Outdoor toys for outside space of any size

Posted : January 7, 2020

As the better weather is upon us and school holidays aren’t far behind it’s time for many of us to turn our minds to our outdoor space and how we can best kit it out to entice our children to spend time there. There are is such a wide choice of toys and equipment for children of all ages and spaces of all sizes that you might just be surprised at the ways you can encourage your kids to spend time in the garden or yard!

A fun spin on traditional toys

If your kids love a slide then there are lots of sizes, shapes and colours to choose from to suit the size of your garden. Or, if you already have one, you could encourage additional use of it in the summer by popping a small blow-up pool, at the bottom of it or why not let the kids squirt each other with water guns or squirters as they go down it? Provided it’s warm enough, the combination of sliding and water-play is sure to keep kids of all ages entertained for outdoor toys include water sliders and water sprayers that you attach to a hosepipe for minimal parental effort and maximum splashing fun for the kids!

Giant sized version of board games can be fun for the whole family to play. There are snakes and ladders where each player stands and moves on the board, jenga, chess and draughts to name but a few. It could also be a fun way to teach your children how to play these tactical games while keeping them engaged due to the physically side of the larger outdoor versions. Speaking of larger version, giant bubble makers are great fun too.

Ideas for when you’re feeling sporty and energetic…

You could buy a goal for some football or striking practise, or maybe some mini markers which can be used for dribbling practise and also double up as goal markers. Swing ball is another great option that works well in large gardens or small paved areas. While the ball and stand remain static, you’ll be surprised at how much energy the players end up using, particularly when the game starts to get really competitive!

All you need is a net and a ball and you could get a volleyball tournament going. Or, a limbo set is another fun and energetic game that will have all the participants giggling as everyone tries hard to contort themselves under that pole! How about hopscotch? It can be played on the grass with some foam squares placed into the correct format. Or, for paved areas just get some pavement chalk, sketch out the squares and numbers and off you go!

…and for when you fancy a slower pace

Quoits or ring toss is a great game where you don’t have to be too energetic to enjoy it. Bowling or bowls are other good options to play a game at a slower pace. Provided your lawn is nice and short all of these games will suit grass or paved areas in small or larger spaces.

Or, if you fancy reading your book or paper but the kids want to do something then why not let them do some big art you might not be keen on having indoors? You could challenge them to draw a large picture with pavement chalk, or you could encourage them to get messy with their paints. A roll of paper works well for this activity and the children can get down on the ground and paint a nice big picture that can be left out to dry and not take up any valuable indoor space!

As you can see, there are so many ways to enjoy your garden or yard this spring and summer so why not stock up on a few select supplies and let the kids have some summer fun close to home!