Tide pooling is one of our favorite winter adventures. Here in Southern California, December through early Spring is when we see the lowest low tides. These extra low tides are ideal for tide pooling. Creatures and their habitats are exposed during these low tide times that you wouldn’t ever even know existed the rest of the time. 

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Adventure to the Tide Pools

Tide pooling is a fun adventure for anyone, but being all about learning through experience and now a homeschooling mom, I like to tie our tide pooling adventures to curriculum and other learning to deepen our experience. 

That being said, if you have the opportunity to go tide pooling – GO! It’s super fun and often beautiful setting for an outdoor adventure. 

related curriculum or projects

• Ocean themes. My son is deep in a Marine Biology independent study. Tide pooling is perfect for extending this learning with hands on experience.
• Any animal unit. Although it doesn’t relate directly to giraffes or monkeys – tide pools are one example of an ecosystem, have various food webs contained in their pools, and can therefore be tied to other animal learning. 

Before You Go Tidepooling

Prep for your field trip by learning a little about tide pools. Books are a great place to start. THE TIDE POOL WAITS is one of my favorites.

Candace Fleming does a great job of describing tide pools with her beautiful words in this book. THE TIDE POOL WAITS is a delightful read aloud picture book about a tide pool. It is full of dynamic words, repetition, and fun creatures. The action packed, verb filled text and pleasant repeated phrases lend themselves well to reading aloud. The backmatter and careful inclusion of facts in the text offer plenty of information about tides and tide pools for young readers. A great nonfiction picture book that will get your adventurers excited about the tide pool.

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Beforehand it’s also helpful to explain expectations and gather supplies.

Tide pools are slippery, often large, often crowded, and of course near the ocean. Depending on the age of your child, you will want to think about how far you’re comfortable with them exploring away from you and communicate that with them beforehand. Other expectations like; no running, stay a certain distance from the water, and how to handle any creatures you might find with care could also be discussed. 

Things to Bring:

You don’t need much to explore a tide pool but a few things will make the experience more enjoyable. 

1. Waterproof shoes. Rocky, slippery surfaces aren’t ideal for bare feet or normal shoes. I recommend wearing shoes with some grip that will also keep your feet comfortable. My kids usually wear close toed sandals. These Merrells are our favorite tide pooling shoe. 
2. Clear buckets can be great for temporarily viewing tide pool animals. Everything must of course be handled with care and returned to their natural environment, but you can temporarily place octopus, starfish, sea slugs, etc in a clear bucket with water to get a better view. Anything plastic and clear works – we have something like this bucket. 
3. Warm layer depending on the weather. You’re right on the edge of the ocean so the weather is typically cooler and windier than wherever you are living or staying. Having layers to keep you warm enough to enjoy your adventure are important. 

When to go:

It is vital to check the tide chart for your area before you go. You can search “tide chart near me” to find your area’s high and low tides for the day. If you live in San Diego, this is where I usually check but it’s also in my weather app. You are looking for negative tides, preferably -1 or less. This is when the tide pools will be the most uncovered and you will have the most success seeing tide pool dwellers. In Southern California, these super negative tides during daylight hours happen the most in the winter months.

I recommend arriving about 30 minutes before the low tide point and planning to stay about an additional 30 minutes after the low tide point for about an hour total. 

Exploring Tide Pools

Tide pool explorations are open ended and unpredictable. You never know what you’re going to see and finding things often requires some patience.

Find slightly submerged pools and look closely in the crevices for any movement. 

Keep your eyes open. Watch your step. Pay attention to the changing tide and waves. 

Encourage your child to be very gentle with any touches. These are living creatures and we are invading their home. 

After Tidepooling

• Learn more about the creatures you found. Look them up in books, research more about them online. 
• Print pictures of what you saw for your child to draw or paint or study more closely. 
• Mark your calendar for the next low tide. 

Our Favorite San Diego Tide Pools

• Point Loma Tide Pools (located by Cabrillo National Monument)
• Tide Pools between False Point and Tourmaline Surf Park in Bird Rock. You can park in the lot at Tourmaline Surf Park and walk north on the beach.
• La Jolla Tide Pools in La Jolla

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Rocks are the things I find everywhere. My kids stash rocks in the pockets around their seats in the car. I find rocks in the pockets of all of my coats from my kids asking me to “please save this!” when they find a special one at the park. My kids love rocks. My daughter especially is constantly lugging around rocks or looking for the perfect smooth one or a round one.

When my twins were in fourth grade we took a deep dive into this rock obsession with a Geology Unit.

