Autumn Activities For Kids in 2024

Estimated reading time: 7 minutes

Colour changing leaves, muddy puddles, toasted marshmallows by the fire – autumn is one of the best seasons of the year! With so many fun activities and places to visit around the UK, your kids will be spoilt for choice when it comes to keeping busy throughout the darker, colder months.

Whether your kids are playing outside on their ride on car or you’re getting cosy inside as the rain falls, there’s plenty of choices for you to make the most of the season with your family. If you’re looking for a bit of inspiration this autumn, though, we’ve put together this great list of things to do for kids this autumn season to help parents and caregivers.

Fun autumn outdoor activities for kids 

Kids love to get out into the outdoors, especially when there are autumn leaves to kick around and a range of fun activities to keep them busy. Below are 7 of our favourite autumn activities for you to enjoy with your little ones outside.

1 – Take a trip to a local park 

A great free activity you can do with your children is to take them to a local park or woodland to breathe in the crisp fresh air, watch the leaves start to fall and collect conkers for conker competitions. 

Take an autumn picnic with you while you’re out to spend time in your surroundings. Getting your kids out for a woodland walk through local nature reserves will also teach them about their local area, exciting wildlife, trees and plants.

2 – Go on a scavenger hunt

A fun way to pass the winter school holidays when you have a little more time is to go on a scavenger hunt to find lovely autumn treasures. This could include tasking your little ones to collect various types of foliage usually found in the autumn and wintertime like horse chestnuts, sycamore seeds and pine cones or giving them clues to find hidden items around the house. 

The best thing about this activity is that it can be done inside or outside depending on the weather and how elaborate you want to make the hunt.

3 – Go to local events and activities

There are always plenty of fun local events and activities going on in autumn and winter. With annual events such as Halloween and Harvest Festival in October and Bonfire Night in November, the whole family has plenty of opportunities for the entire family to enjoy year on year. 

Check out your local council website for all of the fun things you can do as a family during the darker evenings and weekends during autumn. Some historical sites and museums might even put on special events such as a Halloween party, harvest moon celebrations or autumn craft days to keep your kids busy during this time of year.

4 – Make a den in your garden 

Another great activity to do outdoors is to make a den in your garden. Using branches, old bits of wood and anything else you find in your shed or garage, let your kids get creative building themselves a hiding spot to imagine and create in. 

Much like the scavenger hunt, this activity can also be done indoors on a rainy day. Rather than having branches, layer blankets or a duvet over dining room chairs to create a roof and cover the ground in pillows to make a cosy hiding hole. Let your kids express themselves by decorating the den with fairy lights and bunting.

5 – Explore outdoors with your electric ride on car

As long as the weather isn’t bad, younger kids and adults can explore the outdoors with electric ride on cars or electric scooters alike. Your kids will love zipping around the neighbourhood in their brand new ride on car; whether they like Lamborghini’s, fire engines or the classic Mercedes, there is a ride on car for everyone. 

6 – Pick a pumpkin at a local farm 

Another activity to do outdoors is pumpkin picking. There are usually local farms with pumpkin patches where you can pick your perfect pumpkin. These are great to get in ahead of rainy days!

7 – Spend an evening stargazing 

Depending on where you are in the UK, you could spend an evening gazing upon the Northern Lights or catch a glimpse of a shooting star. Even in towns and cities, you should be able to watch the stars outside, simply look up at a clear night sky to see.

Rainy day activities for kids this autumn 

All parents know the struggles of keeping kids entertained when it’s wet and miserable outside, but don’t worry! We’ve put together eight beautiful autumn colours and textures of natural materials.

1 – Do some arts and crafts

Collect a range of materials while you’re out and about to use during rainy craft days. Some crafts you can create with your collections are:

  • Leaf crafts: When you’re out and about on an autumn walk, collect leaves in a range of shapes and sizes. These can be used on rainy days to make leaf people with the help of used toilet roll holders or create leaf rubbings with crayons.
  • Sensory play: Using playdough with added pine cones, acorns, pumpkin seeds, leaves and other items with texture, set up your children with a plastic bag on the dining table and let them get their hands dirty exploring all the different autumnal textures and colours.
  • Paint pine cones and conkers: Get some paints out and paint lovely designs on pine cones and conkers and let your kids decorate the home with them.

2 – Make a hot chocolate and baking 

Autumn baking is full of cinnamon, apples, pumpkins and orange zest, filling the home with tantalising smells. Spend a day creating warm, and yummy treats, then settle down in the evening with a steaming mug of hot chocolate topped with cream and marshmallows.

3 – Have a family movie day 

Snuggle down with your new baked goodies in the den and have a family movie day. There are plenty of family-friendly Halloween and winter movies to choose from that will keep your kids entertained for hours.

4 – Build a hedgehog house 

Help local wildlife in your area by building a hedgehog house. All you’ll need is a medium-sized plastic storage box, a Stanley knife (for adults to use), leaf litter, dry grass or straw, a carrier bag, twigs and dry leaves. 

To build the house, cut two air vents in the side of the box and a bigger hole in the front of the box, about 15cm by 15cm, to make an entrance. Place the box near a hedge with the entrance facing south and put some of the leaf litter inside, with the dry grass or straw on top. Open up the carrier bag at its seams and lay it over the top of the box, coving it with the twigs, dry grass and leaves to disguise it.

5 – Host a spooky tea party

Hosting an indoor Halloween themed tea party is great if it’s raining outdoors. Grab the kids, their favourite toys and teddies and sit down with some juice, spooky cupcakes, sandwiches and toffee apples for that truly authentic spooky feel.

6 – Build a bird feeder 

You can easily make a bird feeder indoors and then hang it outside when it’s dry. It’s also a perfect opportunity to enjoy bird watching from indoors. Take a large pine cone, tie a bit of string around the top of it, then cover it in peanut butter. Shake birdseed over the peanut butter and when you can hang it outside, watch the birds feed on it.

7 – Dress up for Halloween 

Another easy activity to do is dress up in time for Halloween. Spend time discussing and creating your children’s outfits with them using old clothes and odds and ends around the house ready to go trick or treating on the big night!

8 – Carve a pumpkin 

Once you’ve picked your perfect pumpkin, you can carve it indoors. If you have a few children, you could turn it into a competition to see who carves the most creative pumpkin ready for Halloween.  

If you’re looking for other ways to keep your kids entertained this autumn and winter, check out the following blogs:

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