It is finally summer and finding novel ways to play in the backyard is going to be clutch to get us through this summer of social distancing. With the majority of our favorite activities either being closed, cancelled, or just too much of a hassle to make work, I am looking at ways to turn our backyard into the backyard park of our dreams.

As our neighbors and friends are growing older, we have been the happy recipients of a lot of backyard equipment. We have also scored some great finds on our local buy, sell, trade page. In addition to the new equipment, I have found that introducing a novel activity once in a while is a fun way to keep our backyard park engaging. I have collected some of our favorite activities and equipment and compiled them all in one place – right here. Check it out and then share your favorite way to play in the backyard below in the comments.

Activity Set Ups

Bubble Play is always a good idea. And these Big Bubbles are a winner with the kids. Dissolve 1/2 cup cornstarch in 6 cups water, then mix in 1/2 cup dish soap, 1tbsp baking soda, and 1 tbsp glycerine. Let sit for an hour before use. We have this bubble wand kit to use with the bubble solution, which has now held up for two summers.

Water Paint is a mess free way to play. All you need is a cup of water and a paintbrush and then go to town “painting” the outdoor furniture, paper, sidewalk, or fence.

Whip up some Sea Foam for sensory play. Use a hand mixer to mix 1/2 cup water, 4 tbsp dish soap, and food coloring, for 1 to 2 minutes. We made 4 separate batches to create 4 separate colors. As our play progressed, we added water to boost the foam and lost a lot of the color.

Set up a Kids Carwash. This is a great way to incorporate water, soap, and sponges play. In the end you have clean toys. Win-Win!

Sidewalk Chalk can be used to color a variety of surfaces: sidewalks, driveways, fences, and porches. We love to experiment and color on both wet and dry surfaces.

Plant a Garden because “to plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow” (Audrey Hepburn) and including your kiddos in the planting process is a fun way to promote months of learning and engagement.

Go for a picnic in your own backyard. Eating on a blanket with new picnic foods is a fun way to break up the monotony of the day to day.

Chalk Paint is a fun twist on sidewalk chalk. Combine 2 tbsp cornstarch, 4 tbsp water, and food coloring/liquid watercolor. We like to use a muffin tin as our palate.

Rock Play can take shape in many different forms in the backyard. We have small rocks that the kids use to stack and paint and we have bigger rocks that the kids move around to create different borders and paths. Rocks provide many ways for open ended play.

Create your own Fairy Garden. Pick a spot in the garden where you can create a fairy garden completely from scratch or use a fairy garden kit to get you started. Either way the experience is magical and the kids have fun rearranging the pieces all summer long.

Create a space for a Digging Pit. Find some dirt, add in some shovels, and voila!

A Mud Kitchen should be pretty easy to put together once you have a digging pit in place. Add water, pots, pans, spoons, etc, to have fun mixing and patting. This will for sure get messy, but that’s most of the fun!

Feed the Birds and keep track of which birds come to visit. We love using binoculars to watch the birds and we love this bird book that organizes the birds by color which make for easy identification.

Go on a Bug Hunt. This has been a new hit in our backyard and our hunts have been taken to a whole new level with the addition of this bug catcher kit.

Set up Camp in your backyard. Go all out and put up a tent, have a campfire, and search for stars.

Equipment Additions

If you are going to purchase one item for the backyard this summer, we highly recommend a water table. This one item has provided my children with countless hours of open ended play.

Try your hand at a fun game of T-Ball.

Why not add an Inflatable Pool to the backyard mix to beat the heat this summer.

And if a pool is too big, set up a Sprinkler to jump through.

Backyard Splash Pads are perfect for those little ones who aren’t quite ready to run and jump in the sprinkler.

I don’t think I have met a kid yet who would say no to a Slip and Slide.

Try spending some time reading in a Hammock.

We added the sweetest playhouse to our backyard and I think I enjoy it more than the kids. So many opportunities for open ended play can be found in a playhouse.

Climbing Structures can be thoughtfully placed around the yard to provide opportunities for gross motor play. I would love a climbing tower or a climbing dome with a slide.

A kid’s Basketball Hoop could be set up for a few rounds of PIG.

Swinging never gets old with my kids. We started with a baby swing hanging from the tree in the backyard. Now that the kids are older and there are two of them, we have moved on to a saucer swing that fits both of them.