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Field Trips

For field trips, head to wherever rocks are plentiful near you! Beaches, rivers, hiking trails are some options. My kids seem to find rocks everywhere we go. Field Trips are an opportunity to see rocks, or geology in a natural environment. Observe the differences found in one area up close. Hike next to cliffs where you can see the layered rock.

Torrey Pines Beach
My daughter calls this rock beach because it’s one of the few near us that’s mostly rocks instead of sand. It was our first Geology field trip. We love Torrey Pines for a whole host of reasons, read more about this San Diego beach in this post.

Dave’s Rock Garden
We used THESE MARKERS to decorate rocks and then the following week we visited Dave’s Rock Garden in Encinitas. It’s a short walk from Moonlight Beach which also has tons of rocks all along the shore. We took pictures of different favorites, tried to identify the rocks we found from what we’ve learned in our labs and videos, and sketched a favorite in their nature journals.

Natural History Museum
Most cities have a natural history museum. Check if yours has an exhibit about geology. The San Diego Natural History Museum has a cool collection of gems. We took a field trip there to see some real life examples of the gems and minerals we have been learning about.

Annie’s Canyon and other San Diego Hikes
The ocean side cliffs along some of the beaches and hikes through canyons in San Diego offer a wonderful example of sedimentary rocks. We were able to see the layers of rock in the cliffs. It helped my kids visualize rock types on a larger scale. If you’re in San Diego, all of our favorite hikes are listed in this post.

Children’s Books to Read

Excellent books are always a part of our units. Here are some we especially loved during our Geology Unit.

Let’s Go Rock Collecting by Roma Gans
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A Rock is Lively by Dianna Hutts Aston
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I’m Trying to Love Rocks by Bethany Barton
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Magic School Bus Volcanoes and Earthquakes
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Rocks and Minerals by Dr. Sarah Stamps
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Geology Activities

Back at home we thoroughly explored our rock collection. We sorted, observed, identified and drew rocks. We also used a variety of activities, kits and books to help us learn more about geology.

General

• Outdoor School: Rock, Fossil and Shell Hunting guide was a huge resource for us. We went on rock hunts, learned about and identified the different types of gems and rocks, and more. We also read each chapter on the different kinds of rocks and then used their help to figure out which rocks we had in our collections. I wrote a whole post about this Outdoor School series – read here.
• Complete the Alchemy pages from our Harry Potter Curriculum from The Waldock Way
• Watched short videos on YouTube about the rock cycle, different kinds of rocks and weathering like this Crash Course video on Rocks.
• Crayon Rock Cycles (we followed the directions in this experiment on Little Bins for Little Hands) and documented the progress using the Alchemy Rock Cycle page from our Harry Potter Curriculum from Waldock Way

Minerals

Used National Geographic Mega Gemstone Dig Up kit. This was a HUGE hit with my kids. They patiently dug out each of the gems, exclaiming over each discovery and eagerly trying to identify it using our guide. We also used the National Geographic Kids Geode Kit which was also a ton of fun. Do both of these outside if you’re able to – they made a pretty big mess.

Learning about Volcanoes & Igneous Rocks

• Erupted a volcano using the National Geographic Volcano Kit.
• Baked Lava Cakes from GEOLOGY LAB
• Watched Volcano documentary videos on PBS

Learning about Sedimentary and Metamorphic Rocks

• We used our Rock Tumbler to clean and polish our rocks. Then we used our Rock books to identify the types of rocks we have in our collection.
• Got our hands a little messy with experiments about mud in our GEOLOGY LAB FOR KIDS book.
• Cooked layered sandwiches and conglomerates in the kitchen.
• Did a gravity art experiment where we filled a tray with paint and then dropped rocks to see what would make the biggest splatter. It was a ginormous mess but a ton of fun. Did bigger rocks splat more? Did it matter what angle we dropped them from? (see photo below)

Final Geology Celebration

We ended our Geology unit with a Rock Party with some homeschooling friends. During our party we:

• Played The Floor is Lava
• Cracked open more geodes. This was one of my kids’ favorite parts of the Geology Unit so we repeated the activity with our friends. These are the Geode Kits we used.
• Decorate smooth rocks with these markers.
• Made rock necklaces and bracelets with this kit.
• Ate rock candy.

CLICK HERE for More Upper Elementary School Unit

Butterflying isn’t the first thing that pops in my head when I think about Fall activities. To me, Fall has always been more about leaf peeping, pumpkin picking, and apple farms. That all changed last year when we read CITIZEN SCIENTISTS.

