30 Days Wild & The Big Wild Weekend | EYFS & KS1 Activity Ideas

**Note: This page is for educational inspiration and is not officially affiliated with '30 Days Wild’. '30 Days Wild’ is an annual nature challenge organised by The Wildlife Trusts across the UK. For official information, daily challenges, and how to get involved, please visit The Wildlife Trusts website: www.wildlifetrusts.org/30DaysWild.

30 Days Wild: Monday 1st - Tuesday 30th June 2026

The Big Wild Weekend: TBA

Understanding '30 Days Wild’ & ‘The Big Wild Weekend’ in EYFS & KS1

Let's step outside and get wild with nature! 🌳🦋🐞 '30 Days Wild’ is a fantastic nature challenge that happens every June, organised by The Wildlife Trusts across the UK. It's all about doing one 'wild thing' every day for a whole month! This doesn't mean doing something huge, but simply taking a moment to connect with the nature around us – like listening to birds sing, watching a bee buzz by, feeling the wind on our faces, or planting a tiny seed. It encourages us to notice the small wonders of the natural world and helps us feel happier and more connected to our amazing planet. It's a brilliant way to explore, learn, and appreciate the wild places, big or small, right on our doorstep! Towards the end of June, 30 Days Wild culminates in The Big Wild Weekend, typically held over the last weekend of June. This special weekend is a peak celebration, inspiring people to spend even more time immersed in nature, often through local events organised by Wildlife Trusts, or by creating their own wild adventures. It's a chance to consolidate the month's nature connection and truly embrace the wild.

For early years settings, nurseries, preschools, childminders, and Year 1 and Year 2 classrooms, this initiative provides a wonderful and highly engaging framework for daily outdoor learning, exploring wildlife, plants, habitats, seasons, the environment, science (observation and discovery), and understanding the world (the natural world). It's about fostering curiosity, encouraging mindful observation, and nurturing a lifelong love and respect for nature. '30 Days Wild’ offers fantastic planning ideas and inspiration for integrating short, impactful activities & invitations that truly resonate with young minds, making learning about nature and conservation wonderfully hands-on!

Why Is Connecting with Nature Through '30 Days Wild’ Valuable for Young Children?

Integrating '30 Days Wild’ and daily nature connections into your practice with young children (aged 0-7) is great for holistic development, fostering well-being, and laying the groundwork for future environmental stewardship.

• Boosts well-being: Spending time in nature reduces stress, improves mood, and enhances physical activity.

• Encourages Curiosity & Exploration: Sparks questions, promotes hands-on discovery, and develops observational skills.

• Develops Sensory Awareness: Engages all senses – seeing, hearing, touching, smelling – to experience the natural world.

• Fosters Empathy & Respect for Wildlife: Builds an appreciation for living creatures and their habitats, encouraging care and protection.

• Supports Cognitive Development: Introduces concepts of patterns, cycles, and relationships within ecosystems.

• Enhances Creativity & Imagination: Provides open-ended opportunities for imaginative play and artistic expression inspired by nature.

• Promotes Environmental Responsibility: Cultivates a personal connection to nature, inspiring a desire to protect it.

Engaging 'Wild' Activities for '30 Days Wild’ (EYFS & KS1)

Let's embrace the outdoors and celebrate 30 Days Wild with these playful ideas, provision enhancements and learning opportunities inspired by children's natural curiosity about the world around them. The focus is on noticing, exploring and connecting with nature through simple, meaningful experiences that can be enjoyed every day.

Many of these early years and year 1 activities can be supported by our dedicated ‘Wildlife’, ‘Animals’, ‘Plants’, ‘Minibeasts’, ‘Habitats’, and ‘The Environment’ resources.

Here's some inspiration for celebrating '30 Days Wild’ in your setting. The following ideas may be adapted for various EYFS and KS1 settings. In EYFS, these ideas are best viewed as invitations to explore and enhancements to provision rather than activities every child is expected to complete. Practitioners may choose to follow children's interests, questions and play patterns, using these resources flexibly. In KS1, some ideas may also be used within more structured teaching sequences where appropriate. Printable resources to support the following ideas may be found further down this page.

(Please use your own discretion and knowledge of your children to ensure appropriateness of each activity or enhancement and safety concerning any materials given and activity undertaken. Encourage gentle interaction and respect for all living things.)

🌿 Nature Observation & Wildlife Discovery

30 Days Wild encourages children to slow down, notice details and become curious about the living things sharing their environment.

Children might:

• Search for minibeasts in different habitats.

• Observe birds visiting the outdoor area.

• Compare leaves, flowers, seeds and natural materials.

• Look for signs of seasonal change.

• Notice animal tracks, nests or feeding areas.

• Record discoveries through drawing, photography or mark making.

Our minibeast resources, birdwatching materials, plant resources and wildlife fact cards can help support these investigations.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Create a nature investigation station with magnifiers and clipboards.

• Set up a bug hotel observation area.

• Add identification guides to outdoor provision.

• Create a birdwatching window or outdoor observation point.

• Provide collecting trays for natural treasures.

• Encourage children to photograph interesting discoveries.

