Myself, my husband, and his family (including his brothers and their partners and children), are going on a trip to stay in a cabin on the lake. this cabin is awesome. it has 3 bedrooms, a full living/dining room, kitchen, and deck. there are plenty of things for adults to do, but i will be bringing our godchild along for the ride. this will be his first trip w my hubbie and i, so i want it to be memorable. We have gotten plenty of toys and some coloring pages together, and the fishing supplies and swimsuits, but i want more, like what we can do in the car, and what else we can do while we are there, like some cool games for prek’s, ect. any imput will be appreciated.
6 Responses to “What are some good things to do on a camping trip with a 4 year old.”
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well camping is not just about being away from home, while kids are young and there minds are wondering about things so i would teach him about nature and how things work in the wild like bugs, animals, types of trees, how stuff grows and thing of that sort that will be fun and a great learing experience.
My 4-year-old wanted to spend max time in the lake. The toys and coloring pages may be fine for in the car or cabin, but during the day I’d maximize outdoor time: do stuff like gather some leaves and acorns and glue them to a paper plate.
Thanks for not dragging videos into this. Vacation is a great time to leave that nonsense behind.
Some sleeping bags, a warm night, an open wood fire, marshmallows, and no other light on other than the fire, he will not forget this.
take him on a hike through the woods. Show him different plants, flowers and other things you see, and have him tell you what colors he sees, have him learn what new things are ETC.
Kids this age usually love to dig and build so if you have a sandy area by the lake be sure to include some pails and shovels.
My kids also always love treasure hunts - if you have a portable GPS see if there are any geocaching sites in the area - great fun for kids and adults too. If not, include a few small toys or prepacked snacks that you can hide for them to find.
Water balloon toss is always fun.
Deck of cards - good for adult games and kids can use them for matching games and building a house of cards.
Flashlights. They love them. The last campground we went to had a lollipop flashlight hunt at night in an open field. The kids loved it.
This site always has great ideas for kids too - http://familyfun.go.com/
like some of the others said, games are cool but you are camping for one reason, to immerse yourself in nature. Pack up the games. Teach the kid about nature. You could get an autobahn society bird book or something or one on insects and pick out and identify them. You could give him a stick and let him dig a hole. Boys love throwing rocks, playing with sticks, picking up frogs, chasing huge grasshoppers etc. Get him a little fishing pole and tiny hooks and put worms on it. If he catches tiny fish who cares. Throw them back. Prop up a few sticks on a small bush and put branches and leaves on top to make a hut. get him a tiny tent to play in. get him a jar to catch lightning bugs and put them in. You dont need a lot of crazy stuff to entertain boys. They will usually find something to entertain themselves with. It teaches creativity.