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This is a cool book that gets kids excited to participate with and explore nature. There is an adventure/focus for each season and the Fall one is all about butterflying. I highly recommend the whole book for inspiring adventures.

I also highly recommend the book WINGED WONDERS by Meeg Pincus. It’s a gorgeous, fascinating book about how the mystery of butterfly migration was solved.

Butterflying in San Diego

It turns out, in Southern California Butterflying is an ideal field trip to do in the late Summer, early Fall. If you live further north, then mark your calendar for earlier in the summer to see Butterflies at their peek.

WHERE TO GO

A Butterfly Garden is the ideal place to go Butterflying. We went to the Butterfly Garden in San Dieguito County Park. This is a fun park to explore with kids. There are trails, playgrounds and a pond. There is also a Butterfly Garden.

The Butterfly Garden is at the Northern end of the lower park. You can park nearby in a lot. We parked at the other end and hiked to the garden and back. The garden has an assortment of flowers and other plants that attract butterflies (along with hummingbirds and bees).

More Info about the Park & Garden: WEBSITE

WHAT TO BRING

• Sunscreen
• Water bottle
• Journals and Pencils (for kids who love to draw or create on adventures)
• Camera to practice taking photos (for kids who love a tool to use on adventures)
• Butterfly Guidebook (optional for kids who want to know more)

Butterflying Activity Ideas for Anywhere

Below are a variety of butterfly activity ideas for all ages to expand on your Butterflying adventure.

• Look for a Butterfly exhibit near you. Many zoos have seasonal butterfly exhibits. There are also places like the Butterfly Wonderland in Arizona (which my kids absolutely loved!) that are open year round.
• Butterfly Storytime for Preschoolers from My Storytime Corner – excellent Butterfly themed read alouds and more extension activities.
• Preschool Butterfly Unit from Bambini Travel – great ideas for a range of ages.
• In the Garden Unit from Bambini Travel – for kids who want to learn and explore more about flowers.
• Butterfly Art Prompt: put out photos from your trip or from a favorite butterfly book with simple drawing materials and invite your child to draw a butterfly.
• Plant your own butterfly garden. Have older children research what plants attract butterflies and plant some in your own garden.

Swimming back and forth in the tank in our schoolroom is Mr. Weasley. He’s a beta fish we recently adopted from some friends who are moving. He’s bright orange which is probably the most exciting thing about him, because honestly he spends most of his day hiding under the bridge in his tank. I’m not a fish person. I’m not really a pet person. None of that matters though, because my kids are animal obsessed and they are now fish obsessed.

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There have been hints at an interest in fish in the past.

There was the season where my son was in a “fishing club” at school that basically consisted a few friends who talked about fish and fished together when they could convince their moms and sisters that this was how we wanted to spend our afternoon. This past year he also earned a fishing merit badge at scouts which included learning about fishing in depth, going deep sea fishing, and learning to cook and clean fish.

Also Read: 10 Tips for Fishing with Kids

There was the snorkeling. Our first time was to see leopard sharks and the following summer we went to La Jolla Cove, a known local snorkeling spot, to see fish swimming in the reef. I’ll admit that it was pretty awesome seeing the bright pops of color under the water.

Also Read: Snorkeling in Oahu with Kids

Now there was Mr. Weasley.

Interests have a way of popping up like this in our lives. There are hints. Here and there an interest. And then they swoop in and pull all of a kid’s (or both’s) focus. They talk, read, watch, and learn obsessively about something. I have to admit it’s actually one of my favorite parts of parenting. The interests are rarely something I expect and they always pull us in interesting directions.

In this case, we swam towards fish and dove hard.

Ideas for Learning about Fish

Our interests have a general pattern to them. My kids (each different in their learning styles) like to explore interests in a few pretty predictable ways. After ten years, we’ve hit a groove (for the most part). I think we got here mostly by me accepting whatever random thing they were interested and then throwing any ideas I could find that felt meaningful around the house and seeing what sparked further exploration. Here are some ways we learned more about fish:

Caring for Our Actual, Live Fish

This was obviously where it started and caring for their little orange fish was a big part of this learning unit. They fed him, learned how to clean his tank, watched his movements obsessively.

Books about Fish

A Place for Fish
by Melissa Stewart
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How do Fish Breathe Underwater
also by Melissa Stewart
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Hello Fish: Visiting the Coral Reef
by Sylvia A. Earle
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Papa’s Mechanical Fish
by Candace Fleming
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Fishy Watercolors

I have pretty art enthusiastic kids and so art is often part of our learning. In this case, watercolors felt like an appropriate medium for representing fish. We did this a few times.

