1. Pumpkin Guts

The inside of a pumpkin makes a great sensory activity. Grab an extra pumpkin from the farm or pick up a baking pumpkin from the grocery store.

After you get pumpkins home, cut open one of them. Let your child see what is inside.

If you scoop out the insides, place them in a zip top bag for a clean sensory play activity. You can also put the pumpkin guts into a dishpan or baking dish so your child can get their hands in them.

Toddlers especially love playing with ‘pumpkin guts’! Be careful with little ones who are still mouthing everything, but they can touch too. This is a sensory activity, a fine motor exercise (using those fingers to pull at the guts and seeds), and science exploration.

2. Seed Counting

Add on a seed activity to the exploration of the pumpkin guts. Have your child pull out as many seeds as they can.

You can use the seeds in place of stickers for the Sticker Counting activity listed on the Preschool Activities page. We did this for a homeschool preschool activity.

3. Paint-a-Pumpkin

If you are not carving the pumpkin that your child picked, or have an extra, let your child paint the outside of the pumpkin.

Tape newspaper to your table top, or cut open a paper bag from your local grocery store as your drop cloth. Secure the paper to your table with masking tape to keep the surface as clean as possible.

Then your child can use tempera paints and a brush to create their own design on the pumpkin. Younger kids have fun with this. It is a great playdate idea too.

4. Paint with Autumn Colors

Use Autumn colors to paint a picture. Red, brown, orange and yellow are great colors to make a Fall-colored piece of art.

Provide these colors, or any combination of the list to your child and let them paint Fall on their paper. Have them make extra paintings to send to grandparents or other family.

You could even frame one and hang it up with your Autumn decorations every year.

5. Feed the Birds

Place the remains of a cut pumpkin outside for the birds and squirrels. You could put the pieces out on a feeder platform if you have one.

Children love watching the habits and activities of animals. Grab the binoculars and watch!

6. Fall Produce Sensory Activity

Even the littlest ones can explore the fruits of Fall. Find some bumpy gourds, pieces of hay, Indian corn, or apples, and let the little ones feel the different textures.

My daughter was enthralled with a bumpy gourd we picked up at our favorite orchard/farm market. I let her sit in the grass and touch the gourd. It was a great sensory experience for her as an infant.

7. Fall Theme Pretend Play

At your local craft store you can find autumn-colored leaves on a stem, plastic pumpkins, etc. I have some of these items in a bin in our playroom.

It adds a new element that is seasonal. My son likes matching the leaves by colors-he piles them up based on which leaves are only red, which have red and orange, and which have red, orange and yellow.

Let your child use their imagination with some indoor-friendly objects of the Fall.

8. Nature Walk

Fall is a great time of year to walk around your neighborhood, state park, or local wooded area to look at all the colors! Pick up some leaves for a Fall sensory bin, talk about what colors you see, look for animals, acorns, trees that stay green, etc.

9. Library Time

If you don’t have an extensive children’s library in your home, or even if you do, head to your local library to grab a few seasonal reads. Libraries always arrange a table or area of interest for the current season or holiday.

You can find a few books on leaves, cute stories for Fall, or attend a library storytime! Definitely reinforce the Fall activities with reading.

10. Apple Tree Color Match

Using an empty cereal box, some Velcro strips and construction paper, this apple tree color match activity is simple to make. Check out how to make the apple tree matching game here. This is a great Fall activity for preschool kids or toddlers.

11. Learning Games with Homemade Apple Trees

A little more of a crafty project here, these fun toilet tube apple trees can be made into many learning games. We used them for math activities for all ages. Read what we did to make this apple tree activity.

12. Halloween Activities and Crafts for Toddlers and Up

One of my favorite collections of Fall activities that lasted years for us. We would store these Halloween and Fall activities in our decorations bin. Then each year while my kids were young, they would have Fall activities to play with during the season.

Even more Fall activities for Toddlers:

Fall printable activities for toddlers and preschool from TotSchool.

25 Fall activities for toddlers from Spit Up and Sit Ups.

Simple Fall activities for toddlers from Hands On As We Grow.