The hottest months of the year might be behind us, but that doesn’t mean the fun has to end. With fresh, brisk air returning and autumn leaves falling again, it’s the perfect time of year to get out and enjoy all this season has to offer. Read on for some of our favorite fun fall activities for kids – or the whole family!
Fall Activities for Kids and the Whole Family
25 Fall Activities for Families
There are many hands-on activities you can enjoy at home (or in the backyard) in the fall or in your community. Here are 25 fun fall activities for families everyone can get in on.
1. Go for a walk at a nature preserve. Be sure to enjoy the sights and sounds of the season along the way.
2. Take a hike and pack a picnic to refuel.
3. Go apple picking at an orchard. This one’s a given, right?
4. Visit a pumpkin patch and pick pumpkins. This is another cliché fall activity we shouldn’t forget.
5. Visit a farm. Besides adorable animals, many offer hayrides, kids’ rides, and even bounce houses for added fun.
6. Test your navigational skills (or luck) in a corn maze.
7. Stock up on the week’s produce at a local farmers market.
8. Take a bike ride through a village you haven’t explored.
9. Hit the beach to build sand castles, er, sand pumpkins. Because who says you can’t?
10. Go camping. Whether you pitch a tent, rent a cabin, or anything in between, this one is adaptable to your family’s comfort level.
11. Attend a college football game.
12. Attend a fall festival.
13. Have a backyard bonfire.
14. Make s’mores over a bonfire and make some baked apples!
15. Stay up late to stargaze.
16. Bake an apple pie.
17. Bake a pumpkin pie.
18. Try making homemade doughnuts.
19. Go thrifting for family Halloween costumes.
20. Organize a neighborhood costume parade.
21. Host a costume contest with friends and family.
22. Take a scenic train ride.
23. Participate in a trunk-or-treat in your community.
24. Practice giving back to others by volunteering in a soup kitchen.
25. Keep a running family “gratitude list” on your refrigerator, front door, or frequently-viewed spot.
10 Fall Activities for Toddlers
If you have a toddler, you know how exciting everything about the changing seasons can be. Even more, you know that you don’t have to plan anything extravagant for your little one to have a blast – and learn something, too. Here are 10 simple, low-key fall activities that are just right for toddlers.
1. Visit a petting zoo.
2. Rake a pile of leaves – and get jumping.
3. Stack pumpkins to build a pumpkin tower.
4. Collect leaves for leaf pressing.
5. Grab some finger paint, halve a few apples, and have fun with apple stamping.
6. Taste test different types of apples.
7. Practice transferring cinnamon sticks from one jar to another.
8. Practice washing apples in a small bin with warm water, sponges, and washcloths.
9. Give pumpkins a “bath;” toss them in the tub with water, soap, and a few cleaning brushes.
10. Make a corn pit by filling a mini pool, ball pit, or (empty) sandbox with corn kernels.
10 Fall Crafts for Preschoolers
Between the changing colors of the leaves, deliciously adorned apple fields, and pumpkin patches galore, fall offers plenty of artistic inspiration for budding artists. Here are 10 crafts for preschoolers to make in the fall. You’ll want to take advantage of the countless arts and crafts ideas that make sense this season.
1. Make a leaf crown.
2. Design a leaf wreath.
3. Watercolor paint an apple tree. Make apples with thumbprints!
4. Create a three-dimensional fall scene using a poster board or a shoe box and items found in nature.
5. Fill in an apple outline with red (and green, yellow, and brown) tissue paper and glue.
6. Make a paper plate scarecrow using construction paper, crayons or markers, googly eyes, etc.
7. Finger paint pumpkins. Add stickers, googly eyes, and other items of choice as desired.
8. Form pumpkins using play dough, pumpkin seeds, and leaves from your backyard.
9. Make a suncatcher using a leaf-shaped cutout, fall-colored tissue paper, and glue.
10. Make a hanging “autumn mobile” using sticks, acorns, leaves, and other fall items.
10 Fall Activities for Kindergarten-Aged Kiddos
Kindergarten is a time of rapid learning and growth, but that doesn’t mean the fun should be omitted from the day-to-day. Kindergartners are curious, energetic, and eager to participate in seasonal fun. Here are 10 fall activities that are just right for five(ish)-year-olds.
1. Play “I Spy” – the fall edition.
2. Go on a bug hunt and see how many types of tiny creatures you can find.
3. Make a scarecrow. Or a whole family of scarecrows.
4. Have a candy apple-making party.
5. Visit a cider mill.
6. Go on a nature scavenger hunt. Think red leaves, orange leaves, acorns, mums, you name it.
7. Attend a touch-a-truck event in your community. (October is Fire Prevention Month.)
8. Take a pony ride.
9. Clean out pumpkins for carving.
10. Engage in a sensory bin with corn kernels, red and green pom pom “apples,” mini pumpkins, and other seasonal items.
5 Other Autumn Activities for Kids and Families
We could go on and on when it comes to talking about fall activities for kids, but we’ll wrap it up here with a few more. For good measure, make sure you check these off your fall family bucket list!
1. Visit the zoo. Seek out information about how animals’ daily routines change with the seasons.
2. Visit your library and check out books about apples, pumpkins, and all things fall.
3. Host a “Friendsgiving” dinner celebration.
4. Decorate fall-themed cookies.
5. Have a not-so-spooky Halloween movie and family game night.
Ready for it or not, fall is here. With the cooler temperatures come an abundance of uber-fun fall activities for kids and entire families. We hope you enjoy the ideas listed here with yours!