Materials:

• Mat for under paper or other table covering
• Paper towels
• Watercolors
• Watercolor Paper
• Paint Brushes
• Cups for Water
• Pencils or Black tipped pens
• Pictures of fish or close proximity to a tank of fish (optional)

Invitation:

When we do art it is rarely the “everyone come to the table so we can paint” variety. I like to set up an invitation – a spot for each kid to work and some sort of visual prompt – and let that spark their interest. If they’re interested, then it often stays out for a few days or is set out again multiple days (depending on our currently home size / table situation). In this case I set out our Outdoor School: Animal Watching book and some other fish book near the fish tank with the supplies listed above.

Nighttime Fish Habitat Check

We have been using the Outdoor School series to inspire some of our learning about outside, including animals. (You can read more about how we used Outdoor School books last year in Fourth Grade in this post).

When we started reading about fish in Outdoor School: Animal Watching my kids were super excited to do this Nighttime Fish Habitat Check.

Directions:

• Prep your flashlight in a bag, with rocks if needed.
• Plan where to go. We went to the bay because we snorkeled there recently and saw a couple fish and a stingray. We also found it helpful that where we could go on a bridge to get above the water a little, but we did see some fish wading into the water as well.
• Put on weather appropriate clothes and bring towels (these dock & bay quick dry towels are my favorites)
• Further directions for the habitat check are in the OUTDOOR SCHOOL guide, but it’s pretty straightforward.

More Fish Field Trips

Most of these field trips were repeated multiple times during our unit or period of learning about fish. Come back to the things they enjoy. Repeat things that are interesting. Talk about them and see what new questions they have and then head back.

• Snorkeling in the ocean
• Aquarium Field Trip
• Pet Store
• Coi Fish Pond at the Japanese Friendship Garden

You May Also Like: How to Use an Adventure Journal on Field Trips

More Unit Ideas for Upper Elementary School

“Can we go there!?” Driving up to the North Shore of Oahu towards our rental for the week, we heard this exclaimed from the backseat several times. Beautiful beaches, the Dole Plantation, and various other sites had us all feeling giddy with excitement. A few blocks from our rental for the week we spotted Shark’s Cove. Nestled between rocks, this little pool of water was full of people exploring. Kids were playing on the sand, people of all ages were wading into the water, and we could even see some people snorkeling.

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Snorkeling is something we’ve done with our kids several times in San Diego. For kids who love the water, are good swimmers, and are fascinated by the ocean and/or animals, there really is nothing better. If you haven’t tried before and you think your kids might like it, I highly recommend you give it a try. Here is my best advice on how to get started, what you need, and where to take kids snorkeling in Oahu, Hawaii.

Where to Snorkel

The first time we went snorkeling, we started in a pool. I wanted my kids to feel comfortable with how to use a snorkel before we tried in water with more movement. From there we practiced in the bay near our house where the water is calmer than the ocean, but still has some small waves.

Once you’re ready to wade into the ocean, there are a few spots along the North Shore and western side of the island of Oahu that are popular for snorkeling.

Our Favorite Snorkel Spots

• Shark’s Cove – this is part of Pupukea Beach Park was our most visited spot. Partly because we were staying close by, but also because it was consistently a good spot to see all kinds of fish and occasionally a sea turtle. This is also where we saw my favorite sunsets of the trip.
• Turtle Bay – located in Kahuku this is another protected cove that is great for seeing humuhumunukunukuapuaa (the former state fish of Hawaii – also a fun song from High School Musical 2 that my kids couldn’t stop singing the whole time) and a whole host of other fish and sometimes sea turtles. The downside of this one to me was that the beach was a little crowded because it is located adjacent to a hotel.
• Paradise Cove Public Beach – if I had to pick a favorite this might be it. I think we saw the most diverse fish in Shark’s Cove, but we saw sea turtles up close here and this beach is a little piece of heaven. This is an especially good spot if you have younger kids. It’s a shallow, calm cove with a little quiet beach. The downside is that there aren’t any bathrooms.
• Waimea Bay – we did not snorkel here, but I have been told by friends who lived on Oahu for years that this is a great spot in the summer months when the surf is much calmer on this side of the island.

