Make Your Paver Pathway Kid-Friendly With These Fun Ideas

Want to get your kids excited about spending time outdoors and being active? Adding fun detailing like a hopscotch court, glow-in-the-dark paint, or mini roadways to the pavers around your home encourages your little ones to play actively and creatively. The pavers still work as a walkway and cover up bare patches in the yard or areas that get muddy, but now they have the bonus of being a fun play area too. 

To create a paver hopscotch board, choose 10 square pavers to form the spots on the board. Pavers that are at least 12 by 12 inches are ideal to give you enough space to step on them without taking up too much of your yard. Go bigger with pavers up to 24 inches if you have more space. You can also repurpose old pavers that you already have to create the hopscotch board. There are several different hopscotch board configurations, typically alternating between single squares and two squares side-by-side. Choose your favorite arrangement and lay out the pavers.

Choosing colorful pavers or painting plain pavers adds a fun touch to the hopscotch board. Paint the numbers on the squares or leave them blank and let your kids write the numbers on them with chalk. To personalize the board, you can add extra designs, such as decorative borders around each square. Make the hopscotch board a separate backyard element or incorporate it into a longer pathway that leads around the yard.

If you have kid-friendly areas in the yard, such as playground equipment, a sandbox, and raised garden beds, create curving pathways that lead to those different areas. Curving paths encourage imagination and exploration. If you choose smooth pavers and install them to create a flat, level pathway, you can create a loop or racetrack design where your kids can ride their bikes or other ride-on toys. Highlight the pavers being a road by painting dashed lines down the middle of the pathway. 

With the right outdoor walkway lighting, paver pathways are fun and safe into the evening hours. Apply glow-in-the-dark paint to pavers so they take on a magical glow after sunset. Choose outdoor glow paint and apply it to light-colored pavers, or apply a layer of white paint first for the best results. You can cover all of the pavers or add glowing designs on them. Clear sealant helps keep your glowing rocks protected from weather elements. Installing solar lights along the pathway is an inexpensive option with no hardwiring required. Another option is to create a canopy of light overhead with string lights.