Getting the kids into the garden this summer 10 tips

Ask a parent or grandparent what they did for fun as a child and the answer usually happens outdoors. These days childhood memories are far more likely to be made inside, in front of a screen. The sun's out, though, at least some of the time, so here are ten ways to get the kids back into the garden and off the tablet.

1. Trade screen time for garden time. Set a timer and make it a swap: an hour on a screen earns an hour outside. Kids take to a clear deal more readily than a flat "go outside".
2. Say it's fine to get wet and muddy. Half the reason children hang back is they think they'll be told off. Tell them the opposite, get the hose out, and stand well back.
3. Take the crafts outdoors. Most kids will happily make something. Chalk a drawing across the patio, thread a daisy chain, or bring out a scratch art set and let them reveal the rainbow colours at the garden table, where the bits of black coating aren't your problem to hoover up.
4. Eat outside. A picnic on a blanket turns an ordinary lunch into an event, and it gets everyone out with no persuading.
5. Build a camp. A sheet over a washing line or a pop-up tent makes a den. Once it starts getting dark, a torch projector turns the inside of the tent into a little show and buys you a calm half-hour of story time.
6. Run a garden treasure hunt. Hide a few things and write clues, or draw a map. It's geocaching without the phone, and it buys you a surprising amount of time.
7. Give them a job in the garden. Their own little veg patch, a watering can, a sunflower to measure against their own height. Watching something they planted actually grow keeps them coming back.
8. Let older ones earn pocket money. Mowing the lawn or deadheading the flowers is a lot more appealing at that age when there's a few quid in it.
9. Go bug-hunting. Plenty of children love a creepy-crawly. Lift a log, check under a pot, see what's living in the border. A cheap magnifying glass makes it a proper expedition.
10. Plant a sensory corner. A patch of things that smell and feel interesting, lavender, mint, lamb's ear, soft grasses, gives younger children a reason to potter and poke about.

None of these need much setting up, and most work with what you've already got in the garden.

For when the weather turns or the light goes, Georgie Porgy has the indoor bits that keep the day going: scratch art sets, torch projectors, 3D wooden puzzles and the 3D football stadium puzzles for a rainy afternoon at the kitchen table. There's plenty more besides, from the Unicorn Club plush and the wider unicorn soft toys to bag charms, and the full range is on the Georgie Porgy Amazon store too.

Frequently asked questions

How do I get my kids to play outside instead of on screens? Make it a clear swap rather than a battle: an hour of screen time earns an hour in the garden. Give them a reason to be out there too, a job, a hunt, a craft, a bug search, so "outside" means something to do rather than just "not inside".

What can kids do in the garden without any equipment? Plenty. A treasure hunt with hand-drawn clues, bug-hunting under logs and pots, a picnic on a blanket, chalk drawings on the patio, or helping water and tend a small patch of their own. Most of it uses what you already have.

How much screen time is okay for children? There's no single right number, and it varies by age and family. A simple, workable approach is to balance it: pair screen time with an equal stretch of active or outdoor play, and keep screens out of mealtimes and the hour before bed.

What outdoor activities suit younger children versus older ones? Younger children love sensory play, bug-hunting and helping with watering. Older ones respond better to a bit of responsibility or reward, their own veg patch, earning pocket money for garden jobs, or a proper treasure hunt they can run themselves.

What can we do when it rains? Move the fun indoors without going back to screens. Scratch art, a torch projector show in a blanket den, or a build-it-yourself wooden or football stadium puzzle all fill a wet afternoon at the kitchen table.

The takeaway

Getting kids outside is less about the weather and more about giving them something to do once they're there. Pick two or three of these, keep screen time a fair swap rather than a fight, and have a rainy-day backup ready for when the clouds roll in