Getting creative with the kids shouldn’t cost the earth. These nature craft activities encourage kids to reuse what they already have at home, look closely at their environment for inspiration, and spend a bit more time outside. Whether you’ve got twenty minutes or a whole afternoon, there’s something here for every age and energy level.
A Few Tips Before You Start
A little know-how makes these activities easier and safer. Avoid picking up unknown berries, mushrooms or plants, and teach kids to ask an adult before tasting anything found outside. If you’re heading off your own property, check whether the area allows collecting, since many national parks and reserves ask you to leave natural materials where they are. Footpaths, your own garden or a local park without protected bushland status are usually fine. Pack a hat and water bottle if you’ll be out for a while, and keep an eye on hayfever-prone kids during spring when pollen is at its worst. Anything involving scissors or a craft knife is a job for the grown-up.
Explore and Collect
Nature Treasure Hunt
Kids love a good treasure hunt, and there’s nothing easier than creating your own to encourage your little ones to look a little closer and appreciate the beauty in their own backyard or local park.
You will need:
- A piece of old cardboard or the inside of a cereal box
- Coloured crayons
- A basket or bucket to collect treasures in
- Sticky tape (optional)
- Make your nature hunt list. This can be as simple as colouring little swatches with crayons so kids can find matching colour items from nature, or draw little pictures of typical finds like a flower, seedpod, piece of bark, dried leaf, smooth rock or dandelion.
- Roll up your treasure hunt guide and pop it in a basket or bucket.
- Give your kids their hunting kit and ask them to place treasure items in the basket once found, or stick them onto the guide in the right spots with sticky tape.
- Once everything is found, take your bounty home and use the collection to make a nature picture together.
If you’d rather skip making your own list, the Backyard Nature Scavenger Hunt has a free printable one ready to go.
Nature Sensory Basket (for Babies and Toddlers)
A simple, no-mess option for the littlest nature lovers. Babies and toddlers love exploring different textures, and a basket of safe natural finds gives them plenty to investigate without needing any actual craft skills.
You will need:
- A basket or shallow box
- A mix of larger natural items such as pinecones, smooth rocks, bark and leaves
- Head out to the garden or a local park and collect a handful of larger, sturdy natural items.
- Give everything a quick rinse and check for sharp edges.
- Tip the collection into the basket and let your toddler explore by touch, sorting items by size, colour or texture.
Stick to larger items that can’t be swallowed, and supervise closely, since most things end up near a mouth at this age.
Make Something From What You Find
Recycled Nature Jewellery
This threading activity is great for hand and eye coordination and for developing patience in young children. You can use anything you like to make the “beads,” so upcycling is the winner here.
You will need:
- Thread or string
- A cotton bud
- Cut up paper straws, old beads, cardboard from cereal or biscuit boxes, coloured pasta, leaves, flowers, or anything else that can become a “bead” with a hole in it
- A hole punch
- Textas
- Scissors
- Cut bits of old cardboard into geometric shapes and decorate with textas or pencils, then hole punch each one.
- Cut other bits and pieces into smaller shapes to add to your bead collection.
- Collect dried leaves and flowers and add a hole with the hole punch, turning them into natural beads.
- Cut a cotton bud in half and tape it to the end of the string to make threading easier for little hands. Tie a knot in the other end.
- Help your child thread the different “beads” onto their string.
- Turn the finished piece into a necklace, bracelet or hanging mobile. These make a lovely handmade gift for birthdays or Mother’s Day.
Leaf and Bark Rubbings
A classic for good reason. This one needs almost nothing and suits younger kids who aren’t quite ready for anything fiddly.
You will need:
- A few textured leaves or a strip of bark
- Plain paper
- Crayons, with the wrapper removed
- Place a leaf or piece of bark under a sheet of paper, with the textured side facing up.
- Hold the paper steady and rub a crayon firmly and evenly over the top.
- Watch the pattern appear, then move on to the next find.
- Layer a few different rubbings on one page for a nature-inspired piece of art.
Pressed Flower Suncatchers
A pretty way to use flowers and leaves that would otherwise end up in the compost. These look lovely stuck on a window where the light can shine through.
You will need:
- A handful of flat flowers and leaves
- Clear contact paper
- Scissors
- Press flowers and leaves flat between two heavy books for a day or two if you have time, or use them fresh for a softer look.
- Cut two matching shapes from the contact paper.
- Arrange the flowers and leaves on the sticky side of one piece.
- Place the second piece on top, sticky sides together, and press out any air bubbles.
- Trim the edges and stick to a window.
Supervise scissors for younger kids, and skip any plants you can’t identify, since some can irritate skin.
Leaf and Flower Crowns
A favourite for imaginative play, and a nice one for a birthday party or a fairy walk through the garden.
You will need:
- A strip of cardboard or a length of string, cut to fit your child’s head
- Sticky tape, or a hole punch and string
- A handful of leaves and flowers
- Fit the cardboard strip or string around your child’s head and fix the ends together to make a band.
- Tuck leaves and flower stems into the band, or tape them on as you go.
- Keep adding until the crown feels full, then pop it on for the rest of the afternoon.
