16 Fun and Simple Fall Activities for Toddlers
If you are looking for easy fall activities for young toddlers you are in the right place. My favorite season is fall, with all the different colors of the leaves, the cozy smells, and the yummy tastes of autumn. Fall is the perfect time to offer sensory-rich experiences to a toddler in a fun way. From fall crafts to seasonal practical life activities your toddler will love. Try these 16 Montessori-inspired fun fall activities for your toddler that will promote fine motor skills along the way.
Acorns, Pine Cones or Mini Pumpkins in an Egg Carton
Toddlers from 1 to 3 will have a sensitive period for small objects. Once they are out of the mouthing stage, we can offer small objects like acorns, pine cones, or these small cloth pumpkins I picked up from the dollar store! Create a cheap and simple fine motor activity with an egg carton or ice cube tray and some pine cones or acorns. Those little hands will love to hold and collect acorns making this a fun activity. You can offer tongs to transfer the objects from a bowl into the carton for an additional challenge and fine motor opportunity.
Toddler-Led Nature Walk and Scavenger Hunt
The autumn season is beautiful with the colors of the changing leaves. Curious toddlers love to explore and hunt for things. Take them out into the great outdoors on a fall scavenger hunt. We can allow this time in nature to be child-led. Allow them to explore the green blades of grass or the red leaves that have fallen on the ground. This will probably be one of the easiest and most enjoyable activities for your toddler to explore the world around them. As you go on your nature walk, you could bring a basket to collect all sorts of objects along the way. Then, when you return home, you can help your child sort these objects into categories: rocks, leaves, sticks, etc.
Apple, Corn, or Potato Stamping
There are so many fall craft ideas but this one has a special twist. Use apples, potatoes, or corn on the cob to create a beautiful stamped design. Cut apples and potatoes in half. Use a paintbrush to spread paint onto the surface of the apple or potato or dip it into the paint on a paper plate. Show your toddler how to stamp it on the paper. This makes a great autumn craft. Additionally, you could use a big roll of craft paper and roll it out on the floor. Add stamps onto that and create a beautiful table runner for an autumn meal.
Pumpkin Scrubbing
Toddlers love purposeful work. Scrubbing is a great activity for younger toddlers and older toddlers. Fill a bucket, kitchen sink, or even the bathtub with water. Then add a few small pumpkins to the water. Use miniature pumpkins or smaller pumpkin pie pumpkins. If space allows, you could use a larger pumpkin as well. Add soap and a scrub brush and let your child bathe those pumpkins! This can make a great outdoor activity as well on a nice autumn day!
Making Pumpkin Bars
The fall season has so many amazing flavors and smells that we can share with our toddlers. My twins love their toddler learning tower. It allows them to get actively involved in the work in the kitchen. This fall I anticipate lots of pumpkin bars and pumpkin bread with fresh pumpkin puree from our garden! It is special to set aside time to work with your toddler in the kitchen and take things slow. This is a wonderful way to spend quality time with them and have a yummy fall treat to enjoy.
Bobbing for Apples
Bobbing for apples is a fall toddler activity you could try this season! This may be easier for older toddlers. Just fill a bowl or a small bucket with water and add a few real apples. Model to your child what it means to bob for apples. To make this easier, use smaller apples and a shallow bowl or bucket with less water. Allow the apples to float, but have only enough water where the apple could touch the bottom if pushed down. You still should have some of the apples visible above the surface of the water.
Dipping Caramel Apples
This fall activity brings you back into the kitchen for dipping caramel apples. You can make homemade caramel and have your toddler dip the apple into the caramel. They could sprinkle toppings like chopped nuts or sprinkles on for an extra crunch. Alternatively, you could make a yummy apple dip for them to dip their apples into.
Leaf Tearing or Cutting
Fall leaves are beautiful colors and are abundant this time of year. A great way to extend leaf work is by creating a leaf tearing or cutting activity. These mini loop squeeze scissors are great for toddlers learning to cut. The fall is the best time of year for an activity like this when the leaves are falling off the trees. Gather a collection of colorful leaves on a tray and show your toddler how to either tear or cut them. This is a perfect sensory play idea for toddlers of any age.
Puddle Play
If you have a rainy fall season, that doesn’t need to put an end to completing your fall bucket list. Instead, take those rainy days and let your toddler explore. They will have so much fun splashing in the puddles and maybe even playing with some mud. Sensory activities can often feel overwhelming and like they require a lot of preparation, but not this one! This is an easy way to get your toddler engaged and having fun. Have a towel and some dry clean clothes ready for when they are done.
Visit a Pumpkin Patch
The autumn is a great time of year to take a family outing to a pumpkin patch. Local pumpkin patches often have other activities like a corn maze and mini pumpkin painting. After your trip to the pumpkin patch, you can carve your pumpkin and roast the pumpkin seeds.
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Pick Apples at an Apple Orchard
One of our favorite fall activities is visiting an apple orchard. I think it is fun when we can pick our own apples and then bring them home to make apple pie that same day.
Clean Out a Pumpkin
Before carving your Jack-O-Lantern pumpkin, with your toddler, remove the pumpkin guts onto some laid-out brown paper bags. Go further and try to pull out the pumpkin seeds, rinse them, and bake them for a delicious fall snack.
Rake Leaves
Outdoor activities are never-ending in the autumn. Throughout the season, go outside and rake leaves. Get your toddler involved by offering a child-sized rake. Make a big pile of leaves and allow them to jump into the leaf piles.
Leaf stringing
On your toddler-led nature walk, gather a collection of beautiful fall leaves. A great idea then is to string leaves together. Use a hole punch to make a hole in the fall leaf and then either using string or a pipe cleaner, show your toddler how to thread the leaves onto the string. You could hang up this leaf garland and create a beautiful autumn-themed craft.
Fall Sensory Smelling Bottles
There are so many smells that make us think of autumn. Cinnamon, pumpkin pie, apples, maple syrup and so many more! Use old spice jars, or even just disposable coffee cups with a lid to create your own set of fall smelling bottles. Add liquid scents to a cotton ball and wrap spices in cheesecloth. This will make it easy to get in and out of the container and create less of a mess. You could add cinnamon sticks to a jar directly. If you have essential oils, additional fall scents are bergamot, cardamom, cedarwood, cinnamon bark, cypress, eucalyptus globulus, and juniper. For older toddlers, you can make this a matching game which will help develop problem-solving skills. To do this, create 2 jars for each scent. Then model and show your child how to smell the different bottles and when they find two that are the same, they can pair them together. You could use sticker dots on the bottom of the jars as a control of error.
Leaf matching
When you are out on your nature hunt or at another time, you can collect 2 matching leaf shapes. Your child can do a leaf-matching activity by pairing together the matching leaves. Find a variety of leaf shapes when you are collecting, as it will make matching pairs easier.
I hope these 16 autumn activities allow you to enter into the fall season with your toddler! They love to explore the world around them and through these child-friendly toddler activities, we are giving them that opportunity for discovery and exploration.
If you are looking for more fall activities to do with your toddler, check out some of these posts!
Fall Toddler Practical Life Activities in a Montessori Home
Simple Homemade Fall-Scented Playdough Recipes
40 Fun Family Fall Activities When You Have Kids
15 Easy Thanksgiving Crafts and DIY Projects for Toddlers
