Let’s have fun in autumn! There’s so much to do.
Accompany the cows back home
In Switzerland, we know the clock will soon strike autumn when processions of cows crowned with flowers and hung with huge clanging bells descend from summer alpine pastures to their winter barns before the snows come. Led by cowherds and children dressed in embroidered traditional jackets and dresses, the colourfully bedecked dairy cows come by mountain trails to village streets, where people greet the colourful parades. This Saturday, 24 September, there are the « désalpes » in St-Cergue and Charmey, for example. Cows seem to be early risers, so you might want to get up early yourself to be there by around 9 o’clock.
Make a Game with Pumpkins
Visit a pumpkin patch, and, in addition to your pumpkin for carving, pick out a variety of mini pumpkins and gourds with your child. Once you get home, create a sorting game and have your child sort by colour, shape, and size. You can also introduce the concept of comparison here by having your child arrange the pumpkins and gourds from smallest to largest – and vice versa.
Go on a Scavenger Hunt
What better time to go for a nature walk or hike than now? The leaves are changing colour, and the air is crisp, making it the perfect time to get out there and explore. Set up a scavenger hunt and challenge your child to find and collect natural items as you walk, such as leaves, acorns, and pine cones, or things of a certain colour.
Make a Nature Art Project
The same items you picked up on the scavenger hunt can be used as art supplies. Put them out, along with paper, paint, and glue, and see what your child creates! Leaves are especially versatile – show your child the different things you can do with them, like using crayons to create leaf rubbings, tracing them onto paper, or creating a nature collage.
Challenge the Senses
Help your child explore different textures and develop her fine motor skills and vocabulary by putting a collection of objects together in a bin or box for her to touch and look at. These objects can include dried ears of corn and/or kernels, dried beans, leaves, acorns, rocks, gourds, or mini pumpkins. Then, add tools like tongs or scoops she can use to move the objects around. Provide additional containers so she can move objects from one to another. This is especially fun for babies!
Cook with Fall Flavours
Go on an apple picking adventure and bring some home to bake an apple pie. Lay out the appropriate measuring tools and help your child read the amount of each ingredient you’ll need. Then, have him scoop the ingredients into a bowl and mix it all together.