Activity Ideas: ‘Beauty’ Nature Connection Pathway

Have you completed our Beauty challenge*? Looking for even more ideas on how to connect with Nature? Let’s dive deeper…

*(Each month there is a different challenge to take part in. If you haven’t taken part in our Unexpected Beauty in Nature Photography Challenge, find out how you can participate below, but that is just the start. Through our various partners, we present a whole heap of other ideas, all with the same effect –  helping you seek out, notice, appreciate and celebrate the Beauty of the natural world.)

Only got 5 min to spare? We’ve got you covered…

5 min activities

Take a Natural Snapshot (Generation Wild)

Find something amazing that you would like someone to see. It may be a view, a tree, a flower, a cloud.
Ask them to close their eyes. Put your hands on their shoulders and guide them to just the right place so that when they open their eyes, it will be right in front of them. Ask them to open their eyes.
Can they show you something amazing?

Find the sunlight (Forestry England)

Stand beneath a tree and look up into the canopy. Observe how the sunlight works its way through the leaves.
If you’re at home, imagine you’re in a forest on a sunny day

Allow the forest to show you that, like changing seasons, nothing lasts forever and everything happens in its own time. What are the rays of hope in your life?

Go on a microscopic animal walk (Generation Wild)

Choose an area where it’s safe to get down on the ground and where there are interesting things to see on the ground. Get right down on your belly to get an insect’s eye view of the world. Move along slowly. What can you see, hear and smell?

Find a lovely leaf  (Generation Wild)

Find a leaf that you particularly like. Hold it up to the sky and look at it carefully as the light shines through. Feel it between your fingers Check if it has a smell. Now create a pile of leaves, add your leaf and mix them all up.

Can you find your leaf?

Go cloud spotting (Generation Wild)

Look up at the clouds. Can you see any shapes in the clouds? Let your imagination run wild!

What colours can you see?

Ready to take a little more time? Check out the ideas below.

15 min ideas

Watch the birds (Generation Wild)

Spend 10 minutes watching the birds.
You might want to put out some food beforehand and you could even build your own bird hide.
Don’t worry about naming them, just enjoy watching them and what they do.

Create some wild art  (National Trust)

Creating wild art is no. 18 of the National Trust’s  ‘50 things to do before you’re 11¾’ activities. It’s a great way to make you think a little differently about nature. You could perhaps try and find things that vary in colour and texture so that you had even more choice and can pull together something really wild.

Why not try…leaves, twigs, feathers, seeds, pine cones, grasses or flowers, pebbles, mud, string or wool.

Go Stargazing (Generation Wild)

Check the weather forecast and choose a clear night. Grab your coats and find a comfortable place to lie down.

Enjoy the view!

Notice the Beauty: photography (Forestry England)

Take some time to explore an area and look for interesting shapes, colours, views or patterns.
Choose your favourite and take a photo, draw or write a description about it.
What is it that made you take notice?

Find pictures of Nature in your home (Generation Wild)

We are surrounded by more pictures of nature than we realise. We find them in books, on cups, on cards, on our clothes and even on packaging. How many pictures of nature can you find in your home? Include pictures of plants, animals and landscapes.

Spring Flowers (Wylder App)

The spring flowers challenge on the Wylder app has all the information you need to notice 5 common wildfloers and deepen your connection to Nature, with ID infromation, interesting facts, and a community gallery of people’s spring flower photos.

Forest Playlist (Forestry England)

If you aren’t able to make it out to appreciate the beauty of a forest. Forestry England have compiled a playlist of forest wellbeing videos, allowing you to soak in the sights and sounds of the forest from anywhere.

Make natural artwork (Wylder App)

Find an outdoor space that is wild or “untidy”. Spend some time gathering objects from the ground (leaves, stones, sticks etc.) Then start creating some artwork on the ground using these objects. It could be a circle, repeating patterns, a colour line – anything you feel drawn to. Remember, this is not a class and there is no right or wrong answer, just an opportunity to really look closely at what you discover in Nature.

Not in a rush… perfect! Try some of these…

30+ min ideas

Visit a bird hide (Generation Wild)

Bird hides can help you get some great views of birds and other animals. Have a look online to see if there are any near you. WWT sites are great places to try using a hide for the first time. Many people worry about using hides with their children but they’re there for everyone. Just make sure you keep noise to a minimum and people are generally very welcoming and only too happy to help you.

Watch the sunrise or sunset (Generation Wild)

There are few more beautiful sights than the sun rising or setting in the sky. Look at the weather forecast and check what time the sun sets and rises. Sit back and enjoy

Try watching on different days because every sunset and sunrise is different

Make a bird nest (Generation Wild)

Make a nest for a bird or another animal using only natural materials. Think about what the animal needs. Where will you build it? What materials will you use? How will you make it comfortable for them?

Focus on Nature : photography (Wylder App)

To be able to better capture nature, you need to know the rules of composition. These are the glue that hold images together and makes them pleasing to the eye.

There are three main rules that you need to think about, helping lead people through the image. This challenge on the Wylder app will help you grow your creativity, and take better pictures of nature.

Psssst… Are you following us on Instagram yet? Head over to ReWild Yourself to join in the fun and become a member of our online community. Hit the link below – and you can even share your Nature creations!