Want to pry your kid away from the screen? Try these four fun ideas: 

Design a nature-friendly backyard
Involve your tween in building a birdhouse, say, or planting a butterfly garden. (Find more ideas at Nwf.org/outside.) Motivate him to keep an eye on his creation by setting up an observation station nearby, with binoculars, a camera, and a journal.

Take a hike
Get your kid to help plan a trek to an enticing destination (like a waterfall). Then -- and this is key -- let him invite a friend. He'll be way more into a day trip if he's got a pal along.

Make a splash
Challenge him to a water fight. Use the old standards, like water balloons and squirt guns, or think outside the box with thick sponges, plastic cups, and squirt bottles. 

Tap into his techie side
Send your budding director outdoors with a digital video camera to film a movie with his friends. Or if you're feeling Spielberg-esque yourself, make up a video scavenger hunt: Give your kid a list of silly things to hunt down, and film as he finds them. He can upload the footage and relive the fun with you when the sun goes down.

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