Get Your Kids Playing Outside More in 2019

Playing outside and being active is very important for kids. Not only does the fresh air do them a lot of good, but being active will give them the exercise they need for things like coordination and muscle development, and they’ll also be more likely to develop a lifelong love of the outdoors.

If getting your child to go outside and play more this year is a priority for you, you’ll be happy to hear that Best Buy has a great selection of toys and other products that are specifically designed to encourage Outdoor Play. Let’s check out a few different items that will appeal to kids of various ages.

Playgrounds & Playhouses

Among the coolest play items for kids of all ages are Playgrounds & Playhouses. I remember spending untold hours at my local community playground when I was a kid, but now you can have high quality playground equipment right in your own back yard.

One such example that’s great for the really little kids is the Climber, Slide, and Toddler Swing Set. This set features a slide (with gentle slope), a swing (that secures riders firmly in place), and even some kid-friendly sporting equipment (an adjustable basketball hoop and a small soccer net).

Sturdy and easy to assemble, this set uses non-toxic plastic and is built for durability and child safety. Moreover, it’s even small enough to set up inside your home for seasonal indoor use—place it in the backyard when the summer sun is out, and bring it back inside during the wet and winter seasons.

Power Wheels & Powered Ride-On Toys

Also great for smaller kids and those on up to to about ages 7-8 (depending on the model chosen) is the very fun category of Power Wheels & Powered Ride-On Toys.

Featured here is the Kool Karz Electric Ride-On Car—a pink 1-seater that gives kids the wonderfully grownup feeling of driving their very own car. Designed for kids ages 3-8, this car is comfortable, powerful, and perfectly safe to drive (in no small part due to the fact that it comes with a special remote control that allows parents to take over control if necessary). 

With forward, reverse, and driving speeds ranging from 3-8 Km/h, this battery powered (and fully rechargeable) vehicle is ready to give your kids a fun and authentic driving experience that they won’t soon forget—right down to its foot pedal accelerator and rear wheel drive. Build their confidence early and get them loving the great outdoors with a cool powered ride-on today!

Hoverboards, Skateboards, & Accessories

If your child is a bit older (at least 8 years old and over 45 pounds) with a need for constant movement, perhaps something from the world of Hoverboards, Skateboards, & Accessories will best fit the bill.

One excellent example of a hoverboard for kids is the XPRIT SBW666 6.5 INCH HOVERBOARD WITH BLUETOOTH SPEAKERS & LED LIGHTS.

With features such as Auto-Leveling (self-balancing), a built-in Bluetooth speaker (for listening to music while riding), and colourful LED lights, this board is fully equipped and ready to roll for users weighing between 45 and 165 pounds, making it ideal for kids and lighter users.

Perfect for use on smooth, flat surfaces (and making a bold statement with its bubblegum pink colour), this board really does rock (of course, several boards are available in different colour schemes and with different weight limits as well).

I actually tested this very board myself not so very long ago, and I found it to be a more than competent board—even for hauling around my 220 pound carcass. Click here to read that review and to see a video of me riding around on this thing.

Telescopes

For older kids and teens, one of my top suggestions comes from the product category of Telescopes, which will not only get them outside (potentially for hours on end), but are also highly educational.

For instance, something like the Celestron AstroMaster 130 EQ 130 x 650mm Newtonian Reflector Telescope might just be the perfect option for outdoor encouragement of any kid/teen with an interest in science and scientific exploration. This particular telescope, which uses a curved mirror to reflect and focus light (and to eliminate the chromatic aberrations of refracting telescopes), comes with an abundance of features that make it highly attractive to the budding Astronomy enthusiast. These include a German Equatorial Mount (with setting circles) and a Motor Drive (to automatically and accurately track interesting celestial objects), a 650mm focal length with 130mm aperture, and multiple eyepieces. Additional features include a preassembled TriPod (with 1.25 inch steel legs), a Red Dot Star Pointer Finder, and the SkyX First Light Edition Astronomy Software (with 10,000 object database). This telescope even allows you to attach certain models of camera to it for photographing whatever you’re viewing.

NERF & Battle Toys

Finally, something that’s great for kids of all ages (and by this I mostly mean myself) is the broad category of NERF & Battle Toys.

Something like the Nerf N-Strike Mega TwinShock Blaster, for example, not only gets kids out into the fresh air, but it also gets them running around and being super active as they have intense battles with Nerf darts flying in all directions. Of course, if you don’t approve of them shooting the Nerf darts at each other, they can always set up targets and practice their marksmanship, which is almost just as much fun.

This particular Nerf blaster is intended for those ages 8 and up, and it features a double-barrel design that can fire 2 darts at the same time, or, you can fire all 10 of its included Mega Whistler darts at once thanks to a feature called Slam-Fire Action. I really need one of these things for myself!

As you can see, there is no shortage of great toys, devices, and gadgets that are sure to get your kids outside and playing more in 2019. If fresh air and exercise seem like New Year’s Resolutions that you’d like to encourage in your child, you now know what to do. You might even want to get out there and play with them yourself!

Fulfill all your Toy based needs at Best Buy Canada today.