What games do you play with the kids in the woods?

[dragonbutter]

We usually do a treasure hunt following twigs, stones placed in the shape of arrows to lead to the treasure.

I need more ideas.

My kids are 4 and 18m.

TIA

Were you talking about 'Nature's Playground' Dragonbutter? I have that book, I love it. It is split into seasons and has ideas for doing all year round and in the dark. It has some excellent beach and woodland activities.

This is what we do in the woods:

Den building - and adding to it each time we go back.
Observing how things change through the seasons.
We pack a notebook, magnifying glasses, identification books and walky talkies and some toy chainsaws and leave them to it (mine are 6 and 3 so can be left a little to their own devices).
We try to identify toadstools and flowers.
Construct art structures out of things we find.
Camping
Fire building (but you would need to get owner's permission if the wood didn't belong to you) and toasting sausages and marchmallows.
We are also in the middle of building a park out of wood, which is much anticipated.
Bug hunting and identifying.
Making xmas decorations.
Collecting stuff for a nature collage and a nature table back at home.
Taking photos of the interesting things for their nature folders - I just give them a camera and it is up to them to decide what is important.
Lying and listening.
We also pretend to be intrepid explorers on a deer hunt.
Most of the time they like to just make up names for differnet part sof the wood and pretend that its a village and we all live in different places. This game lasts hours.
My little one likes the 'throwing myself in the stream and getting absolutely filthy' game.

Oh, and daddy plays the 'anyone walking back to the van without whinging gets a kit kat' game.

We also give them some easy 'jobs' to get them involved in taking car of the wood - such as collecting logs.

What about challenges

e.g. "Who can be the first to see something red?"
"Who can find me three different leaves?"

Or you take a sketch pad and pencils for them to draw what they see.

i take them into the darkest part of the wood, tell them hansel and gretel and run off. hours of fun

Our 'game' is something like this:

ME: Let's go out for a walk in the woods.

DS1: OK.

DS2: WALK?! WALK?? WALKK??!!

(much excitement and collection of gear)

10 mins later:

DS1: Can we go home now? I want to go home and watch telly. (repeat)

(DS2 staggers off and I must chase him, then carry him)

ME: Oh for god's sake, can we not just go out for a walk without one of you whinging or running away?

etc...

Might need to revise my strategy.

Scavenger hunt, make a list of things to find before you go out as normal or silly as you like:

A yellow flower
A twig the same height as ds2
A pebble that looks like Daddy
A leaf that comes to a sharp point
etc etc

brilliant.
great ideas.

i'm hearting y'all right now

You could just pretend to be a bear and chase them around, growling. That would work for me.

That would work for them too I suspect.

bloody hell, I feel both inadequate and lazy...

we do like making teepees though - you have to take an old sheet (which you've painted in the garden so another activity there) and some twine.