Rain or Shine Get Outside

Nannies and Au Pairs Can Head Outside in the Rain with Children
By Raechelle Masuda

Rain or shine, getting outside with children provides endless possibilities. Walk around your neighborhood with a garbage bag and some gloves, pick up as you go. Take a field guide book with you on a hike and look for birds, animals and plants. Try to park the car for the day. Walk, Bike, roller skate instead, breathing in the fresh air.

A rainy day does not mean you and the children have to stay inside. There are many opportunities to play outside even on wet, cooler days. Seize the day, learn more about nature, experience the outdoors when it rains, get wet and dirty. It is a whole new world out there when it rains. The earth changes color, it smells different, looks different, and feels different. Try to share that with the kids.

Bees cannot fly in the rain, neither can most flying insects. Earthworms come to the surface once the dirt is saturated. Birds do not like to fly when it is raining, they like to find shelter instead. Here are a few ideas to inspire you:

• Take a wet, rainy walk. Make sure to take a few umbrellas, they are always fun!


• Jump in the puddles. Make a splash with your rubber boots!


• Let pots fill up with rain water and float things in them.


• Take toy animals, dinosaurs, and toy boats out to get wet along with you. Let the toy boats race in the water. The animals can gather at the watering hole, discuss the importance of water for the survival of animals. Let the animals go swimming!


• Make roads in the mud with your diggers for your cars.


• Do some digging. Find a safe spot to dig some holes.


• Make a mud stew, add leaves, twigs, and other bits of nature for flavor.


• Leaves and twigs float, yet rocks sink. What else can you find that floats and sinks?


• Measure rain and pour it. Have a plastic container to catch the rainfall, then measure how much you had. You can compare it to a weather website. You can pour the rain water, in different containers, add mud, then see what happens.

Remember to come in before your children catch a chill. Once inside take a nice warm bubble bath, or change into clean, dry clothes, snuggle up, and read some rainy day stories. Make sure to have a cup of tea for yourself and hot chocolate for the kids to take away the chill.

What kind of activities can you do with children out in the rain?