Rain, Rain, Go Away – Wet Weather Activities for Children

By Emma Thomas

 

Summer is a wonderful time of year, days at the beach, long afternoons playing at the park, and rain! Lots and lots of rain. A rainy day is fun, you can stay home, snuggle up, and watch TV or play games. But when the rainy weather drags on you might need a little inspiration to help keep everyone happy! Here are some wet weather activities for children: 

 

Embrace the wet!

Put on your wet weather gear and head outside. A walk in the rain can be exciting! There are puddles for jumping, different noises to listen to and many interesting things to see. You might spot some wet birds or if you’re really careful, see a frog! If you’re lucky enough to live near a creek or river go and see what difference the rain has made. Take a bucket and collect wet leaves, sticks and flowers, everything is more interesting in the rain. 

Boat Races

Make boats and race them down the gutter! You can show your children how to make paper origami boats or raid the recycling bin for cardboard boxes or egg cartons. You can even make a boat using a slice of a pool noodle and a paddle pop stick. Spend some time building and decorating before heading outside for the race. You could also take a plastic toy boat to see how it goes against your own creations. 

Day time bath

Once you’ve been outside and everyone is cold and wet, run a bubble bath! My kids love having a bath during the day, there is just something special about it. You could add some different toys like measuring cups and mixing bowls from the kitchen . 

Use the dry spaces

Can you move your car out of the garage, do you have an area under the house or a deck? Find somewhere dry and set up an obstacle course or bike riding track. It makes a difference to have a designated zone to help get the energy out! 

Scientists!

Think like a scientist and investigate the weather. You could leave some buckets out to check how much rain is falling, draw pictures of the clouds and take turns forecasting the weather. You might find that your 3 year old is just as good at predicting the weather as the scientists! 

Go on an outing

A rainy day is the perfect time to head out – inside! You could visit a local museum, go to the library or even try something new like ice skating. Many shopping centres have an indoor playground or play space so even going to get the groceries can be a fun activity. 

Craft time

Get out all your craft supplies and see what your children are interested in. If they need help to get started you can set them a challenge like ‘can you create a robot that cleans the kitchen’ or ‘can you draw a picture using your feet. 

Upside down drawing

Stick a piece of paper under a table and let your children lie on their backs to draw. This should engage their interests because it is different and is a great work out for their arms!

Use the TV

Sometimes at the end of a rainy day everyone just needs that quiet time that TV brings. Watch a favourite movie, find a nature documentary or stick to fan favourites like Bluey!

There is so much you can do on a rainy day, it does take a little more planning but it creates great memories for your children and stops them from getting cabin fever. We hope you enjoy trying some of these wet weather activities for children!