When to Go

Thankfully I had a few years to figure this out in San Diego, before we went to Hawaii because I think this is one of the most important parts about successful snorkeling trips with kids and the least explained. While yes, you can snorkel on pretty much any day at any time on Oahu – a successful snorkeling trip is more likely if you go at the right time. These are the things I look for:

• Clear, sunny day with low wind
• Low tide (you can check the local tide online. There are some different options but Surfline.com is usually where I look)
• Calmer waves (this is also reported with the local tide)
• Go early or just before sunset.

The weather and tide you can check a few days in advance. I always check again that day or the night before to double check, but tides and surf conditions are forecasted like the weather and are pretty reliable. Going earlier or later usually offers less crowds and calmer water. Both of which are ideal when you’re trying to spot sea life.

Snorkel Gear to Bring

Snorkeling doesn’t require a ton of gear, but there are some things you definitely need. There are a lot of places around Oahu to rent gear if you don’t have your own or want to travel with your own. Personally I prefer to bring our own. My kids are comfortable with their gear and I know that it’s in good shape. Here is what I pack when I go snorkeling with my kids:

Each Person Needs

• Swim Suit
• Snorkel and Mask – there are a lot of options. Read the reviews. Not all snorkels are created equal. All four of us have full face snorkels like these but one of my kids often uses a more traditional set like this one.
• Fins – optional but helpful
• Towel – I really love these. They dry quickly and they aren’t as bulky to pack.

I also bring:

• Lifejacket – this is somewhat optional now that my kids are a little older, but when they were younger, a life jacket was essential. There is no way I could have taken them both snorkeling without life jackets and even though my kids were good swimmers when we tried snorkeling for the first time, it still makes it much easier for them to float along the surface and focus on using the snorkel and seeing sea creatures.
• Waterproof Bag – I use this bag if there are additional things, like my phone, I want to make sure will stay dry at the beach.
• Underwater Camera – I actually use this Underwater Phone Case for my iPhone which works amazing.
• Goggles – depending on the conditions, my kids like having the option of having swim goggles so I always throw a couple pairs in with our snorkeling gear. These are my kids’ current favorite goggles.
• Snacks and Water – my kids are always starving afterwards

UCSD in La Jolla, just north of San Diego has a fun sculpture collection all around their campus. Part of our fifth grade homeschool was learning about sculpture. We did a lot of looking at sculpture books and hands on sculpting ourselves, but seeing large, diverse sculptures in person is the best kind of inspiration.

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Sculpture Hunt

This scavenger hunt will take you around some of the pieces in the Stuart Collection on the UCSD Campus. Download your free printable hunt below to get started.

Also Read: Photography 101 – Teaching Kids to Take Pictures

Once you find parking (I’ll admit this can be tricky! My advice is to come on the weekend or during a campus break so you can get street parking just off campus). Then START at the La Jolla Playhouse and head north to Scholars Drive to find the answer to the first clue on the printable hunt.

Get Your Sculpture Hunt Printable Here

The printable will direct you around campus to four of the many pieces of art. There are a lot more, but this hunt will cover a range of types and take you to different parts of the campus.

More Ideas for Exploring Sculptures with Kids

Seeing sculptures is fantastic, but don’t stop there. Afterwards, create a variety of sculptures yourself! One of our favorites is working with clay. Here are some options:

• Go to a clay studio. Check your local area for clay studio for kids. If you’re in San Diego, we like Cool Creations on Garnet in Pacific Beach. This type of experience allows you access to a kiln.
• At home, or in a classroom, there are a lot of options as well. For smaller projects my kids love colorful air dry clay like this
• For larger or more authentic clay experiences, we love this big block of air dry clay.

You May Also Like:
GETTY VILLA, PERCY JACKSON & MYTHOLOGY FOR FOURTH & FIFTH GRADE

Get Your Sculpture Hunt Printable Here

Did you know that A. A. Milne’s infamously inspiring wood is actually 500 acres? The 100 acre wood is based on the 500 acre Ashdown Forest in East Sussex.

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Beforehand

The Ashdown Forest is a pretty place for a ramble, but knowing the stories of Winnie the Pooh definitely makes it more magical. Before you hike, really familiarize yourself with the Adventures of Pooh. If you’re doing it with this hike in mind, you might want to really talk about the different spots in the woods or with older kids, make a map together of how you envision the woods.

Read about Pooh’s Adventures
The Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie the Pooh
Buy Online

or Listen to the Audiobook
The Collected Stories of Winnie the Pooh
Buy Online

Watch Winnie the Pooh.
Available on Amazon

Hike in Ashdown Forest

Ashdown Forest
Wych Cross
Forest Row RH18 5JP
United Kingdom

• Brochure with More Info about the spots that inspired Pooh stories.
• Mapped Walks with more info.

