Summer and autumn are wonderful times for children to experience nature in its full glory. At such times, the natural world is brimming with colourful flora and fauna, and it’s a spectacular feast for their eyes and senses. Outdoors, little ones can learn an enormous amount about the natural world around them, enjoy some fresh air and freedom – under supervision, of course — and reap the many, profound benefits that nature will provide. With this in mind, today’s post focuses on the rich variety of leaves that children can be encouraged to look out for in a leaf nature hunt activity.
We’ve generated a free reference poster for the activity, which is available for download today. The poster features 16 leaf varieties that children can look out for as part of their leaf-spotting challenge. Those under five will enjoy the simple activity of discovering leaves of different colours, shapes, and sizes — many are beautiful and intricate if they take the opportunity to take a closer look. Older children can be challenged to take things further by learning how to recognise and name the different types. Our free reference poster will help. Take a look below and download a free leaf reference poster today. And be sure to visit this blog area again soon, as we’ll follow up with some creative leaf art activities in the near future. Happy foraging!
Grab Your Child’s Free Poster!
Click the preview image below to either download or view the leaf reference poster in high resolution. On most devices, a right-click is the correct approach if you’d like to save the poster file. (It’s an Acrobat PDF that’s less than 2MB in size, so it should not take long to download, even on a mobile device). We recommend printing it from the Acrobat file using your highest-quality settings and paper. It will print in high definition up to A3, but children may also find an A4 or A5 leaflet size print-out beneficial during their outdoor leaf hunt. Use the little tick boxes to mark each type of leaf as it’s successfully discovered.
Points for Children to Note
Encourage children to take a deep, close-up look at the leaves. Many are quite beautiful and incredibly intricate up close. For example:
Point out the huge variety of different shapes, sizes, and textures of leaves in the natural world.- Draw children’s attention to the stalk (a.k.a. ‘petiole’), central midrib, and veins that support the structure of each leaf.
- Suggest your child holds the different leaves up to the light, so they can see the fine filigree of miniature channels (called venules) that transport moisture and nutrients to all parts of a leaf.
- Children can note the different types of seeds that grow with the various leaves. From conkers, acorns, and hazelnuts to winged seeds like those on a sycamore or acer, nature really is miraculous when you think about it.
- A special mention goes to lime leaves. From mid-summer to autumn, they feature quite beautiful seed clusters that are both functional and highly decorative. See the example on the 3rd row, 2nd from the right, on the reference poster.
- Oak leaves feature their wonderful acorn sprigs in summer and early autumn. These are also rather gorgeous if you take time to admire them. However, always ensure babies, toddlers, and young children are kept safe from the potential choking hazard represented by the acorns themselves.
- Ivy leaves look quite unique once their distinctive flower clusters appear. These are much-loved by pollinators and will usually attract a wide variety that includes hoverflies, honeybees, butterflies, and many more.
- Ivy is also one of only four featured leaves that are evergreen. Others on the poster are holly, laurel, and rhododendron. These are a good opportunity to teach children the difference between evergreen and deciduous, particularly come autumn.
Point out the huge variety of different shapes, sizes, and textures of leaves in the natural world.In their own way, many leaves are every bit is stunning as flowers for those who take a moment to examine them closely. Encourage little ones to take the time to ponder the fabulous fine details!
Ash or Elder? Hazel or Lime?
There are a few leaves that may, at first, seem a little tricky to tell apart. Ash leaves, for example, are similar to elder. However, there are significantly more ash leaves on each stem than there are elder leaves. While elder typically has between 5 and 7 ‘compound’ leaves per stem, ash usually has up to 15. Ash leaves also have a subtle sheen, while elder leaves are more matte in comparison.
Another pair that can be easily mistaken for one another are hazel and lime, particularly before the seeds/flowers have appeared. Hazel, however, is very matte in finish, while lime is shinier.
More Free Stuff!
Today’s leaf reference poster is just one of a series of free activity posters available to children at this website. Why not check out — and download — some of the others for your child today? Others include a Spring Nature Hunt activity poster, an Autumn Nature Hunt poster, a British Land Mammals poster, a Minibeast spotting poster, a Bird-spotting poster, and a Butterfly spotting poster packed with beautiful butterflies. Visit the links and download for free.
Little Acorns: Your Padiham Nursery
A High-Quality Childcare Nursery in Padiham, Lancashire
We hope you and your little one(s) enjoy the leaf nature hunt and that the reference poster is useful. We like to encourage families to enjoy the natural world, as we know how hugely beneficial nature is to children. During their time at Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, children also get to enjoy nature in the nursery’s garden. It has its own nature zone where little ones can look for flora and fauna and enjoy outdoor play in a safe and secure environment.
