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family Events & resources we love

Upcoming Ski Swaps, Family Days & Community Events

Gear up at a ski swap, try something new at a community event, and get outside with your family at an upcoming WinterKids Family Day!

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Make Maine’s Outdoors Your Family’s Playground

Subscribe to the Maine Explorer Monthly for inspiration that helps your family move, learn, and explore together in every season. Each issue is packed with:

  • Fun, family-friendly outdoor activity ideas across Maine
  • Tips to make winter sports and outdoor play more accessible and affordable
  • Stories and resources to help your kids grow strong, curious, and connected to Maine’s great outdoors

Whether you’re curious about winter sports or a seasoned enthusiast, you’ll find fresh ways to make memories outside together.

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Catch Up on Past Adventures

Find Trails Near You with Maine Trail Finder:

Maine Trail Finder is a free, interactive site that makes it easy for families to discover trails for every season of play, from hiking and biking to snowshoeing, skiing, and paddling. You can filter trails by difficulty and accessibility, explore detailed descriptions, and even log your adventures to track favorites or earn fun digital badges. Plus, check their statewide events calendar for outdoor activities that welcome all ages. Visit their website at https://www.mainetrailfinder.com/

WinterKids Programs & Resources to Help Your Family Get Outside With Ease:

Our Favorite Resources to Help Your Family Enjoy Time Outside Together:

  • Outdoor Movement Project – offers family-friendly trails across Southern Maine, handpicked by a local mom who turned pandemic hikes with her kids into a joyful mission to explore and share nature. These trails offer year-round adventure, creativity, and connection, perfect for families of all ages and abilities.
  • Maine Outsider – The Maine Outsider is a free newsletter curating outdoor events across the state.
  • The Wandering Chickadee – is a Maine-based Momma blogging about her family’s adventures, giving overviews, budget options, and getting real about the bathroom situation.
  • Mainely Parents – An all-inclusive parenting website and online resource guide for Maine families.
  • Lake Region Kids Calendar – A Sebago Lake Region outdoor-loving mom, sharing local hidden gems, and highlighting the kid and family-friendly events and activities that make her community special.
  • Portland Kids Calendar – The parents’ help desk for all things fun in Greater Portland.
  • AllTrails App – Database of trail maps, which includes crowdsourced reviews and images.
  • Run Wild My Child – Whether you’re brand new to outdoor adventures or just need fresh ideas to break out of the same old routine, you’ll find inspiration, encouragement, and practical tools to reconnect with your kids and the world beyond your walls.
  • National Geographic Family – Tips to explore and learn as a family
  • Adventure Local – a comprehensive index of Maine Outdoor Brands members who offer high-quality gear and expert guide services across the state. Explore by activity and season to find trusted local retailers, gear makers, and outdoor professionals ready to support your next adventure.

Maine Parks, Lands & Trails:

Access to Affordable Gear

Maine Gear Libraries & Consignment: These community-centered gear hubs offer affordable access to skis, snowshoes, and a wide variety of other equipment, empowering their communities to try new outdoor activities together. Together, they break down barriers, helping everyone experience Maine’s outdoors safely, comfortably, and confidently.

Maine Ski Swaps – This guide helps you easily find ski swaps near you, whether you’re looking to upgrade snow pants, find a first pair of skis, or simply explore fun, affordable ways to try something new outside. Most Maine ski swaps happen from October – December annually.

Maine Organizations Connecting Kids to the Outdoors

Adaptive Outdoor Education Center (AOEC) enhances the quality of life for all people with disabilities through adaptive recreation and education programs here in Maine!

In addition to a wide variety of incredible programs, they also offer over 20 items in their Adaptive Gear Library that individuals can rent for up to two weeks at a time to move, learn, and explore in Maine’s great outdoors.

Learn more at https://www.adaptiveoutdooreducationcenter.org

Maine Adaptive Sports and Recreation provides year-round education and training for individuals with disabilities, developing skills, fostering independence, and enabling enjoyment via adaptive sports.

Learn more at https://maineadaptive.org/

Central Maine Adaptive Sports offers adaptive ski Lessons for people of all ages, with any disability: physical, mental and/or behavioral.

Learn more at https://centralmaineadaptivesports.org/

Free Activities and Printables for kids

Keep your family moving, learning, and exploring with our collection of “ready-to-play” activities. These free resources make it easy to spark curiosity, build healthy habits, and enjoy every season together.

Filter Activities by Age Group or Event

  • All
  • Early Elementary
  • Fall Activities
  • Healthy Snacks
  • Preschool
  • Seasonal Playlists
  • Spring Activities
  • Summer Activities
  • Upper Elementary
  • Winter Activities
Create Your Own Backyard Family Field Day

Designed by Joan Kaijala of Running Peas, this free printable guide is packed with playful, easy-to-set-up games that spark movement, laughter, and a little friendly competition.