You have to use your imagine to see the woods through his eyes, but what a gorgeous spot to hike and pretend.

The brochure included about has spots or places around the loop trail that inspired some of the stories in the Winnie the Pooh adventures. You can see: the river where Pooh saved Piglet, Eeyore’s gloomy spot, the Hefflelump forest and tree trap and more.

None of these are labeled in the forest, you need to either print the map or have it pulled up on your phone. I always think it is best to warn your kids that this isn’t like a Disneyland view of Pooh. This is the real place that Milne hiked and they have to be prepared to use their imagination like he did.

Afterwards

Pooh Corner. Sussex.

After your hike, if you have time you can also visit Pooh Corner. This is a small spot at the edge of Ashdown where there is a little museum and you can pop in for tea.

More about Pooh Corner

Home Activity Ideas

Back at home, if your kids are excited about the hike and all things Pooh they might enjoy:

• Re-read some favorite stories or watch Winnie the Pooh again. You can take it one step further by encouraging your kids to act out their favorite story with Pooh Character Puppets like these ones.
• Write your own Pooh story. Older kids who love to write (or homeschoolers who want to add a little writing to your adventure) could write their own story about a spot in the forest.
• Matching Game. Kids under 5 would love this adorable matching game inspired by the characters and stories of Winnie the Pooh. Find Online
• Make Winnie Pooh Honey Snacks together. You can use this easy recipe.

You May Also Like:
Great Britain Literature Inspired Unit
(has lots of bookish adventure ideas!)

My kids love being outside. Swimming, climbing, hiking, swinging, biking – you name it, they love any and all outdoor adventures.

When I start thinking about Christmas gifts for them (or birthday gifts or any time gifts) I often find myself looking for new things for them to do outside. For kids who love being outside what’s better than something to extend, encourage, or deepen their outdoor adventures.

affiliate links are included below.

10 Gifts for Kids Who Love Being Outdoors

Below are the gifts my kids have loved the most over the years. The highest rated, most loved, most used again and again gifts.

1. Bug Kit

Our twins got one of these bug kits a couple years ago and it is one of our most used outdoor materials. Kids who love being outside love looking closely at bugs, gathering samples, looking at compasses, etc. This is a great gift for kids ages 3 and up.

Tip: I made copies of the “FIELD NOTES” page on the clipboard and kept the original so I could keep making copies for them. We’ve written a LOT of Field Notes in the past couple of years. 

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

Want to go a step further for kids who are a little bit older? My son absolutely loves this Bug Catcher Vacuum.

2. Kid Binoculars

We got a couple pairs of these binoculars when our twins were 5 and they have accompanied us on many adventures since. I love kid binoculars for encouraging our twins to slow down and look more closely at the world around them. These are great for hikes, but we’ve also used them at airshows, boating, and at the zoo.

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

Also Read: 10 Best Gifts for Family Who Love to Travel

3. Kid Telescope

My kids are obsessed with the moon and the stars – really all things outer space – so a telescope is a natural gift idea. They love being able to look up at the moon and stars at night. A great starter telescope.

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

4. Kid Kayak

Those of you that follow me on Instagram have probably seen our kayaks a million times. These are durable, easy to transport, well balanced kayaks that are perfect for kids. If your kids love water sports as much as mine do then these are an awesome gift. The kayaks come in 5 different colors and with the paddle included.

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

For those of you with older kids, my daughter recently upgraded to a Stand Up Paddleboard. They do make them in shorter sizes that are perfect for kids around age 10 and up. If you live in a beachy area, I would check your local resell sporting goods stores first, but otherwise there are inflatable ones on Amazon. If you’re willing to spend more and have an even older kid, I absolutely love my ISLE paddleboard.

5. Keen Shoes

For kids who love being outside these are amazing shoes. They are breathable and comfortable with a durable bottom, toe protection and best of all for parents – machine washable.

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

6. Outdoor Adventure Book

I think you could pair any of the items on this list with a book about adventures or the great outdoors. There are tons of picture books about such adventures, but here is a list of my favorites: Best Picture Books about Adventure.

On the other hand, you could also get a book for your family to inspire a year of adventure:

For little kids I will put a shameless plug for my book – LITTLE WALKS BIG ADVENTURES here. It is full of ideas for field trips and adventures to have with toddlers and preschoolers.

