Parents, grandparents and care-takers, you know how important it is for your child to stay active and engage in Edmonton outdoor activities! Outdoor activities help improve physical health, cognitive development, social skills, and emotional well-being — and the important Vitamin D when it is sunny out! In Edmonton, Alberta, there are many, many opportunities for children ages 3 to 5 to engage in fun outdoor activities in all seasons. Let’s explore the best Edmonton outdoor activities for children – winter, spring, summer and fall.

SPRING

When the snow melts and when the weather warms up, spring is an amazing time to explore nature and enjoy the fresh air. Here are some spring Edmonton outdoor activities your child will love:

1. Visit a local park: Edmonton has over 460 parks. There are so many great green spaces to explore. Right next to Green Circle in Parkallen is the dry nature pond. Not too far from the neighbourhood, there is Belgravia Dog Park Trail which overlooks the river. In the southwest, there is Blackmud Creek Ravine.
   If you love natural playgrounds, go visit Gold Bar Park — there is one where kids can play with sand and use their imagination and find sticks. All you really need is sticks and stones.
   Many parks have playgrounds, splash parks (Parkallen has a great one! And close by, McKernan and Lendrum), and picnic areas. Kinsmen by Walterdale bridge is a notable park where it has all the above — with Queen Elizabeth Park close by as a nature park. Perfect for birthday parties. Parkallen Community also has a picnic area. It can be seen buzzing with birthday parties when the weather starts warming up!
2. Walk in the nature: Do you know that Edmonton has select trails where you can pick fruits? Raspberries are popular among kids — and can be easily found. Here is a helpful link provided by the City of Edmonton. Make it fun — an Eye Spy game! Ask them to identify the plants and animals along the way. Kids this age LOVE scavenger hunts.
3. Plant a garden: March or April is the perfect time to start seeding certain seeds or plan for your garden. Teach our kids where food comes from. Get them involved in the planting process! (This is our preschool kids’ FAVOURITE springtime class activity as they watch their seeds sprout)
   

SUMMER

When school is out for summer, this is an amazing time for families to get outside and enjoy the much awaited warm weather. Here are some Edmonton outdoor activities for summer your child will LOVE:

1. Cool down and sensory fun at splash parks! Edmonton has many splash parks to explore. Bring fun dollar store spray toys — or even recycle a mustard or ketchup bottle to use as a squirting water toy! Some splash parks will have playground with sand — so, plan ahead for messy play with sand castles.
2. Go on a bike ride – here is a helpful map to figure out where your adventures and picnic is!
3. Camping! Whether it is in your backyard or in Elk Island National Park or Rainbow Valley campground, pitch a tent and enjoy hearing the sounds of the outdoors. Your child will love the novelty of sleeping outside; it is a great way to bond as a family!

FALL

The prettiest time of the year is when the leaves start to change colour despite the weather cooling down. Here are some fall Edmonton outdoor activities your child will love:

1. Visit a pumpkin patch! Sommerset Pumpkin Farms, Prairie Garden are a few to name. The Edmonton Corn maze is also another great option. Let your kid pick the pumpkin(s) the family wants and then spend an entire afternoon carving into spooky carvings of Jack-o-lanterns.
2. This activity is a favourite at Green Circle Preschool: JUMP in the leaves! Create a huge leaf pile with a rake and let your child jump! Or you can also all each gather a pile of leaves and see who throws the highest! This is also a fun way to get candid photos if you have a DSLR; use a high enough shutter speed (which is typically 1/focal length or double the focal length).
3. As cheesy as it sounds, composting. Fall is a great time to show kids about what makes a good compost! Oh, and of course, if you have apple trees in your backyards, those little hands will love picking apples, plums and cherries. Garden snacks are life!

WINTER

Edmonton winters can seem like endless and frigid, but that does not mean you have to stay cooped up inside. Here are some Edmonton outdoor winter activities your child will love:

1. Ice skating: while there are many outdoor skating rinks, there are also various FREE indoor skating rinks that are scheduled by the City of Edmonton. This means that your kids can learn to skate throughout the year!
2. Let’s make a snowman! We don’t know about snowball fight, but snow-angels are also fun to be playful! If you have watched some of our older videos, our kids LOVE to spray coloured water onto snow as one of Edmonton outdoor activities to do. There is just so much joy with playing in the snow!
3. Sledding: Edmonton has many little hills in the neighbourhoods that are great for toboggans and sleds. It is a thrill your kid will ask to go again, and again. This is actually a thing to do during Edmonton’s favourite winter festival: Flying Canoe Volant.

What are your family’s fun Edmonton outdoor activities to do?

Tell us! We want to know in the comments. If we have missed any fun nature-based activities, let us know. We hope you have enjoyed this comprehensive list of fun Edmonton outdoor activities in all seasons.
If you LOVE the fact that the preschool teachers educate kids on the snippets of outdoor activities that is offered, go to our home page www.greencirclepreschool.com and find out more about us!