Autumn Half Term Activities

Autumn Half Term Activities
Autumn Half Term Activities

I’m sure many of you are thinking of what you can do with your kids in the coming autumn half term (or like in our house the half term that is already upon us, inset day today) so I have come up with a few, interesting and exciting, ideas for you to maybe try out with your kids (I say you as unfortunately I have the pleasure of working most of the holiday, so won’t get to spend time doing any of these with my kids, which is a real shame). As always they are all of wildlife persuasion, and the majority are outdoor based (I think we all spend too much time inside) some may involve travel (and one may incur a fee depending on where you go). Anyway I hope you enjoy and find useful my Autumn Half Term Activities post.

Autumn Half Term Activities

First off a quick list of the activities and then below a little on what each one will be all about, hopefully you’ll enjoy them.

  • Deer Watching
  • Autumnwatch
  • Toadstool/mushroom Hunt (not picking!)
  • Foraging for Wild Fruit
  • Geocaching
  • Fallen Leaf Mobile

Deer Watching

Red Deer, Stag

At this time of year the deer in the UK are in their rutting season, this is a spectacle that we should all experience once (I did last week you can read about it here), there are many local deer park all over the country that will allow you to experience this amazing spectacle, most often you can do this from the safety of your car (especially with kids involved) places like Woburn in Befordshire have roads running through where you can see the deer. Kids will love the noise and sights of seeing so many large animals roaring (bellowing or Bolving in Red Deer) or clashing their antlers in a terrifying clash of beasts, and this is the time of year to do it.

Autumn Watch

OK not so much an activity as something for you and the kids to watch in the evenings. Autumnwatch from the BBC, starting on Tuesday at 20:00 on BBC2, is a great program where you can see all the amazing things that are happening in the wild in the UK at this time of year, I highly recommend watching it.

Toadstool, hopefully you will find better.
Toadstool, hopefully you will find better.

Toadstool Hunt

Autumn is the best time of year to find wild growing fungi of all sorts and going out into the wild to actually search and hopefully find them, can be a fun activity for all the family, young and old (and healthy getting all that fresh air) you may even be lucky enough to live in an area where there are guided walks with experts who can tell you what you are looking at (my local parks trust sometimes does this and I know places like the woodland trust do too). Just one word of advice please DO NOT pick them if you are not an expert or with an expert as the last thing you wants is someone in your part getting sick (or worse).

Foraging for Fruit

Rose Hip (great to make a syrup for a drink from)
Rose Hip (great to make a syrup for a drink from)

I’m a big fan of finding wild growing fruit, and this time of year can be great time of year, from Sloe to Crab Apple, Rosehip to Damson there is a bountiful supply of fruit available out there for free! Just make sure you know what you are picking before you eat anything, if in any doubt then please don’t try, you don’t want to get sick. Personally we will be out at some point after the first frost for Sloe, which parents don’t like the thought of Sloe Gin or Vodka for winter. A great resource that really needs more people using it is Falling Fruit where locations of wild growing foraging foods can be found.

Geocaching

I’ve mentioned Geocaching as a great outdoors activity for families before and Autumn can be a fun time to try it out, it can either be easier (if the cache is located on a tree) or harder if the cache is buried under leaf litter, just get out and enjoy the fresh autumn air.

Fallen Leaf Mobile

OK, so what are the chances that it won’t rain this half term and you will be stuck in (at least for a day or two) well why not use that time to do a bit of natural crafting, gather and dry out a few fallen leaves (there are various ways to seal them that can be found on a quick Google search but Modge podge is a great sealer!) and create a mobile or some other fabulous natural looking creation, it’s all about connecting kids with nature.

I hope this gives a few idea of activities to enjoy with your kids that get you out into the fresh air and into the wild of the UK.

Did you enjoy Autumn Half Term Activities? Or find it useful? Then please consider sharing with your friends, via the links below.
Like it? Share it!

2 Comments

    • AshleyBeolens

      It's a great website, the only issue I have found is in my neck of the woods the only entries have come from me! They need more publicity I think, which is why I added them here 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.  Learn more