For older kids, I highly recommend THE KIDS’ OUTDOOR ADVENTURE BOOK which is full of ideas for older kids to enjoy the great outdoors.

ORDER FOR LITTLE KIDS or ORDER FOR BIG KIDS

7. Snorkel

Snorkeling is a newer obsession in our family. My seven year olds can’t get enough. These full face snorkel masks are also newer, but having tried both with our kids I like these better. They make snorkeling easier with kids – fewer pieces, less fogging up, just less issues.

ORDER FOR CHRISTMAS

8. Lessons for a New Activity

If your kid likes outdoor activities then they will likely love to try something new – rock climbing, sailing, surfing, etc. You name it, there is a huge range of outdoor activities for which you can get lessons. Pair with a new swim suit or some gear and you have a great Christmas gift for a kid who loves being outdoors.

9. Zoo Membership

One of the things our kids love most about the outdoors are the animals that are everywhere. They also love the zoo. A Zoo Membership is an obvious gift for kids who love outside and animals. We have one for the San Diego Zoo and have absolutely gotten our money’s worth in afternoon trip to the zoo and weekend days at the Safari Park. For Christmas or a Birthday I would pair this with a book and/or stuffed animal.

Also Read: Top 10 Gift Ideas for Kids Who Love Animals

10. Snow Shoes, Pool Toys, or Other Fun Gear

My last gift giving advice is to pick the outdoor activity that your kid loves the most and get them something new to do. If they love the snow – try a pair of snow shoes or a new sled. If they love the pool – gift some new pool toys.

ORDER: POOL TOYS or SNOW SHOES

More Gift Ideas

Rad Gifts for Tween Girls from The Moments at Home

Gifts for Teen Girls from KimspiredDIY

Best Train Set for Toddlers from Play Trains!

Best Board Games for Kids and Families from All Done Monkey

10 Gifts for Kids to Encourage New Reading Skills from My Storytime Corner

Best Games for Teens/Tweens from Nouveau Soccer Mom

The Best Toys and Games for Kids to Play Together from Mosswood Connections

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Photography was our first art unit of fifth grade. In a world of watercolors and oil pastels, that might seem like a strange place to start but it leaned into my kids’ natural interest in photography and our heavily science based curriculum.

As with most things, we taught photography in a variety of ways but focused on getting out of the house and practicing their photography skills in the real world. (You can read all about my philosophy on learning and teaching in Little Walks Big Adventures

affiliate links are included in this post.

Photography 101 Essentials

You do not need a lot to teach basic photography. I recommend:

• Cameras ( my kids both have one of these cameras with a waterproof strap to hook on their wrists to limit dropping )
• Photography Journals or some other place to keep and share their photographs. We are using sketchbooks like this to paste their photos into because it will be their art journal for the whole year.
• Computer & Printer – to upload and print photos.

Photography Neighborhood Walk

Our first field trip was a walk around the neighborhood with our cameras.

Before you go:

• Go over basics of how to use your cameras. How to turn them on. How to take a picture. Go over any safety recommendations. For example, I encourage my kids to wear the wrist straps whenever they’re carrying their cameras to avoid lots of dropping.
• Talk about photography. Before we went on our Photo Walk, I had them go online and find a photo that they liked. Just one. It could be a photo of anything that interested them – buildings, flowers, animals. One photo that they found interesting. We printed it out, added it to their photo journals and then shared what they liked about the photo. This led to a conversation about some photography basics. In our case, light and perspective were both discussed. I kept this brief and basic, but we talked about how they photo might have been taken and why they liked the way the subject had been approached.
• When we went on our walk I brought these up again as they were taking photos by saying things like; I wonder how the light would change if you took a photo of that flower from a different angle? or I remember you liked the photo that was taken from a low perspective, have you tried taking a photograph of that tree from that same perspective? or I see you taking a picture of that flower, I wonder how many different interesting ways you could photograph that same flower?

Afterwards:

• We learned how to upload photos onto the computer.
• They reviewed the photos they took and chose a few favorites. Those were printed and then added to their art journals with a sentence about their photo.

Visit an Art Museum

• Visit an art gallery or photography museum.
  The Getty Center in Los Angeles has a building devoted to photography. They also have a lesson plan for middle schoolers about photography. Here in San Diego, Balboa Park has the Museum of Photographic Arts.

We visited the Getty Center which is an amazing free art museum in LA. The architecture and garden is amazing. Make sure to set aside time to explore the garden. That was the part my kids loved best. I also highly recommend the kids scavenger hunts that are available next to the front desk.

