Today on the blog we are sharing a fantastic Kids fruit activity idea for creating stone fruit for the garden mud kitchen. This was a fantastic idea from my 9-year-old daughter and was really fun to create.
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💖 Why You'll Love This Craft
- Sensory Meets Creativity: This craft turns outdoor play into a sensory-rich experience where kids can mix mud play with painted stone fruits and veggies.
- Confidence Through Crafting: The simple painting steps make it perfect for younger kids to explore colors and boost their creative confidence.
- Perfect for Pretend Play: It’s ideal for mud kitchen fun—encouraging imaginative role-play as kids cook up garden-inspired stories together.
Kids Fruit Activity Idea for the Mud Kitchen
🎨 Supplies Needed
🖌️ How To Make Mud Kitchen Painted Rocks
We discussed which fruits to draw and create and got to work making some lovely fruit templates.
- Step 1: Sylvia and I worked together as a team drawing and colouring in the different stones.
- Step 2: We made a watermelon, banana, grapes and much more.
- Step 3: We threw in some vegetables to make a good mix. Sylvia made a carrot and a aubergine known as an egg plant here in the UK.
- Step 4: Making fruit and vegetable stones was a fun thing to do especially as we were making them as a gift for a child's garden Mud kitchen.
- Step 5: Drawing and creating arty things is a great way to help a child to develop fine motor skills as well as confidence and self belief.
- Step 6: Sylvia was a little unsure if she could draw on the stones but after completing the first one and with lots of praise she soon got the hang of it.
- Step 7: This was a fun task and didn't take too long. We are so excited to give these stones to our friend's child as a gift for summer time garden fun.
- Step 8: Sylvia did a fantastic job and I could not be more proud of her creations.
I think drawing on stones or creating story stones can be a fun activity.
It's not about the end product it's about the process and the fun you have and my daughter had a lot of fun.
Which fruit or veg do you like the most?
I love the carrot.
Enjoy!
💡 Pro Tip: Turn the painted fruit stones into mini games by sorting them by size, color, or type, reinforcing early math and language skills during free play.
🧑🎨 Expert Tips
- Stone Selection: Choose smooth, flat stones with rounded edges to make painting easier, prevent chipping during outdoor play, and ensure a safer handling experience for kids.
- Paint Choice: Use weather-resistant, child-safe acrylic paints designed for outdoor crafts to ensure that vibrant colors stay intact even after repeated muddy adventures.
- Sealant Application: Apply a clear, non-toxic sealant in two thin coats to fully protect the painted designs from rain, dirt, and general wear during outdoor activities.
- Drying Process: Allow each paint and sealant layer to dry fully in a dust-free area to avoid smudging, unwanted texture buildup, or accidental color blending.
- Storage Solution: Store the finished painted stones in a breathable mesh bag or open basket to prevent moisture buildup and keep the pieces easy to access.
- Cleaning Routine: Wipe the stones with a damp cloth after heavy use to remove mud and preserve both the colorful artwork and the cleanliness of the play area.
💭 FAQs
Mud kitchen activities let children role-play food preparation, sparking conversations about where fruits grow, farming basics, and nature’s food sources.
Playing together in a mud kitchen builds cooperation, turn-taking, conflict resolution, and teamwork, essential for strong social development in early years.
Inventing stories around mud creations strengthens vocabulary, sequencing abilities, imaginative thinking, and early literacy foundations playfully.
Adding real items like leaves or stones enhances sensory experiences, connects kids to nature, and builds early respect for the environment.
Kids Fruit Activity Idea For The Mud Kitchen
Materials
- few white cobble stones
- set of Chalkola Marker Pens.
Notes
🖌️ Related Crafts
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Well done Sylvia...It looks like she had a great time. The end results look great.
She sure did 🙂
This looks like a really great idea. I will have to do this with my niece. They would be great to decoratively mark our garden.
Thanks Chrishelle. We had fun making these stones.
Fab job - we have these pens and have created all sorts with them x
Oh they are great the Chalkola pens!
This is such a good idea, they didn't look like stones x
Thanks Rhian
What a fun activity and this would be perfect to my kids to keep them busy during this summer.
It is a fun and inexpensive way to create imaginary play opportunities for kids.
The kids fruit activity project looks like fun. I'm sure your daughter had a great time.
I think they did turn out nice. My son found a painted rock when we took a walk recently and he was so delighted!
oh that is pretty cool.
This sure is an artistic craft! This would be a great idea for the kids. I’d love to try it.
ThanKS Maurene. I'm glad you enjoyed this.
This is so seriously cute!!! I love this idea I am going to do it for sure x
thanks Donna
She looks so pleased with them! Such a lovely and simple idea for a mud kitchen. I may actually recommend to my sons nursery teacher!
Very cool. it would be great in a nursery!
Aww what a sweet idea, it looks like a lot of fun. I love the watermelon!
thanks Mel. 🙂
I actually made some of these for a garden! I never though about using markers though!
how cool
Oh what a fab idea!! I love that the kids can get involved with this too so its perfect all round!
I love this, they are really bright and colourful! We have these markers, I'll have to try this one at home!
I do think the type of marker you have makes a huge difference when drawing on cobble stones. 🙂
My kids love drawing on stones, but the markers we have got aren't that good. But these chalkola marks look fab
ooh this would be a great activity for them then!