Little Acorns Nursery supports free, funded childcare hours for eligible children aged from 9 months to 4 years. The setting is recognised by Ofsted as a good childcare provider. To explore the opportunity of sending your baby, toddler, or preschooler to Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham, get in touch today:
We are a nursery in Padiham (BB12) in Lancashire, providing high-quality weekday childcare to local families in Padiham as well as Hapton, Rose Grove, Burnley, Altham, Huncoat, Read, Simonstone, Sabden, Higham, and Wood End.
Safety Notes
Children, particularly the youngest, should, of course, be accompanied and supervised outdoors by a responsible adult. There are many hazards out there! Adults should therefore be vigilant at all times, do their own risk assessments, and educate children about safety outdoors. A few examples of possible dangers include berries, fungi, nettles, prickly thorns, etc., so teach children not to touch them. Encourage little ones not to collect anything that may be a choking hazard to babies and toddlers (acorns, for example) or that may be poisonous or toxic. Keep children away from physical hazards, including ponds, lakes, steep drops, traffic, roads, strangers, etc. With the right supervision, children will have fun, learn a lot, and stay safe.
Bluebells also come in pink or white. They’re referred to as pinkbells (also known as pink bluebells and Spanish bluebells) and whitebells (or white bluebells).
Does your child know about bee nectar baskets? Those are the little yellow leg pouches that can be seen on some bumblebees’ and honeybees’ legs. They are where the bees collect and store their nectar ready to transport back to the hive.
We’ve said before — and we’ll keep on saying — nature is incredibly good for children and adults alike. But what are some of the benefits, and why is nature so important to children? Well, we wrote an article about it and you can read our top 
One fantastic way to encourage children to connect with nature from an early age is by making homemade bird feeders. It’s a hugely popular activity amongst children of all ages, so today’s post is all about how to get started with your child. Although bird feeders can be made at any time of the year, the activity is perfectly suited to the winter and early spring. At this time, wild birds like robins, blackbirds, doves, and sparrows are really struggling to find food. And, with World Wildlife Day arriving in the first week of March, it’s very timely. Take a look!
A large, dry pine cone
Tie a piece of string securely around the top of the pine cone to create a hanger. Then, let your child spread peanut butter all over the pine cone using a spoon or butter knife. Next, roll the sticky pine cone in a tray of birdseed until it is fully coated. Once completely covered in birdseed, hang it outside on a tree branch or hook and watch as birds come to enjoy their treats!
Carefully thread the string through the outer shell of the monkey nuts, tying knots if needed to keep them spaced apart. Once you have a long garland, either tie the ends together to form a loop that can be suspended vertically or attach each end to stretch them horizontally between branches of twigs on a tree or bush. Once birds are used to the new addition to the garden, watch as blue tits, great tits and others enjoy cracking open the shells!
Cut out one or more large holes on the sides of the carton to create openings (adults should do this part for younger children). Thread can be attached at the top – try trapping it under the lid or get an adult to thread it through a hole. Let your child decorate the feeder with paint, stickers, or non-toxic markers. Fill the carton up to the opening(s) with birdseed and hang it up in your garden or balcony.
A clean, empty clear plastic water bottle
There are a few options for this type of bird feeder, as indicated in the photo examples. Either way, small feeding holes or ‘hatches’ will need to be cut (by a supervising adult) as openings. Optionally, cut small holes on opposite sides of the bottle and insert wooden spoons or sticks through them to create perches. Fill the bottle with birdseed and tie a string to hang it outside. Watch as birds land on the perches and enjoy their treats!
Expose some of an apple’s sides by removing some of the skin. Then, either attach string through (or around) the apple and hang it from a branch outside, or push a stick into it (carefully aimed away from you in case it goes right through) and push the other end into the ground. Watch as birds peck away at the tasty treat! Blackbirds, in particular, love apples!
Our personal favourite and key recommendation is sunflower hearts. These are the little kernels inside sunflower seeds and the good news is that by buying them as sunflower ‘hearts’, birds don’t need to remove the shells. Robins, blackbirds, doves, dunnocks, bluetits, great tits and pigeons love them! They’re generally inexpensive, in our experience, and are available widely, including in supermarkets.
Once your bird feeder is in place, keep an eye out for common garden birds. Typically, birds that are attracted to bird feeders in gardens include robins, bluetits, sparrows, and dunnocks although it does depend on what food you put out for them. Children are also likely to see larger birds like blackbirds, doves, pigeons, magpies and even crows, as they are likely to scavenge underneath for seeds that have dropped from the feeders. To help children identify which birds visit, ensure you have printed out our 
Calling all little citizen scientists — we need your help — and parents too! During part of July and early August the Big Butterfly Count takes place across the UK and the more children and families that take part, the better. All it needs to take is 15 minutes and taking part will help butterflies, daytime-flying moths and the conservation of nature and biodiversity in general. What’s more, it’s a free, enjoyable, educational, and hugely worthwhile activity for children and families to take part in. In today’s post, we’ll tell you everything you need to know in order to take part in 2024’s Big Butterfly Count. Little citizen scientists: get ready!
