9 ways for children to have fun in the rain, wind and snow

There's an Arthur Wainwright quote that goes "there's no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing". It's a motto that inspired outdoor enthusiasts Steph Scott and Katie Akers to create their Rainy Day Kids Adventure Book, a bible of ideas activities, games and crafts that thrive on autumnal and wintery weather.

By embracing gloomy days, you can let your child blow off much needed steam - plus you'll never get that sinking feeling when you look out of the window at overcast skies.

Here are nine easy activities to get you started...

If the weather is wet...

Getting used to being out in the rain and learning to love it might take a bit of time, especially for mums and dads and other grown ups!

So here are a few quick rain activities. You can pop outside and play for a short time and then pop back inside again.

One of the very best things about rain is puddles. Sometimes there are puddles scattered the whole way down the pavement or the muddy path. Here is some puddle fun that you can have as you start out on your adventures.

Puddle Targets

Drop a big leaf, a rock or piece of wood into a puddle to make a target. Collect some tiny stones and throw them to try to hit your targets. Smaller leaves can have more points than bigger ones. Be careful to pick a puddle away from people or anything valuable.

Mud Make-up

Rain makes the mud like wet finger-paint. What will your tribe look like? Will you have mud stripes on your cheeks or spots on your forehead? Don’t worry, it all washes off.

Footprints

Once your boots are nice and wet, find a sunny dry patch to make footprints in. Can you make a wet welly trail, or arrows for your friends to follow, or perhaps even make a picture on the ground? You could use welly footprints to make a flower, a smiley face, a sun – or even a wellysaurus! How long do the footprints last before the sun dries them up?

If the weather is windy...

Just like with rain, we want you to get out and enjoy the wind as soon as it arrives. When the wind is really blowing outside, you might not have lots of time for making things. Here are a few quick wind activities.

Cloud Racing

Lie on the grass and watch the clouds float by. There are all shapes and sizes, types and speeds. Choose one — is it the fastest? Watch it and see.

Wind Targets

Outdoor sports people will tell you how much the wind changes the way they play their games. See for yourself. Make a target on the ground using sticks and stones. Gather your wonderful finds: grass, leaves, catkins, a winged seed. Can you guess what the wind will do when you try to throw them at your target? Which ones work best?

Leaf Chasing

In autumn, when the trees are losing their leaves and some drop winged seeds, it’s a lot of fun to chase about trying to catch them. Ask a mum or dad or a grown-up who’s with you to time you and your friends to see who can catch the most in a minute. Or you can pick up huge piles that have fallen from the trees. They’re so much fun to pick up and throw into the breeze. Watch how far they fly.

If the weather is snowy...

Everyone grab your warmest clothes, your hat, scarf, gloves and boots. Now run outside and have fun with these quick activities.

Dino Prints

Any footprints are fun to make in snow. Small ones, great big stompy ones, daddy ones, mummy ones and even little baby ones. You could make a maze of footprints or a trail for your friends to follow. Where does it lead? Or how about the prehistoric tracks of a tyrannosaurus rex? Or even a brachiosaurus? Do you dare to follow those?

Tree snowstorm

Find yourself a wibbly-wobbly tree and give it a gentle shake. Did you get covered in snow? Ask a friend or mum or dad to come under the tree to look at something amazing…then shake! TREE SNOWSTORM!

Snowmen

Why just snowMEN? Why not snow women, snow monsters, snow dragons or snow fairies? Let your imagination go wild. Let’s build all kinds of wonderful snowy creatures.

Extracted from Rainy Day Kids Adventure Book by Steph Scott and Katie Akers, published by Batsford on 7 Sept 2017.

{Images from IL Gufo A/W 18 Artic Wonderland Campaign)