Warm weather, school holidays and greater freedom is ahead for the children of Australia (hooray!). So today we’re taking a break from our usual food-chat to talk about something we think is not only a great way to support a local business (especially as many haven’t been able to invite visitors lately), but a great experience for everyone – visiting farms!
Family farm visits are a great way to spend quality time together, but there are so many other benefits.
Learning about Food
Taking children to a farm is a great way to teach them where many of their favourite foods come from. A fun game we like to play is to take along a favourite food to a farm and find all the animals that contributed to the making of that food. Imagine packing lunch for the day (let’s say, a cheese sandwich, apple and a biscuit for dessert – we know some good ones), and guessing which animals helped make that meal, and how the apple grows. It’s no surprise this is our favourite activity when visiting farms!
Connection to nature
Though many kids love being outdoors, it often involves a bicycle, outdoor toy or playground. Everyday life doesn’t offer much opportunity to nature to be the main attraction. Focusing on the animals, crops or trees provides the opportunity to learn, appreciate and feel more connected to the natural world surrounding them.
Physical Activity
Visiting a farm for a child provides an exciting way to burn off that seemingly endless energy. Whether it’s animals to discover or bushes and trees ripe for picking over acres of land, they’ll be running around without a slide or swing in sight.
Inspired? Here’s a few farms we have on our list…
NSW – Calmsley Hill, Abbotsbury
Sheep shearing, cow milking and tractor rides – the full experience!
VIC – Churchill Island
A great day trip from Melbourne with animal feeding, sheep shearing and a café for lunch!
WA – Landsdale Farm, Darch
Goats, donkeys, chickens, cows, geese, ponies and more just a short drive from Perth.
SA – Hahndorf Farm Barn
Pony rides, tractor rides and baby animals. A great day out, especially for younger children.
Canberra – Babylon Farm
A hobby farm just 30 minutes from Canberra (at Murrumbateman). Book a tour, feed the animals and then take home some Goat soap for the kids bath!
TAS – Rosedale Homestead (Taranna, on the road to Port Arthur)
So many beautiful animals (including bunnies for the littlies), and we know you want to find out who ‘The Boss’ is…
QLD – Trevena Glen Farm
Horse riding lessons and the opportunity to wash and feed animals as well as pick vegetables on a tour – a whole farm experience less than an hour out of Brisbane.