Screen Free Summer Activities for Kids (Easy Outdoor Boredom Busters)
Looking for screen free summer activities for kids that are easy, fun, and actually keep them busy? Summer is an absolutely magical time in childhood, but let’s be real… it also gets long. If you’re sick of hearing “I’m bored” and “There’s Nothing to do” and it’s only the first week of summer… you’re not alone. This big list of outdoor summer activities for kids is perfect for beating boredom during long summer days. These easy backyard activities for kids use simple supplies you likely already have at home and work great for toddlers, preschoolers, and younger kids.
Whether you’re trying to limit screen time, encourage independent play, or just survive summer break, these summer boredom busters for kids will help keep everyone happy and entertained.
Easy Screen Free Summer Activities for Kids
1. Garage Door Art with Magna-Tiles
Turn your garage door into a giant, temporary art wall using Magna-Tiles. They stick perfectly to metal and let your kids create colorful patterns, animals, or whatever their imagination comes up with. Just set a bin of magna-tiles out and let them go to work.
2. Colorful Nature Scavenger Hunt
Use a color chart to guide your kids as they find natural items that match. This outdoor scavenger hunt for kids is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers and encourages observation and exploration.
Click here to check out our post on making your own Nature Hunt!
3. Ice Paint
Freeze paint into cubes and let kids paint with them as they melt. Cool, messy, creative, and easy to clean up! This summer sensory activity for kids is cool, messy, creative, and surprisingly easy to clean up.
Check out how to make your own here!
4. Homemade Bubble Solution
Make your own long-lasting bubbles for endless outdoor fun. Use different wands, kitchen tools, or even DIY bubble makers for variety.
Find our recipe for bubble solution here!
5. Build a Backyard Obstacle Course
Use cones, ropes, sticks, hula hoops, or even pool noodles to make a course for kids to run, jump, and crawl through. Add a timer for extra excitement.
6. Glow Bowling
Fill water bottles with glow sticks and play nighttime bowling under the stars. This screen free summer activity for kids is perfect for warm evenings.
Build your own DIY set following the directions here.
Outdoor Sensory Summer Activities for Kids
7. Painting with Dandelions
Dip dandelion heads in paint and stamp them on paper for a unique and tactile art experience. This is a simple nature craft for kids that uses things you can find in your yard.
Check out our post on nature painting here!
8. Make “Yard Soup”
Give your child a bowl or bin of water and let them fill it with leaves, twigs, rocks, petals—whatever they find around the yard. It’s messy, sensory fun at its finest. This activity alone keeps my children entertained for what feels like hours.
9. Frozen Dinosaur Eggs
Freeze toy dinosaurs in ice and let kids excavate them with warm water tools. A cool sensory and STEM activity!
Easily make your own dino eggs using this technique!
10. Muddy Trucks Toddler Car Wash
Let kids race trucks through the mud, then clean them in a water bin car wash station. This is one of those easy toddler summer activities that always ends up being a favorite.
View our post on making your own muddy trucks sensory bin here.
11. Color-Changing Baking Soda Volcano
Combine science and color in this exciting chemical reaction that doubles as art!
Click here for our easy to follow instructions to make your own.
12. Painted Rocks
Collect rocks and decorate them with paint or markers. Great for decorating the garden or giving as gifts.
Tips and tricks for the best rock painting experience at this link!
13. Baking Soda & Vinegar Sensory Play
Fizzy, colorful fun! Add food coloring, droppers, and cups to make this easy summer science activity for kids even more interactive.
Creative Outdoor Summer Activities for Kids
14. Squirt Gun Tie-Dye
Use squirt guns filled with tie-dye solution for a fun twist on a summer classic.
By far the easiest, most kid friendly tie dye experience – check it out here.
15. Press Flowers with Magna-Tiles
Sandwich flowers or small leaves between two clear Magna-Tiles and set them in the sun. They’ll flatten into beautiful, nature-inspired art!
16. Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag
Shake up a sweet treat and learn about states of matter along the way. This is a delicious summer science activity for kids.
Click here for our easy, kid friendly recipe!
17. Have a Backyard Picnic
Lay out a blanket, bring some snacks or lunch outside, and enjoy a casual meal in the sunshine. Don’t forget the Ice Cream in a Bag!
18. DIY Chalk Paint
Paint your sidewalk or driveway with this vibrant homemade version of chalk.
Our favorite DIY chalk uses ingredients you probably already have!
19. DIY Edible Dirt Sensory Table Filler
Perfect for toddlers, this taste-safe “dirt” makes for a fantastic pretend play and sensory bin setup.
20. Nature Story Stones
Paint small rocks with simple pictures (sun, tree, bird, etc.) and use them to inspire storytelling outside. Use the directions from our Painted Rocks post to make it super easy. Great for sparking creativity!
Ready for a Screen Free Summer?
These screen free summer activities for kids are simple, affordable, and perfect for long summer days. Whether you’re working with a backyard, a park, or even a front porch, these easy outdoor summer activities give kids a chance to be creative, explore, and just be kids.
Bookmark this list for summer boredom emergencies, and rotate through a few activities each week to keep things fresh. You might be surprised how little it takes to create a fun, memorable, and screen free summer.
Let me know which ones your kids love most — and any other favorites we should add to the list!
