I don’t know about you but the minute the sun shows its face a moment longer in the sky than usual I am fully convinced that summer truly is on her way! I can almost smell the fresh cut grass and longer days.

Among other things I revel in the joy of not having to dress the kids for the Arctic or in full waterproofs every time we go outside and that the sun is genuinely calling you out to admire and revel in all the joys of springtime with the promise of those endless sunny days just ahead!

These days the fact that it is actually spring can get lost in the mountain of Easter eggs and plastic merchandise that surround it. We can’t always avoid the inevitable egg hunt but we can make it less chocolatey, more crafty, and fun too!


Here is your guide to setting up a springtime hunt that won’t have your kids high on sugar and crashed out from the comedown. Instead, they’ll quite possibly be crashed out from the exhaustion of too much fresh air... and what’s not to love about that?


You will need 6 small boxes each with a piece of paper with the name of one of the signs of spring (or a picture of the sign of spring), colouring pens or coloured wool in red, orange, yellow, green, blue and pink, and a piece of wood, one for each child playing. When you’ve gathered these items fill the boxes in this order and hide along with the corresponding coloured pen or pieces of wool:


- Birdsong - I use a small toy bird to hide with this - RED (birds sing more in the springtime as they are having to be really social in order to find a mate!)

- Catkin - Find a catkin to hide in the box too - ORANGE

- Daffodil - I use a picture of a daff but you could put a small one in - YELLOW

- Buds - I put a small bud inside the box - GREEN

- Bluebell - I just use a picture of one here as you shouldn’t really pick bluebells because they are protected. - BLUE or PURPLE

- Crocus - I use a picture here again as they are so easy to recognise by their vibrant colours! PINK

Once they are all hidden, in your garden or the park or the woods, it’s time for the hunt. As the children find each box they can either colour a mark on their piece of wood for the sign they have found OR tie a piece of wool around the wood instead. Once they have found all the boxes and signs they will have a rainbow decorated piece of wood to keep.

Then they can then go on a hunt to find how many signs of spring they can spot in their garden or local area. Can they remember all the names of the ones that they found?

Once they’ve done all this if they are still asking for chocolate (my daughter absolutely will be!) one chocolate egg is surely justified after all that fresh air?


Let us know how you get on!


Happy Easter everyone x



by Aliex Holliday Wild Ones Forest School

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