There is also a full building devoted to photography which is where we focused our art viewing for this trip.

Ideas to Increase Engagement:

• Check online before you go to see what exhibits are currently showing. Take some time to learn a little more about the artists you’ll be seeing
• Use the info on their website to create a quick scavenger hunt for the photography section of the museum.
• Another option is to have your kids look around and then sketch their favorite photography in their art journal or write about they are inspired to try after viewing the photos.

The Getty
1200 Getty Center Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90049, USA
Open 10a-5p Closed Mondays
Entrance is FREE but you must pay $20 to park and have a reserved timeslot to enter.
Website

Additional Resources for Learning about Photography with Kids

• Great American Artists for Kids
  We are using this book all year to study different styles of art. It covers a range of art forms and artists throughout American history. Ansel Adams and Sandy Skoglund are the photographers included. Each chapter has a little about the featured artist and then an activity related to that artist’s work for your child to try. Buy Online
• Combine Photography and Poetry with this Best Part of Me photography project.

Read More Photography Tips

Mythology hooked my kids in fourth grade. They dove into gods and goddesses, primarily in Greek culture, but learned about mythology from around the world. Here are some of our adventures and resources as they explored the magical world of mythology.

affiliate links are included below.

Field Trip to the Getty Villa

Getty Villa

While in Los Angeles for a weekend we visited the Getty Villa. This is one of the two Getty Museums in LA. It has Greek and Roman antiquities housed in a re-created Roman country home.

The Getty Villa makes a huge effort to be family friendly. There are a lot of activities for families at the museum. The super cool thing for kids who love mythology is that you can take an immersive audio tour of the museum.

My kids absolutely loved having the characters in their ears as they explored the museum on their own personal quest. Access the audio tour here or ask for more info at the information desk.

Getty Villa
17985 Pacific Coast Highway, Pacific Palisades, CA 90272, USA
Open 10a – 5p, Closed Tuesdays
FREE to visit, $20 to park.
Must reserve a time slot online beforehand.
Website

Percy Jackson

Percy Jackson was our way into Mythology and I expect we’re not alone. Once my kids had read THE LIGHTENING THIEF, especially my daughter, they were hooked. Suddenly they wanted to know all about all kinds of mythology.

Percy Jackson Inspired Activities

• Make sure you visit the Rick Riordan website. There is a wealth of information including these Teacher Guides.
• There is a Lightening Thief Unit Study on Proverbial Homemaker.
• Fabulous Classroom has a huge list of resources about Percy Jackson learning inspired by the release of Sea of Monsters on DVD but they would work for a general unit as well in most cases.
• Here are some fun ideas if you want to have a Percy Jackson bookclub meeting from Adventures in Mommydom.

Book Recommendations:

There are SO many Percy Jackson books and related books, but in case your voracious mythology fan needs some more ideas here are some more series we’ve enjoyed.

• Hopeless Heroes series by Stella Tarakson
• Zeus the Mighty series by Crispin Boyer
• Thunder Cluck! Chicken of Thor by Paul Tillery and Meg Wittwer
• Goddess Girls series by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
• Heroes in Training series by Tracey West
• Nico Bravo graphic novel series by Mike Cavallaro
• Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland

Mythology

Once my kids were exposed to mythology via Percy Jackson, they seemed to thirst to learn all they could.

Books to Read

• Usborne Illustrated Stories from the Greek Myths
• Myth Atlas: Maps and Monsters, Heroes and Gods from Twelve Mythological Worlds by Thiago de Moraes
• National Geographic Kids: Everything Mythology by Blake Hoena
• Gods and Heroes: Mythology Around the World by Korwin Briggs

Activities

• Impressive and diverse twelve week mythology study that covers all the curriculum areas on Redhead Mom.

Mythical Creatures

Mythical Creatures are some of the most fascinating parts of mythology, especially for kids who are huge animal fans like mine. If you want to go down this rabbit hole, here are some books and activities to explore.

Books to Read

• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by J. K. Rowling
• Mythopedia: What A Beast by Sophia Kelly
• Miss Turie’s Magic Creatures by Joy Keller – This is a cute picture book. If you’re diving into Mythology and Mythical Creatures with an early elementary schooler I definitely recommend this one.
• Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland is all about dragons that have to save their magical world. These are also good on audio.

Games to Play

• Createures Drawing Deck: This is game / art activity that is loads of fun if your kids enjoy drawing.
• Runes & Regulations: This is a strategy game that’s funny and also plays with mythical creatures.

Read About More Fourth Grade Units