🐞 Habitats, Animals & Caring for Wildlife

Exploring habitats helps children understand how living things depend on one another and on their environment.

Children might:

• Learn about local wildlife and where animals live.

• Explore food chains and animal needs.

• Compare different habitats.

• Discover how people can help wildlife.

• Talk about endangered species and conservation.

• Investigate how animals are adapted to their environments.

Our animal, habitat, bird and wildlife resources can help enrich these discussions and explorations.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Build simple bug hotels using natural materials.

• Create bird feeders for outdoor spaces.

• Develop a small wildlife-friendly planting area.

• Add animal figures and habitat resources to small world provision.

• Create shelter-building challenges outdoors.

• Provide loose parts for children to design habitats.

🌱 Growing, Gardening & Environmental Stewardship

Gardening offers children opportunities to care for living things and observe change over time.

Children might:

• Plant seeds and monitor their growth.

• Water and care for plants.

• Explore plant life cycles.

• Compare different types of seeds.

• Learn about pollinators and their importance.

• Investigate what plants need to grow.

Our gardening resources, life cycle materials and STEM challenges can support these experiences.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Create a planting station indoors or outdoors.

• Grow herbs, vegetables or wildflowers.

• Encourage children to keep simple growth diaries.

• Explore composting and recycling.

• Collect seeds from plants and flowers.

• Create a sensory garden area.

🍃 Mindfulness, Senses & Nature Connection

Spending time outdoors provides rich opportunities for sensory exploration, calm reflection and wellbeing.

Children might:

• Listen to birdsong and natural sounds.

• Feel different textures in nature.

• Notice colours, patterns and shapes outdoors.

• Explore natural scents and seasonal changes.

• Talk about how outdoor spaces make them feel.

• Engage in mindful observation activities.

Our mindfulness scavenger hunts, sensory prompts and outdoor learning resources can help support these experiences.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Create a nature listening spot.

• Introduce sensory scavenger hunts.

• Make transient art using natural materials.

• Encourage cloud watching and sky observation.

• Provide nature journals for sketching and reflection.

• Create a quiet outdoor wellbeing area.

🎨 Creative Exploration Inspired by Nature

Nature provides endless inspiration for creativity, storytelling and imaginative play.

Children might:

• Create artwork using natural materials.

• Make transient art patterns.

• Build dens and imaginative outdoor worlds.

• Tell stories inspired by wildlife.

• Create maps of outdoor spaces.

• Use natural materials in construction and small world play.

Our outdoor learning, wildlife and creative resources can help extend these opportunities.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Create nature weaving frames.

• Offer clay alongside natural materials.

• Make leaf rubbings and bark prints.

• Build fairy gardens or wildlife worlds.

• Create natural loose-parts construction areas.

• Use sticks, stones and leaves for collaborative art.

🌎 Caring for Our Environment

30 Days Wild also provides opportunities to help children develop an appreciation for caring for the natural world.

Children might:

• Discuss how to look after plants and animals.

• Explore recycling and reusing materials.

• Help keep outdoor spaces tidy.

• Learn about reducing waste.

• Notice the impact people can have on nature.

Our environment, recycling and conservation & endangered animal resources can support these conversations.

Additional Provision Enhancements

• Organise a simple litter pick.

• Create sorting stations for recycling.

• Reuse materials in creative projects.

• Plant pollinator-friendly flowers.

• Discuss ways to help local wildlife.

• Create posters encouraging care for nature.

🔍 Explore More

To support your 30 Days Wild adventures and encourage deeper exploration of wildlife and nature, please visit our extensive collection of educational materials on pages such as:

Animals • Autumn • Beach School’ • Birds • Endangered Animals • Fish • Forest School • Gardening • Habitats’ • Invertebrates • Life Cycles • Mammals • Minibeast • Ocean • Out and About • Plants • Polar • Recycling • Reptiles • Spring • The Environment • Under the Sea • Wetlands • Wildlife’ • Winter • Woodland (Temperate)

These ideas and provision enhancements offer meaningful ways to celebrate 30 Days Wild in EYFS and KS1 settings. By encouraging observation, exploration and connection with the natural world, practitioners can help children develop curiosity, environmental awareness, respect for living things and a lifelong appreciation of nature.

To explore ideas surrounding additional early years events, please visit our 'Special Dates Calendar' page.

Printable resources to support teaching & learning surrounding: ‘30 Days Wild’ & ‘The Big Wild Weekend’

Free Wildlife activities for EYFS & KS1:

Wildlife activities & ideas for EYFS & KS1:

Please visit the following pages to browse our entire collection of ‘Wildlife’ educational materials:

More Early Years Event Pages for June

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Browse our ‘Special Dates Calendar’ page using the link below. You’ll find calendars for every month of the year to aid your planning!

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Disclaimer:
This page is for educational purposes only and is intended to support early years and primary practitioners with ideas and resources related to '30 Days Wild’. We are not officially affiliated with or endorsed by The Wildlife Trusts, who organise this annual initiative. We do not claim any rights to specific trademarks or official materials associated with this event. For official information, daily challenges, and how to get involved, please visit The Wildlife Trusts website: www.wildlifetrusts.org/30DaysWild.