7 Days of Outdoor Art Activities

If your kids are back to school, or you have little ones at home, you can still enjoy the last warm days of summer.

I love to take the art activities outdoors for a calmer mindset, easier cleanup, and the peace that nature brings for kids AND adults.

Try these 7 days of outdoor art activities for toddlers, preschoolers, and grade school kids and put your feet up as their imaginations soar, and they enter the “zone” of play.

Open-ended art activities like this have truly helped my daughter transition from being very play-dependent on her parents, to learning the joy of immersed play that these activities promote.

Related: how open-ended play helps to crush gender stereotypes

Our art activities are inspired by so many wonderful artists and teachers online. Some of our favorite sources of inspiration include Homegrown Studio, The Workspace for Children, Toddler and Mummy, The Playful Learner, and Days with Grey.

1. Shaving Cream Bath

I planned this week of activities in advance for our summer vacation at a rental home on the coast of Connecticut.

In the morning, we’d visit the beach or the bookstore in town, and dedicated our afternoons to reading on the deck, overlooking the water.

For this one, you need two small bins, a handful of small toy animals, shaving cream, water, and a cleaning brush. Put the animals and shaving cream in one bin, and the water in the other. Kids don’t need any instructions for this activity. They immediately “know” what to do.

My favorite thing about our “7 days of outdoor activities” is that all ages joined in! Shaving cream is a wonderful sensory activity that was equally as pleasing for this 3 year-old and 15 year-old.

2. Glitter Shells

On the beach in the morning we collected shells and rocks and brought them back to the house. My kiddo loved searching for seaglass, but mostly found shells and rocks.

If you’re NOT at the beach, collect twigs and stones from your neighborhood or at the park. Pat them dry and dust off any sand and dirt.

Put out some paint brushes, clear glue, and glitter, and let the kids get to it! Very little ones might need help painting the glue onto your outdoor treasures. Then let them shake the glitter to their heart’s delight.

I really love how these came out, especially with the green and blue glitter, which felt a little closer to nature than, say, fluorescent orange.

These would look beautiful collected together in a glass jar on the mantel, and will serve as a reminder of your good memories together.

3. Colorful Volcanoes

A favorite from our art sessions at Homegrown Studio, colorful volcanoes are fun AND science-y, so it’s a win-win. And even better, you likely have all of these ingredients at home.

I started with a large bin of baking soda and toy animals, and let her play with that for a while, as I prepared the rest. (Thankfully our “art mentor” Meredith gave me her pro tip in advance to buy the baking soda in bulk – the small ones you use to bake will not suffice.) My sister bought some kind of wild 15 pound bag at Costco.

Add a couple jars of white vinegar to the sensory bin (bonus points if you drop some food coloring or paint to give it color) and some droppers, too.

Some kids will enjoy exploring drop by drop, and others will want to dump the whole jar of vinegar into the baking soda to see a good old-fashioned volcano! Reminds me of my third grade dinosaur project.

4. Paint and Smash Ice

This activity was inspired by The Workspace for Children, and was so so fun.

There’s a tiny bit of preparation involved, so listen up.

First, make some ice cubes, but before you stick the tray in the freezer, sprinkle some fun things in, like colored pom poms and glitter stars.

We used these silicone baby food trays that were gathering dust in the basement. Why didn’t it occur to me that they could house ice? (Affiliate links below, disclosures here.)

The silicone trays let the ice cubes pop out super easily. While the ice cubes are still firm, bust out the watercolors and paints, and see what happens when you paint ice.

Little one was intrigued that there was fun, colorful stuff hiding in the ice. And again, you’ll notice this was an all ages activity.

Then comes Step #2. This is where things get interesting! We grabbed a couple toy hammers from the workbench, and a playdough mallet.

Transfer the ice to the driveway, the grass, or – in this case – a stone wall. (I only wish this gorgeous house and backyard were mine!) And bang away. Let some frustration out, as you pound the softening ice.

My almost-four year-old easily crushed the ice with her toy hammer. The hot summer sun and softening ice helped a lot.

5. Jewelry Making

As kids, my sister and I took our beads and string with us everywhere. There were no iPads or small screens, so our moments of quiet defaulted to jewelry-making. Honestly, I wish I could still spend 80% of my summers doing that.

The stretchy string is key for little fingers. We had tried to bead with regular string and yarn in the past without much luck. Luckily, Meredith advised us to try stretchy string.

We tried this kind and loved it. It worked like a charm.

I honestly think I was more excited for these gems to arrive in the mail than my kiddo was. (The vast majority of items we already had in our house, but I wanted a new set of beads.)

It was particularly fun for a day that my aunt and cousin visited. Everyone made a bracelet or necklace!

6. Mirror Painting

The first time I brought this mirror out, my kiddo couldn’t believe she was allowed to paint on it. This is another activity featured on The Workspace for Children.

This is a terrific all ages activity, even for toddlers – but just keep an eye on them around glass. If the mirror makes you anxious, you can get a custom piece of plexiglass at a hardware store to fit over a table you own, or put on the grass. You’ll use it again and again.

If you watch our Instagram stories, you’ve seen us paint on mirrors all summer. It’s seriously fun and encourages creativity.

We used Colorations tempera paints, with a drop of dishwashing liquid mixed in to ensure the paint hoses right off.

What’s better than painting by the water?

7. Frozen Ocean

(Inspired by Mother Could)

Prepare this one the night before, or a couple of hours in advance. Grab a handful of your favorite toy animals – I chose sea animals.

Drop them into a deep-ish dish – I used a round Corningware casserole dish. Add a couple of pom poms, beads, or anything else that excites you. (See how we’re using the same items over and over?)

Then add a few drops of food coloring or paint.

After a few hours your “ocean” should be frozen. We used this on a hot day, so it wasn’t too hard for kiddo and her big cousin to dig into it with spoons. You could certainly use the hammers and mallets to bang at it, like the other ice project.

We enjoyed this art activity greatly, and have repeated it at home.

I hope you enjoy the remaining days of summer with some outdoor art activities that will help your child relax and develop their independent play skills.

Remember, it doesn’t have to be complicated. Sometimes the most basic materials in unexpected combinations can be fun. For example, next time you bust out sidewalk chalk, add a bowl of water with a large paint brush and see what happens!

What other art activities do you love to do outdoors?

For more ideas, grab our free 20 Independent Play Activities guide: