20 of the Best Gifts for Your Nature-Loving Child

In honor of Earth Day soon approaching us, I thought it would be fun to write an article listing some of the best gifts to give to your nature-loving child.  This list is suitable for most kids ages 4-10 with some of the gifts requiring a bit more supervision for the younger kiddos.  I hope you find some (or all) of these to be worthwhile introducing to your own kiddos! 

DIY birdhouse

I bought this particular birdhouse for my own son and it was a fun little project to build with him.  I will say, this will definitely need adult supervision for the younger kiddos, but the older ones should do okay on their own.  There will be a bit of frustration if your younger child insists on building this solo, but they shouldn’t shed too many tears either way.  Overall, a fun project to build and it looks super cute as a finished product too.  

Bat House

This isn’t a DIY bat house, but still a fun idea to find a spot to hang this with your kiddos.  Most kids find bats to be pretty fascinating and this will pique their nightly interest in the outdoors.  My son enjoys looking to see if any bats have inhabited ours yet, no such luck, but still fun to look at.  

Bats eat so many insects per night that it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to encourage some bats to move on in!

Butterfly Growing Kit

This is such a cool little growing kit for kids (and adults too)! If you do decide to purchase this kit, just be mindful of the temperatures when you are having it delivered.  Too cold temperatures and you risk losing the caterpillars in the mail.  

This kit has really good reviews compared to some of the other similar kits for sale.  It gives you everything you need to grow your very own butterfly garden.  This is a really fun experiment to do if you are a teacher in the elementary grades or a parent of same-age kiddos.  

Praying Mantis Hatching Kit

I have bought these in the past and they are just the coolest.  I had really good luck with hatching my praying mantis, but I did keep them in the house until they hatched since it was very early spring.  

If you do decide to force hatch them in the house, I HIGHLY recommend waiting to put them outdoors until there is ZERO threat of a frost in your area.  I hatched so many babies, but sadly I feel that I prematurely let them free too soon and I lost most of them.  

If I would not have done that, I do believe I would have had the praying mantis survive all summer long. 🙁

Lady Bug Larvae Growing Kit

This is similar to the above and honestly, it is just as enjoyable for me as it is for my son, maybe even more so.  If you have any type of garden in your yard, this is also a super beneficial gift to your garden too.  These babies will feast on all of your pest insects that are harmful to your beloved plants.  

I have never attempted to hatch my own ladybugs though, I have always purchased live, which is still fun for your little ones to distribute in your yard or garden.  The same disclaimer as above though, be careful of the temperatures when you release as they will not survive a hard frost.  

Worm Farm

This is a fun and educational nature gift for your little ones.  Worms are so beneficial to our earth and what better way to learn about them than by watching them wiggle around in their very own worm farm?  

Another fun activity is to go worm hunting in your own yard or you can even create your very own worm farm from your very own yard too! 

Ant Farm

Personally, in the spring and sometimes in the winter months, I feel as though I live in an ant farm, but for those of you who don’t tend to get any seasonal visits from our little ant friends, this is a cute gift for kiddos.  

Ants actually are pretty fascinating insects and they can be quite enjoyable to watch (in their own enclosed area or outdoors of course).  Seriously though, they are pretty amazing.

This comes with a voucher to order ants, so it does not actually come with any live ants.  You will either have to add your own or purchase with the voucher.  

Terrarium Growing Kit

I have bought these kits in the past and they are all very similar.  They sprout super fast and they are fun for kids to assemble.  Once the seeds begin to sprout and grow to full size, you may want to leave the lid off for a bit of time during the day otherwise it tends to grow quite a bit of mold too.

Overall, this is a fun little gift to give your nature-loving child or relative and begin sprouting their interest in plants and nature.  

Mini Greenhouse

These mini greenhouses are really enjoyable for the kiddos that enjoy plants and starting plants from seeds.  This can be used year after year, so this makes a nice gift for your nature-loving kiddos or adults!  

Choose some easy-to-grow plants (most vegetables and herbs) and entice your kids to eat their own homegrown veggies!  

An easy solution instead of purchasing fancy seed trays is to just use your old egg cartons, both cardboard or plastic work wonderfully.  The cardboard cartons can just be planted right in the soil once your seedlings are big enough if you would like.  Zero waste with that method and the plastic ones act as miniature greenhouses that can be used multiple times.

Seed Starter Kits

There are quite a few different seed starting kits for kids on Amazon, each one with its own variation.  I have purchased this one in the past and I have had good luck with germination.

Growing anything can be really exciting and gratifying for children, especially when the seeds are quick to germinate.  They can feel quite a sense of accomplishment to see their efforts grow into actual living things.  

Pollinator seed blends are particularly enjoyable to grow because once those seeds sprout into plants, soon after your yard will be a haven for the bees and the butterflies!

Mini Compost Kit 

Composting is such a fun activity for kids who like to play in the dirt.  This would go perfectly with your worm farm too!  

There are a couple of different kits to choose from, but this one is nice because it allows you to see the composting in action.  No matter how old I get, I still get fascinated with the composting process.  

Once your compost is complete, have your child add that black gold to your garden or to their own seedlings that they have sprouted!

There are also plenty of DIY composting kits that you can build with materials that you already have. No matter how you choose to build it, composting can be a lot of fun for little ones. It also encourages them to eat their fruits & veggies just so they can toss the rest into the compost and watch it do its magic!

Fairy Garden Kit

There are some pretty extravagant fairy garden kits available, but this one allows you to grow your own garden too, which adds a bit more to the kit.  Many of the other kits are simply accessories, some exceptionally cute accessories, but just accessories nonetheless.  

This is a cute set for younger children because it is made of plastic and you don’t need to worry as much about broken pieces. 

Outdoor Scavenger Hunt Kit

This gift is a perfect activity to do with your younger kiddos when you are trying to entice them to become more active in the outdoors.  The cards are designed for pre-readers since they use pictures along with the words to allow for more independence when playing. 

This can be used in almost any outdoor space such as yards, parks or even the beach.  

Outdoor Adventure Kit

This kit is perfect for spring or summer birthdays and will get your little explorer outdoors and ready to investigate all that nature has to offer.  This kit offers quite a bit for the price and you should be able to get quite a bit of use out of it.  

Whether you’re on a bug hunt or just trying to become a naturalist and explore the great outdoors, this is definitely a crowd-pleaser.  

Pressed Flower Art Kit

When I was young, I used to love preserving flowers.  Back then we just used some wax paper and a heavy book which really did work well.  However, this kit offers much more aesthetic value than some wax paper and an old heavy book.  

I do not have experience with this kit, however, the reviews on Amazon were pretty good.  If you have some kiddos that love to express their creativity then this may be a fun kit for them.  

DIY Wind Chime Kit

I just love DIY craft kits for kids.  They really are such amazing keepsakes as they get older, sob 🙁

This is a fun one but the assembly does require adults to help.  This is a cute little kit for your little ones to show off their artistic skills and display it near any window to dance and sing with every passing breeze.  

Just a note of caution though, these would not survive long outdoors so they would be best placed indoors to avoid the elements.  

Garden Stone Painting Kit

There are a number of different garden stone kits to choose from, but whichever one you choose, they are a really fun project for your young nature lovers.  

Some are heavier duty than others and some offer more stones and more accessories so if you are having a difficult time deciding, the one listed above was a good pick or you could always skim the reviews on Amazon.  Those can be a pretty helpful deciding factor. 

Whichever you decide on, they are fun to create and even more fun to show off their artistic abilities and they will look lovely wherever you decide to place them!

DIY Sun Catcher Kit

This is a really nice kit for the price.  You get 20 different sun catcher templates with enough paint for each one.  This kit comes with puffy paint and regular paint, both in tubes to lessen messes.  I will note that the colors tend to overlap if you use a bit too much, but the end result almost always turns out better than expected. 

Each comes with a suction cup and hook to display in all of your home’s windows. 

Exploring Nature Activity Book

This is a great resource for you and your child to help spark some ideas on how to spend some quality time outdoors.  It is often difficult to keep your kiddos entertained with new ideas from day to day so this is a good little book to have on hand.  

There are plenty of activities (50 to be exact) perfect for all 4 seasons too.  It is a nice mix of art, science, hands-on activities and getting your kids exploring nature.  

Plant a Tree

There is no better way to celebrate Earth Day than to plant a tree!  If you are tight on space, consider planting a tree in a pot!  Believe it or not, many will grow just fine given the right conditions.  I have a previous post that shows you some of the best to grow in containers if you are interested.  

There are also many different resources available where you can donate as little as one dollar and a company will plant a tree in your name.  Arbor Day Foundation is a good company to look into if you are looking to make a difference in the name of plants and trees!

Well, that pretty much sums up my list of the best gifts for your nature-loving child.  I hope you enjoyed it.  Although the majority of these gifts are relatively inexpensive, you really don’t need to spend a penny to instill a love of nature in your kiddos.  

You don’t need to have massive creativity or unlimited funds, you really just need to take a step outside to benefit from the incredibly amazing planet we call Earth!  Happy Earth Day and thanks for reading!