Autumn is a great time of year for exploring the area you live in and educating yourselves and your children with regards to wildlife and their local environment. We have a few ideas to amuse your family during this beautiful season:
Rock-pooling.
Apparently Autumn is the best time of year to go rock pooling and being so close to the sea we have the perfect opportunity to put on our wellies and explore. Saltdean is a short drive away with ample parking near Saltdean Lido – a short walk through the tunnel under the main road and you are on the seafront with an undercliff walk from there to Brighton Marina. Check when the tide is out and enjoy the many rockpools before walking to Rottingdean for refreshments at Molly’s At The Beach Café.
Forest Walks
Kicking leaves and teaching your children about woodland is a great way to spend an afternoon on a dry sunny day. Perhaps give them a list of trees to find and identify and see if you can find bat boxes etc. Stanmer Park Woods near Ditchling Beacon are nice for a walk or perhaps go to Wilderness Wood in Henfield. They also offer workshops – go to their website for further details – http://wildernesswood.org/whatson. For the more adventurous there are opportunities there to sleep overnight in the woods!
Build a Bird Feeder
This is the time of year that birds need a little more help – encourage your children to build a bird feeder and watch to see what happens. An easy bird feeder to make is from half an orange with a bit of string attached – fill with seed and try to identify the birds that visit.
Make Christmas Decorations
Why not be ahead of the game and make your own rustic Christmas decorations from pine cones – spray them with silver and gold paint and let your creative side show! Thin sticks can be sprayed and incorporated in with other flowers to make a nice display and cheer you up on a wintry evening. Much cheaper than buying them ready made as well. A visit to Hobbycraft may inspire you to be artistic and perhaps enjoy some time with your children making presents and decorations for the festive period.
