Generally, exploring and discovery is enough for kids, but sometimes even they can grow bored with that and become restless. Remember that they naturally have shorter attention spans than adults.Fortunately, there are lots of tried and true activities you can do on the trail that’ll keep kids from getting bored. Among them is Rock Patterns.
This is a great beach activity, especially for those shores with a lot of cobble – as is the case in the Pacific Northwest and along the Great Lakes. Have children collect a variety of small rocks. Next, separate the rocks by size or color. Older children might do both categories as well as shape. With a stick, draw a pattern in the ground where rocks can be placed to make a “picture.” A spiral is an easy picture to draw that tends to provide pleasing results for most children; for a spiral, place the larger rocks at the center and with the rocks becoming increasingly smaller as circling outward.
Materials: Rocks.
Ages: 4 and up.
Learn about more than a hundred other hiking diversions for kids in Hikes with Tykes: Games and Activities.