You’ll need a tiny bit of preparation, but it’s quick, free, and easy…
Once you’ve chosen a suitable location that has flowers blooming and is ideally sunny and sheltered, you are ready to count butterflies and submit them to the Big Butterfly Count survey.
In addition to taking part in the Big Butterfly Count, children and families can help butterflies in other simple ways too. What’s more, they’re also fun, educational, and make the world a better place. Additional ways to help butterflies – and other pollinators – include:
One of the many reasons we love nature and nature-based children’s activities here at Little Acorns Nursery is that nature is incredibly beneficial to children. What’s more, the benefits start right from their earliest years and are profoundly powerful to little ones. There have been many studies about this over the years and they all seem to conclude that nature is incredibly good for us all, especially so during the early years. Today’s post looks at 20 of the key benefits that spending time in and around nature holds for children and, with Spring now upon us, it’s the perfect time to begin getting little ones outside more, weather permitting.
Spending time in and around nature means children are more likely to be active, for example, walking, running, skipping, climbing, playing, making, or simply building a den. Such activities will not only help them hone fine and gross motor skills, but will also improve coordination, balance, and fitness. Those skills will help them day-to-day while expending energy in this way will help them maintain a healthy weight and body-mass index.
One of the more obvious benefits of nature is that it gives children a huge sense of freedom that they might not otherwise experience. Being in The Great Outdoors allows children, under appropriate supervision, to run, explore, and play in ways that are far more free than in any other situation. This will also give them a huge sense of natural joy.
The stimulation of the senses is never more important than during children’s early years and spending time in nature is the perfect vehicle through which to do so. With so many colours, sounds, smells, textures and even (under adult supervision) tastes available in the natural world, it is indeed a feast for children’s senses. Through the senses, children will learn more about the world and generate millions of new connections in their developing brains. It’s almost magical!
Being around nature regularly can also help children lean naturally towards environmental issues, learn about the problems and become part of the solution. An appreciation of nature is indeed the first step towards becoming environmentally conscious and proactive. That’s a great thing for the planet, particularly as today’s children will become tomorrow’s custodians of the Earth.
Children generally team up with friends when they’re playing and exploring outdoors. Spending time playing together in natural environments fosters many different kinds of interaction. This can boost confidence, language, communication and social skills. Stronger bonds and a deeper understanding of peers are likely to form from this.
Children, adults, and whole families are gearing up to take part in the world’s biggest garden wildlife survey in early 2025. Organised by the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds), the Big Garden Birdwatch requires just one hour of your time during late January 2025. It’s free, hugely worthwhile, and will benefit nature, conservation, and children themselves. So, why not set a date for your diary and take part? Today’s post explains how to enrol, what to do, and how it will benefit all parties involved.
The Big Garden Birdwatch is designed to keep tabs on wild bird populations in the UK. It’s a survey that’s been undertaken across the UK every year since 1979 and allows the RSPB and conservationists to monitor whether any bird species are under threat. Sadly, survey findings in recent years have found this to be the case, with overall bird populations having declined by a staggering 38 million in the last 60 years. Song thrushes alone, for example, have declined by 80% and even the UK’s most populous bird species, House Sparrows, have declined by 57% since the survey began.
The Big Garden Birdwatch is also a great way to get children outdoors, close to nature, and to introduce them to the concept of nature conservation. By taking part, children can contribute to bird conservation as well as directly benefit in a number of ways themselves. For example, they can 
Enrolling your child or family into 2025’s Big Garden Birdwatch is easy and free. Simply 
Decide on a natural spot where you’ll undertake your hour’s birdwatch. Your garden, local park or even a balcony will do fine.
Enjoying Birdwatching?
During the autumn half-term break, adults and children from Little Acorns Nursery in Padiham embarked on a sponsored walk around Gawthorpe Park. The walk took place during a cold and wet Tuesday, on 24th October, with children from our Little Seedlings, Little Acorns and Great Oaks rooms donning Wellington boots, anoraks and wet weather gear for the task. Once assembled, little ones and adults braved the inclement weather and went on to complete the walk admirably, even making the local Burnley Express paper
When the rain persisted, children were also encouraged to use magic wands to wish it away!
The sponsored walk was dedicated to a cause that’s extremely close to our hearts — the memory of Yusuf, the baby son of one of our families — as well as aiming to raise awareness of SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). £148 was raised through our sponsored walk and a further £52 through a cake sale by our 
As leaves start to blanket the ground and the earthy scents of autumn begin to infuse the air, it’s the perfect time to engage children in a captivating adventure that celebrates the season. In today’s post, we’ll introduce you to an Autumn Nature Hunt, an exciting outdoor activity for children that’s not only entertaining but also educational.
