Looking for nature play activities to get the kids outdoors these holidays?

Check out these fun and simple nature crafts using loose parts you can find anywhere.

A quick note on crafting…

As adults, sometimes we believe that we’re not creative. It’s easy for us to get busy and distracted by all the “important” things we have to do, and along the way as we were growing up, we came to believe that creativity is for children. We say things to ourselves like “I’m not creative” or “other people can do that, but not me”.

We’re here to say that nature crafting is playful and fun for children of all ages – including you.

It might not be your passion or your talent, but there’s something so joyful about making something out of nothing, and you don’t have to be a quote-unquote ARTIST to have fun making art.

Embrace imperfections, laugh and cringe at your creations, and give yourself and your children permission to fail and make mistakes. Embrace when things don’t turn out as planned, and turn those mistakes into miracles.

It’s as simple as picking up a few sticks and leaves and moving them around until you see something beautiful or intriguing.

Ready to get creative? Let’s go!

Check out these nature crafting activities using four simple materials you can find anywhere – sticks, leaves, twine and clay.

1. Animals

Roll some clay into a ball, break some sticks into small pieces and stick them all over the top of the ball and voila – an echidna! You can make this as elaborate or as simple as you like, but making animals out of natural materials is simple and loads of fun. Make a kookaburra with leaves for feathers, a possum with twine for a tail, or if you’re feeling ambitious, make an emu with stick legs and a long neck. We’ve also used banksia cones and seashells to roll onto the clay to make beautiful textures. Have fun with this – it could also lead to conversations about animal habitats, biology and life cycles. Let curiosity be the curriculum!

2. Clay impressions

If you live in an area with clay soil, go on an adventure to wild harvest some clay. Otherwise, you can find air-dry clay at most discount stores or craft supply shops. Use an old rolling pin, drink bottle or your hands to make a flat surface. Find some leaves or sticks with nice textures, or if you have access to flowers these make wonderful impressions as well. Arrange them on the clay surface and using a rolling pin, a cup or your hands, press them into the clay. Gently lift them out and admire the impressions in the clay. So easy and beautiful! Before they dry, make a little hole near the top so you can hang them up as decorations or turn them into key rings. You could also curl up the edges and make it into a little bowl or dish for treasures, keys or jewellery.

3. Nature mobiles or bunting

Bring the outdoors in with nature-inspired décor. Find a stick and some nature treasures like leaves, gumnuts, or feathers, tie them onto piece of string, and hang them from a stick. So easy, so fun! Little fingers might need help with knots, but having a go at manipulating string is a great way to develop fine motor skills. Sometimes we use a hole puncher to make holes in the leaves to make them easier to thread. You could also do the same thing on a long piece of string and make nature bunting. Forage for coloured leaves, mini pine cones, banksias, gum leaves, or even better, hang up your clay impressions once they’re dry and admire your handiwork.

4. Fairy houses

Make enchanting miniature worlds out of natural loose parts and ignite your imagination. Making fairies and fairy houses can be as simple as making a teepee out of sticks, decorated with leaves and rocks. Or, it could be as elaborate as making a whole fairy village, complete with stick fairies with leaf wings, moss-covered clay toadstools, clay bowls of fairy food (aka cut up leaves or gumnuts), fairy beds from paper bark, and pebblestone paths leading to a central fireplace. Let your imagination run free!

5. Tree faces

Bring nature to life and put a face to the plant friends that live all around us. This is so fun and easy; you’ll be amazed you haven’t tried it before. Grab a ball of clay, squish it onto a tree trunk and use your fingers to make eyes, nose and mouth. Use leaves, sticks or feathers to make hair or crowns, eyebrows or lips, and decorate your garden with a whole cast of gnomes and nature spirits. Take this even further by making up stories about the characters you’ve created. This is a wonderful way to support children’s language development as well.

There you have it – 5 quick and easy loose parts nature play crafts.

It’s amazing what you can create with the simplest of materials! Keep them up your sleeve for a rainy day or as a screentime alternative for the school holidays.

There are so many more simple and fun activities to explore with natural loose parts. Sometimes, all we need is a little encouragement to get started. It’s about looking at the resources we have all around us with new eyes, tapping into our imaginations to unlock our creative potential and just having fun!

For more fun school holiday activities, head to our bookings page and check out our huge range of adventure play programs and workshops in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. There’s something for everyone at Wildlings and we’d love for you to join in the fun these holidays – click here to reserve your spot today.

5 Quick and Easy Loose Parts Play Nature Crafts