you have a child that prefers being indoors? What do you do to encourage outdoor play?

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