As the days grow shorter and the air turns crisp, autumn becomes the perfect time to get outside with your child for a special kind of adventure: an I-Spy walk. This is something my mom would do with me when I was young and it became a core memory. Create a magical autumn I-spy walk with your child (free scavenger hunt downloadable) to enjoy exploration, sensory learning, and give your child a chance to burn off extra energy before the evening winds down.
I recognize each child is unique, so sometimes giving a focus or plan can help. Which is why I’ve created an autumn i-spy ‘BINGO card’ which you can download or print from here. It feels a bit like a scavenger hunt and gives a sense of purpose and completion with tracked progress. You can generate several at once, each with a shuffled combination of the same items so you have a fresh card for each walk. Here’s how to turn a stroll in the fall landscape into an opportunity for both fun and self-regulation.
1. What to Look for on Your I-Spy Walk
An I-Spy walk can take place any time of year, but I remember it happening most in autumn with my mom. After all, autumn offers an abundance of sights (insects and leaf colors), sounds (crunching leaves under foot), and textures (bark and leaf veins). As you guide your child on a walk, challenge them to spot specific items in the natural world. Here’s a list of things to include or you can download my free autumn i-spy ‘BINGO card’:
- Colorful Leaves: Encourage your child to spot leaves in different colors—gold, orange, red, and brown. You can even turn it into a game: “I spy something orange!” and see how quickly they find the right leaf.
- Acorns and Pinecones: These autumn treasures are easy to find and can spark curiosity about trees, squirrels, and other woodland creatures.
- Birds and Wildlife: Challenge your child to spy birds flying south for the winter, squirrels gathering food, or even the occasional deer if you’re in a wooded area. Remind your child not to touch or chase them.
- Spiderwebs with Dew Drops: The cool autumn mornings often reveal intricate spider webs, especially when they’re highlighted by dew. Ask your child to look closely for the sparkling details.
2. Incorporating All the Senses
To fully engage your child, encourage them to use all their senses while on the walk. This deepens their connection with nature and helps them stay present in the moment. For each sense, I’ve included a article for you, the adult, to learn about the science related to something you may sense which may be a fun factoid or discussion point to share on your walk.
- Sight: While they’re searching for things on your I-Spy list, talk about the changing colors of the leaves, the sunlight filtering through the trees, or even shadows cast by the low autumn sun. Here is an article on autumn sky: Why the Sky Looks Bluer in Autumn
- Sound: Encourage your child to pause and listen to the sounds of nature. Can they hear the crunch of leaves underfoot, the rustling of wind through the branches, or the call of birds overhead? Point out how different things sound in autumn compared to summer. Wall Street Journal has an article on leaf crunching sounds: Why Fallen Leaves Rustle, Pop and Crunch
- Touch: Let them feel the textures of nature—smooth acorns, rough tree bark, and crisp fallen leaves. Ask them to notice how different materials feel and talk about it. How does a pinecone compare to a leaf? Twinkl has a lovely article: 7 Amazing Autumn Sensory Activities for Early Years
- Smell: Take a moment to breathe in the fresh autumn air. Can your child smell the earthy scent of fallen leaves or the crispness of the air after a rain? Autumn has its own set of smells that are a unique part of the sensory experience. Here are two interesting articles from PBS related to the scent of autumn and how it is rooted in the decay of leaves: The science behind the aroma of fall -and- Why do we love the way autumn smells? It’s not about pumpkin spice
- Taste: If it’s safe, you could incorporate a sensory snack into your walk, such as some hot cocoa, pumpkin spiced something, banana bread, apple cider, cinnamon zucchini bread, or pumpkin bread brought from home or bought at a cafe. This can be an exciting way to connect the sense of taste to the autumn season without disrupting or licking nature. Or you can wait and make baked apples when you get home while talking about your walk. Remember, the tastes we associate with autumn tend to be cinnamon, apples, nutmeg, pumpkin, ginger, cloves, and cardamom.
3. Burning Off Energy
After a day of school or indoor activities, kids often have extra energy in the evening, and a brisk walk can be a great way to help them release it. But beyond just walking, there are a few ways you can get your child moving while staying engaged in the I-Spy game.
- Leaf Piles: If you come across a pile of leaves, encourage your child to jump in! Not only is it fun, but it also gets them running, jumping, and using their whole body.
- Race to Spy: Turn it into a game by racing to find the next item on your list. For example, “Who can spot a yellow leaf first?” or “Can you run to that big oak tree and find something interesting?”. Which is why I’ve created a free autumn i-spy ‘BINGO card’ which you can download or print from here. I’m working on another version that has images instead of words whenever possible to help with toddlers.
- Balance Challenge: Walking along fallen logs or balancing on curbs can give kids a chance to work on their coordination and motor skills while burning off energy in a playful way.
4. Helping Kids Wind Down and Self-Regulate
After all the excitement of an I-Spy walk, it’s important to guide your child into a calm and reflective state before heading back home. One of the most valuable aspects of an I-Spy walk is the opportunity for children to practice self-regulation. By alternating between moments of high energy (racing, jumping, and active play) and moments of stillness (pausing to listen, observe, or breathe), children learn how to manage their energy levels and emotions. Over time, they can begin to recognize when they’re feeling overstimulated and learn strategies to calm themselves down.
Here’s how to incorporate a “cool down” phase:
- Mindful Breathing: As you near the end of your walk, encourage your child to take deep breaths and feel the cool air filling their lungs. You can even ask them to pretend they are blowing out candles or cooling down a cup of hot chocolate.
- Quiet Reflection: Find a spot to sit or stand quietly and look at the sky, the trees, or a nearby body of water. This moment of stillness can help your child transition from the high energy of the walk to a more relaxed state. Ask them gentle questions like, “What was your favorite thing you saw?” or “How does the air feel on your skin right now?”
- Gentle Stretches: Incorporate some simple stretches at the end of your walk. Reach for the sky like tall trees, fold forward like a falling leaf, or sway from side to side like branches in the wind. These stretches can help release any remaining tension and shift focus inward.
Through this balance of active exploration and mindful reflection, an I-Spy walk can teach your child the skill of “mental cooling down”—a key component of emotional self-regulation. After a fun, nature-filled outing, they’ll come home not only tired in body but refreshed in mind, ready for a calm evening or bedtime routine.
Create a magical autumn I-spy walk with your child (free scavenger hunt downloadable) which can be much more than just a stroll outdoors—it’s a sensory experience that helps your child connect with nature, burn off energy, and practice self-regulation. By incorporating a variety of sights, sounds, and textures, as well as alternating between moments of active play and quiet reflection, you can turn an ordinary walk into an enriching experience that sets the stage for calmer, more focused evenings. So grab a cozy scarf, head out into the autumn landscape, and let the adventure begin!