9 Autumn Activities for Toddlers
Crisp mornings, crunchy leaves, muddy puddles and changing colours make autumn a wonderful time for little ones to explore outdoors.
For toddlers especially, it’s the perfect season to run, explore, and learn through play.
If you’re looking for fun ways to spend time outside with your child this season, you’ll be pleased to know there are plenty of simple and engaging autumn toddler activities that support their development while making the most of nature’s playground.
And you don't need elaborate activities or expensive equipment. Some of the best autumn activities for toddlers and preschoolers start with simply putting on your wellies and heading outside.
Here are nine easy autumn activity ideas to try with your little one, plus some simple ways younger babies can enjoy the season too…
Why Autumn is Brilliant for Outdoor Learning
Every season gives children something different to discover, and autumn is particularly rich in new sights, sounds, textures and experiences.
Leaves change colour and fall from the trees. The ground becomes muddier. There are conkers, pinecones and sticks to investigate. Children can hear leaves crunch beneath their feet, feel the wind on their faces and watch what happens when they jump into a puddle.
These everyday experiences can support children's development in lots of different ways.
Outdoor autumn play can help children:
Develop physical skills through running, climbing, balancing and jumping.
Explore different textures, sounds and smells through sensory play.
Build their vocabulary as they talk about what they can see and hear.
Develop early maths skills through sorting, counting and comparing.
Use their imagination through open-ended nature play.
Build confidence and independence as they explore their surroundings.
Most importantly, outdoor play gives children the freedom to be curious.
There doesn't always need to be a planned outcome. Sometimes following your child's interests, whether that's an interesting leaf, a particularly good puddle or a wiggly worm, can lead to the best learning opportunities.
9 Autumn Activities for Toddlers and Preschoolers
1. Collect and sort autumn leaves
Take a little bag or basket on your next walk and see how many different leaves your child can find.
Look for different colours, shapes and sizes, then spread your collection out when you get home. Encourage your child to group them together – perhaps all the red leaves, the biggest leaves or the ones that look similar.
There doesn't have to be a 'right' way to sort them. Letting children decide how they want to organise their treasures encourages independent thinking too.
What they're learning: Sorting and comparing introduces early maths concepts, while talking about colours, textures and shapes helps develop vocabulary and observation skills.
2. Go on a conker hunt
Few things say autumn quite like finding the first shiny conker of the season.
Head to your local park or woodland and see how many you can spot together. Older toddlers and preschoolers can count their collection, compare different sizes or use them for supervised autumn crafts when you get home.
You can also encourage lots of conversation along the way. Which conker is biggest? Which is smallest? Can you find one still inside its shell?
What they're learning: Picking up and handling natural objects can support fine motor development, while counting and comparing introduces simple early maths concepts.
Safety note: Conkers, acorns and other small natural objects can be a choking hazard, so always supervise young children closely and keep them away from babies who may put objects in their mouths.
3. Jump in muddy puddles
Sometimes the simplest activities are the best.
Pull on the waterproofs and wellies and let your toddler splash, stomp and jump in puddles after an autumn shower.
Try making little and big splashes, jumping with both feet or seeing what happens when you drop a leaf into the water.
You could even ask your child what they think will happen before they try something. Will this puddle make a bigger splash? Will the leaf float or sink?
What they're learning: Jumping and balancing help develop gross motor skills, while experimenting with water introduces simple ideas around cause and effect.
And yes, they might get muddy. That's part of the adventure!
4. Take an autumn nature walk
You don't need to travel far to have an autumn adventure.
Head to your local park, woodland or even around your neighbourhood and encourage your child to notice what's changing around them.
Can they hear leaves crunching? Spot a bird in a tree? Find something red? Feel the wind? See any mushrooms growing?
Instead of rushing to your destination, try following your child's pace. Toddlers have a wonderful ability to find interesting things in places adults might walk straight past.
What they're learning: Nature walks encourage observation, curiosity and communication while helping children begin to understand seasons and the natural world.
Heading out for a longer adventure? Pack a few of our healthy toddler snacks for the journey.
5. Explore pumpkins
Pumpkins aren't just for carving.
Visiting a pumpkin patch can be a lovely autumn family activity, giving children the opportunity to explore different shapes, colours and sizes.
Once you've chosen your pumpkin, there are plenty of ways to continue the fun at home.
Toddlers and preschoolers can paint the outside, scoop out the seeds with a spoon or explore the stringy inside of the pumpkin with their hands.
You could talk about how the pumpkin feels, count the seeds or compare different pumpkins.
What they're learning: Pumpkin play is brilliant for sensory exploration, fine motor development, creativity and introducing descriptive language such as smooth, bumpy, heavy and slimy.
