Once you’ve completed a hike with your children, pat yourself on the back. You’ve done a lot of work and have taken the first step into a larger world for both you and your children.To keep kid’s enthusiasm charged, “review” the hike in kid-friendly ways. While you really can’t do this with infants, most toddlers and older kids will enjoy it. One post-hike game/activity you might consider is Rockin’ Colors.
Before setting out on the hike, give each child a small paper lunch bag or a re-sealable plastic bag. During the hike, have them collect small rocks that could be held in their fists.
Upon returning home, wash the sand and grit off the rocks then have the children paint them. Purchasing the three primary colors – red, yellow and blue – will allow you to have at least seven colors, as you can mix them to get orange, green, purple and brown. Let the rocks dry.
The color rocks can be used for a variety of activities: matching rocks, counting colored rocks, creating designs such rainbows, etc.
Materials: Small paper lunch bag or a re-sealable plastic bag, acrylic craft paint, paint brushes
Ages: 4-12
Learn about more than a hundred other hiking diversions for kids in Hikes with Tykes: Games and Activities.
