Skee Ball: Tape together plastic flower pot containers in several
rows (3 in the first row, 2 in the second row and one in the last
row). Encourage the children to throw a Nerf ball into the containers.
For added excitement, assign scores of 10, 20 & 30 points for the
top container.
Dress-Up Race: Place an oversized T-shirt, shorts and a pair of
rubber gloves on two chairs at one end of the room or yard. Divide the
children into two groups. Children are to follow the instruction of
the caregiver, for example, run, hop, skip, gallop, etc. to the chair,
put on the clothes and then return to the starting line. The child
then takes off the clothes and gives them to the next child who puts
them on and does the action to the chair where they take off the
clothes, etc.
Animal Chase: Children form a circle. One stuffed animal (you can
also use different objects, such as a beanbag) is sent around the
circle and while it is going around another stuffed animal is
introduced. The object is for the second stuffed animal to catch up
with the first. More toys can be introduced. This activity is great
for young children.
Bean bag toss: Each child take a turn throwing a beanbag into a
basket. Use masking tape to draw lines on the floor marking varying
distances. Assign points to each line and set a time (one point for
the closest line and four points for the farthest). Each child must
throw two beanbags from each line. Have other children retrieve bean
bags and record points. The child with the most points wins a prize.
(Bean bags can be made by filling old socks with dried beans or rice.
Tie and secure carefully).
Donkey
– in groups of 3 or 4, children stand in single
file approx. three or more metres away from a wall. Leave plenty of
space between people. The first person underhand tosses a small
playground ball against the wall and does a stride jump over the ball
before it bounces when it returns, then moves to the end of the line.
The next person in line catches the ball and repeats the above and so
on continuously down the line. If a player misses the ball, they
collect letters of the word "DONKEY".Challenge players to
make up their own rules to add challenge and fun to the activity.
Soccer Golf: set up a soccer golf course with numbered pylons.
Players start at different pylons and kick a soccer ball to the next
pylon. Object is to hit the pylon in as few strokes as possible. Each
kick equals one stroke.
Gold Rush: Number children from one to four (or more). Place one
(yellow) beanbag underneath the parachute. On a signal, the children
inflate the parachute while the parent calls one of the numbers. Those
players run clockwise around the parachute until they get to the space
where they started. The players run through their space underneath the
parachute, put their foot on the "gold" then return to their
spot before the parachute hits the ground. Repeat, calling a new
number each time. Remind the children to keep their heads up and to
watch out for other runners.
Birthday Switch: On a signal, players inflate the parachute. Call
out a month of the year. Any child who has a birthday in that month
runs underneath the parachute and finds a new spot before it deflates.
Call out all the months to give all the children a chance.