6. Have story time outdoors
Take your child's favourite book into the garden or local park, find a cosy spot and enjoy story time outside.
Bring a blanket, wrap up warm and listen to the sounds around you while you read together.
You could choose a book about woodland animals, weather or autumn, but it doesn't have to be seasonal. Simply changing where you read can make a familiar story feel like a completely new experience.
What they're learning: Reading together supports language, communication and early literacy, while being outdoors introduces another layer of sensory experience.
7. Make art with nature
Leaves, sticks and other natural treasures can become brilliant art materials.
Collect a few interesting items during a walk and use them to create pictures when you get home. Children could make leaf prints, arrange sticks into shapes, create a nature collage or simply experiment with different materials.
Rather than showing them exactly what to make, try giving them the materials and seeing what they come up with.
A leaf might become a tree, a hedgehog, a dinosaur – or something completely different.
What they're learning: Nature art supports creativity, imagination and fine motor skills, while open-ended activities encourage children to make their own choices.
8. Build a mini outdoor obstacle course
Turn your garden or outdoor space into a simple obstacle course.
Depending on your child's age, you could encourage them to:
Step over a small log.
Walk along a line of leaves.
Weave around plant pots.
Crawl underneath something.
Balance on a safe stepping stone.
Finish by jumping into a pile of leaves.
Let your child help design the course too. They may have much more imaginative ideas about what each obstacle represents!
What they're learning: Obstacle courses support balance, coordination, spatial awareness and gross motor development. Working out how to move around each obstacle also encourages problem-solving and confidence.
9. Go on an autumn scavenger hunt
Turn your next family walk into a treasure hunt by giving your child a few autumn objects to look out for.
See if you can find:
A red leaf
A yellow leaf
A brown leaf
A pinecone
A stick
Something smooth
Something rough
Something that has fallen from a tree
Something that makes an interesting sound
You don't necessarily need to collect everything. Some things can simply be spotted, talked about and left where they belong.
Ask questions as you explore: What colour is it? How does it feel? Where do you think it came from? Can you find another one?
It's a simple way to encourage observation, problem-solving and language while making an everyday family walk more exciting.
Want to make it even easier? Download our free autumn scavenger hunt and take it on your next adventure.
Autumn Activities for Babies
Babies don't have to miss out on autumn adventures.
Long before children can walk or collect leaves themselves, spending time outdoors introduces them to new sounds, colours, movements and sensations.
You could:
Lie together on a blanket underneath the trees and watch the leaves move.
Let your baby feel a large autumn leaf while you hold it securely.
Listen to birds, wind and rustling leaves together.
Talk about the things you can see on a pram walk.
Sit together in the garden and watch the trees and clouds.
Explore autumn colours through baby-safe sensory play.
You don't need to constantly entertain your baby while you're outside. Give them time to look, listen and take in their surroundings.
For babies, something as simple as watching branches move in the wind can be a completely new experience.
Always supervise babies closely around leaves, conkers, acorns, sticks and other natural objects that could be placed in their mouths.
How Autumn Play Supports Early Years Learning
The beauty of outdoor play is that children can develop lots of different skills at the same time – often without even realising they're learning.
Communication and language
Talking about what children can see, hear, touch and smell introduces new words naturally. You might talk about crunchy leaves, enormous pumpkins, tiny acorns or squelchy mud.
Physical development
Running across grass, balancing on uneven surfaces, climbing, carrying sticks, jumping into puddles and bending down to investigate something all help children develop strength, balance and coordination.
Early maths
Nature provides plenty of opportunities to count, compare, sort and spot patterns. Children might count conkers, arrange sticks from shortest to longest or group leaves by colour.
Understanding the world
Experiencing seasonal changes first-hand helps children begin to understand the world around them. They can notice leaves changing colour, temperatures becoming cooler and different wildlife appearing throughout the year.
Creativity and imagination
Unlike many toys, a stick doesn't have one particular purpose. It can become a wand, a spoon, a bridge, a flag or part of a den.
Natural, open-ended materials give children the freedom to decide how they want to play.
Confidence and independence
Outdoor environments present children with lots of little challenges.
Can I step over this branch? Can I climb onto that log? What happens if I pour water here?
Having opportunities to explore, make choices and solve small problems can help children become increasingly confident and independent.
You can discover more about how everyday experiences support children's development in our guide to learning through play in the early years.
Discover more about how we support learning through play:
Looking for a nursery where outdoor play is part of everyday learning?
At My Ohana, babies, toddlers and preschoolers are encouraged to experience the outdoors throughout the year, helping them grow in confidence, curiosity and independence.
Find your nearest My Ohana nursery and discover more about life at My Ohana.