Family Friendly Trails in Southern Maine

Discover 12+ family-friendly trails in Southern Maine, handpicked by a local mom who turned pandemic hikes with her kids into a joyful mission to explore and share nature. These trails offer year-round adventure, creativity, and connection, perfect for families of all ages and abilities.

The Great Backyard Bucket List

Looking for fun and easy ways to get outside with your kids this summer? We’ve gathered dozens of low-cost, high-smiles ideas. Perfect for porches, parks, and backyards, no special equipment required!

Fall Activity Roundup

The changing of the seasons each fall means incredible foliage, the return of snuggly sweaters, pumpkin-spiced everything, and best of all, an opportunity for children to spend time outside learning about all things Autumn!

Summer Activity Roundup

Summer is here! The kids are out of school and you want to keep them busy, but where do you start? Our Summer Activity Roundup is full of ideas to keep your kids busy moving, learning, and exploring this summer.

Spring Activity Roundup

With spring officially here, it’s the perfect time for families to get out and move. Before you know it, summer will be here with its busy schedules and long, sunny days. Make the most of the spring months by incorporating active learning into your schedule, with these fun outdoor active learning activities

Dressing for Winter Safety

We all need to think “safety” when it comes to dressing for winter activities – to keep us warm and dry and stay visible when it gets dark since there are fewer hours of daylight. Here are some simple tips to help keep you and your family safe while you’re outside having fun this winter.

How to Combine Different Food Groups to Make a Healthy Snack

Presented by Hannaford Snack Pals. Watch as April Byron, a nutritionist at Hannaford, walks you through how to combine different food groups to make a healthy snack!

WinterKids Winter Playlist: Dance While Nature is Watching!

One of the best tools to get your kids moving is music that inspires them to dance! In the classroom, at home, in the yard, on the trail, wherever – here is a great winter playlist to help you and your kids move, learn and explore.

Easy Vegetable Soup Recipe Your Kids Can Make!

This easy-to-make Vegetable Soup recipe is ripped straight from the pages of our Guide to Active Outdoor Learning for Pre-K, and is a great way to warm up when the weather is chilly! Let the kids do all the heavy lifting!

Autumn Fun Puzzles for Preschoolers

Download, print, and cut these 8 autumn fun puzzles for preschoolers. In addition to the benefits of working on a puzzle, these can be great for vocabulary development and may spark an interest in getting outside!

WinterKids Fall Playlist: Music to Accompany Nature’s Show

The seasons are changing, and Mother Nature is putting on a show, but you’ve got to get outside in order to see it! We’ve put together a fall playlist with 18 songs that will help inspire your kids to move, learn and explore! These songs are great for backyard play, dancing in the living room and more! Enjoy!

Blizzard Snack

This “Blizzard Snack” is ripped straight from the pages of our Guide to Outdoor Active Learning, and is a great way to beat the heat with a healthy treat this summer! Let the kids do all the heavy lifting, and just make sure there’s an adult present to turn on the blender.

WinterKids Summer Playlist: Music and Movement to Brighten Up Your Summer

Looking for something new to liven up these long summer days? We’ve put together a summer playlist with 52 songs that will help inspire your kids to move, learn and explore! These songs are great for backyard play, dancing in the living room and more! Enjoy!

Fruit & Veggie “Sushi”

These fruit & veggie “sushi” roll-ups are fun to make, and even more fun to eat! Whether you have adventurous or picky eaters, this is a great way to get them to try a little something new, along with something already familiar. Making this healthy snack together is fun for the whole family!

Animal Action Cards, Maine Wetlands Edition

Animal Action Cards are a fun and simple way to incorporate nature-based learning with movement. We’ve included 15 animals in this set of action cards – just a few of the many animals that you can find during spring in our Maine wetlands. We hope this activity also sparks an interest in exploring wetlands and learning more about these important habitats.

3 Ingredient Banana Popsicles

These banana popsicles are easy to make and require just three ingredients. They’re a fun, delicious, and healthy treat that kids of any age can make for themselves!

Spring Fun Puzzles for Preschoolers

Print, laminate, and cut these 9 customizable spring recreation picture puzzles for preschoolers. In addition to the benefits of working on a puzzle, these can be great for vocabulary development and may spark an interest in getting outside!

WinterKids Spring Playlist: Music and Movement to Welcome and Appreciate the Season

Our WinterKids Spring Playlist includes music for moving, learning, and exploring throughout the spring season. This playlist is great for backyard play, dancing in the living room, road tripping, yoga, and more! Enjoy!

Tree Cookies: A Nature-Based Art Activity

In this nature-based art activity, students will learn more about trees, then choose something they love about winter in Maine and illustrate it on their tree cookie! 

Melting Snow & Ice Experiment

In this activity, students will conduct an experiment in order to find which solid melts the fastest: snow or ice. Many thanks to the 2nd Grade teachers at Helen Thompson School in West Gardiner, Maine for sharing this great activity guide during the 2020 WinterKids Winter Games!

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