Picking flowers can attract bees, so keep an eye out, and avoid anything your child might be allergic to.
Stick Weaving
A simple introduction to weaving that only needs a forked stick and some wool.
You will need:
- A forked stick (a Y shape works best)
- Wool or string in a few colours
- Leaves, flowers or grass to weave in (optional)
Let’s do it!
- Tie one end of the wool to the base of the fork.
- Wrap the wool back and forth over each side of the fork, pulling gently as you go.
- Once you’ve built up a woven section, tuck in a few leaves or flowers for extra colour.
- Tie off the end and hang the finished piece up to admire.
Check the stick for sharp or splintered ends before handing it over.
Painted Rock Creatures
Cheap, durable and endlessly customisable. These also make a nice addition to a garden bed or fairy garden once finished.
You will need:
- Smooth, flat rocks, washed and dried
- Non-toxic acrylic paint
- Paintbrushes
Let’s do it!
- Wash and dry your rocks well so the paint sticks properly.
- Paint a base colour and let it dry completely.
- Add details like ladybird spots, googly eyes or a simple bug face.
- Leave to dry fully before handling, then use them to decorate the garden or a pot plant.
Watch younger kids around small rocks, since they’re a choking hazard, and stick to non-toxic, washable paint.
Bigger Backyard Projects
Bug Hotel
Encourage your brood to be wildlife warriors by building a bug hotel from things found in the garden and the recycling bin. It acts as a habitat that attracts mini-beasts to your garden, and gives kids an ongoing reason to check on their new guests.
You will need:
- A large plastic bottle
- Scissors
- Sticks
- Pine cones
- Bark
- Garden twine or string
- Get a grown-up to cut the bottom and top off the plastic bottle, or cut the bottom off an old plastic plant pot.
- Thread string or twine through the empty hotel and create a loop at the top for hanging once finished.
- Layer the hotel with sticks, bark, pine cones and anything else from the garden, until it’s filled tightly with no gaps.
- Find a spot in the garden, hidden among the foliage, so shy insect visitors feel safe coming and going.
Mini Fairy Garden
A lovely small-scale project that can grow over a few afternoons rather than needing to be finished in one go.
You will need:
- A large pot, garden corner or old tray
- Moss, small stones, twigs and bark
- Optional extras like a small mirror for a “pond” or an upturned shell for a roof
- Choose your spot and clear away any weeds or debris.
- Build a little path with small stones or bark chips.
- Use twigs to build simple furniture or fences, and moss as “lawn.”
- Add any extras and let your child keep adding to it over time.
Pinecone Bird Feeders
A craft activity that keeps giving, since your child can check on visiting birds for weeks afterward.
You will need:
- A pinecone
- Peanut butter, or vegetable shortening for a nut-free option
- Birdseed
- String
Let’s do it!
- Tie a length of string around the top of the pinecone for hanging.
- Spread peanut butter or shortening into the gaps of the pinecone with a butter knife or spoon.
- Roll the pinecone in birdseed until well coated.
- Hang it from a tree branch and wait for visitors.
Skip the peanut butter if anyone in the house has a nut allergy, and use vegetable shortening or a nut-free spread instead.
Quiet Nature Art
Nature Mandala
A quiet, mindful activity that’s more about the process than having something to keep afterward.
You will need:
- A collection of natural items in a few different colours and shapes, such as petals, leaves, seedpods, sticks and pebbles
- Choose a flat spot of ground, a path or a large leaf as your base.
- Start with one item in the centre.
- Build outward in rings or patterns, mixing colours and shapes as you go.
- Take a photo once it’s finished, since the mandala itself is meant to be left behind for nature to take back.
Frequently Asked Questions About Nature Craft for Kids
Treasure hunts, leaf rubbings and painted rocks are some of the simplest ways to start, since they need almost no setup and use things you’ll find within a few minutes outside. For something with more staying power, a bug hotel or mini fairy garden gives kids a project to keep adding to over several weeks.
Treasure hunts, leaf rubbings and painted rocks are some of the simplest ways to start, since they need almost no setup and use things you’ll find within a few minutes outside. For something with more staying power, a bug hotel or mini fairy garden gives kids a project to keep adding to over several weeks.
Most of the activities here work from about age 3 and up with some help, and a few, like the leaf rubbings and sensory basket, suit toddlers too. Anything involving scissors, a craft knife or small parts like beads is better suited to school-aged kids working alongside an adult.
Generally yes from your own backyard, footpaths or a local park, but many national parks and protected bushland areas ask visitors to leave natural materials in place. If you’re not sure about a particular spot, it’s worth checking before you start collecting.
More Ways to Get Outside and Get Creative
If your kids enjoyed the treasure hunt, the Backyard Nature Scavenger Hunt has a free printable list ready to go, so there’s no need to make your own. For more low-cost ideas to fill a school holiday week, the Free School Holiday Activities guide is full of them. For activities suited to younger ones, the Sensory Play-Based Activities for Babies and Toddlers guide has five more to try, and the Play-Based Activities for Preschoolers guide covers the next age bracket up.
However you spend the afternoon, getting outside and making something from what you find is one of the simplest, cheapest ways to keep kids entertained. No trip to the shops required.