Animal Walk
Inside or out, encourage your child to slither like a snake, hop like a frog, gallop like a horse, or walk like a bear on all fours.
Skills developed: hopping, galloping
Keep the Balloon Up
Outdoor on a calm, windless day, or inside, have your kids use their hands or half of a pool noodle to keep a balloon afloat. How long can they keep the balloon off the ground?
Skills developed: volleying, striking
Puddle Jumping
Preferably outside in what our two year old called “chocolate water”, throw on your kids’ most waterproof gear and let them jump in, out, and over puddles.
Skills developed: jumping
Wet Sponge Designs
On a hot, summer day, gather up lots of sponges, provide a tub of water for endless resoaking, and have your kids throw their sponges on a wall or on a cement surface to make designs. Sponges can also be used to “paint” walls.
Skills developed: throwing
Digging for Treasure
Whether it’s an inside or outside sandtable or sandbox, kids love to dig for treasure. Hide small toys like plastic dinosaurs, small cars, or marbles, and let your child release their inner pirate as they search for booty!
Skills developed: lifting and lowering objects, object manipulation
Run Away from the Monster
Kids love a game of chase, especially with a parent or other adult they trust. A game of running from a “scary” monster will involve much squealing with delight.
Skills developed: running, dodging, agility
Simon/Simone Says
While the rules are simple, the options for movement are endless. Simon can have kids jumping like a kangaroo, standing as tall as a house, making funny faces, standing on one foot, or waving their hands over their heads.
Skills developed: multiple depending on the leader’s actions (jumping, balancing, hopping, etc.)
Hopscotch
A favourite with kids of all ages, hopscotch is a game that can be played inside or out. Inside, use painters tape on the floor to pattern your own board and use buttons, rolled up socks or bean bags instead of rocks. Outside, use chalk to make a court and use rocks or the chalk
itself as a marker. The rules are simple and the game can be played alone or with friends.
Skills developed: hopping, throwing
Ball Kicks
Balls are a staple for so many games and activities. Using different types and sizes of balls, have your child see how far they can kick, or play goalie in front of a wall or fence and see if your child can kick the ball past you.
Skills developed: kicking
Balance Beam
Using an actual gymnastics beam isn’t the only way for a child to learn balance skills. Indoors, use painters tape to make a straight line on the floor. Encourage your child to walk forwards, backwards, and sideways. [link to tightrope activity] Outdoors, use a plank of wood, a rope, or make a line with chalk for the same activity. When your child masters a straight line, add semi-circles or zigzags to add a bit more of a challenge.
Skills developed: balancing
Dance Party
Indoors or outdoors, turn up the music, use lights or decorations for ambiance, and let your kids twist, macarena, floss, dance like their favourite animal, or freestyle their way to fun.
Skills developed: agility, balance, coordination
Mini Sticks
Pass a ball back and forth with your child or have them shoot at a target while teaching them to keep their stick on the ice (the floor) and to hold their stick with two hands.
Skills developed: striking
Bubble Play
Ideally an outdoor activity, use various sizes and types of bubble wands and have kids blow their own bubbles or blow them yourself and have kids chase and pop them.
Skills developed: agility
Fill the Bucket Water Game
Provide your child with a cup and two buckets (one smaller, one larger). Place the smaller bucket a short distance from the larger bucket and fill the larger bucket with water. Have your child scoop water from the larger bucket and fill the smaller one. To make the game
more challenging, put small holes in the cup or have your child dance as they move from bucket to bucket.
Skills developed: agility, balancing
Paper Airplanes
There are so many ways to make paper airplanes at home. Throw them inside or outside and see how high they can fly, how far they can fly, or if your child can throw them through an object such as a hula hoop.
Skills developed: throwing
Avoid the Shark
Cover your living room floor (the shark-filled ocean) with foam floor tiles or towels (taped to the floor with painters tape) and have your child jump from one to the next without getting nabbed by a shark.
Skills developed: jumping
Bean Bag Toss
Bean bags are an easy-to-grip and throw item for kids. Indoors or out, have kids throw them into targets such as laundry baskets or hula hoops.
Skills developed: throwing
Egg and Spoon
For this ultimate hand-eye coordination and balance game, give kids a spoon and have them balance a hard-boiled or plastic egg from one point to another either indoors or out. How quickly can they go? Can they dance as they move?
Skills developed: balance, coordination
Ribbon Sticks
Tie a length of ribbon to the end of a stick or baton and watch as your kids dance and swirl their ribbons in the air.
Skills developed: agility
Pillow Walk
Set up a line of couch, throw, or bed pillows on your floor, and have your child walk from one end to the other. It may sound easy but their balance will be challenged!
Skills developed: balancing
Kick Bowling
Switch up regular bowling inside or outside by having your kids use different sizes of balls to kick down different objects such as empty bottles or rolls of paper towels.
Skills developed: kicking
Bean Bag Balance
Have your child balance a bean bag on their head and walk from one point to another without dropping it. As they master the walk, move the points further apart or make the course a bit more challenging by adding zig zags or circles, or objects around which they
must manoeuvre.
Skills developed: balancing
Bubble Wrap Jump
Bubble wrap is not just for packing fragile objects. Purchase a roll of wrap and on an inside day, have your child jump and pop to their heart’s content.
Skills developed: jumping, agility
Helicopter
Turn a jump rope around in a circle low to the ground while your child hops over it without touching it. Be prepared to be the jumper when your child wants to turn the rope too!
Skills developed: jumping, agility
Obstacle Course
Indoors or out, let your imagination run wild as you set up an obstacle course for your child. Have them crawl under tables, climb over chairs, jump over ropes, hop from cone to cone, crawl through a cardboard box, jump through a line of hula hoops, throw a family of stuffed
animals into a laundry basket, etc. etc.
Skills developed: agility, balance, coordination
Catch
Kids learn to catch at different rates but working with them on the skill can begin with throwing them a balloon or a soft object such as a rolled up pair of socks or a light ball will be less intimidating than a heavy or small ball. Start by standing close to your child and as they master the catch, move further away.
Skills developed: catching
Tee-Ball
With a plastic tee-ball stand, bat, and balls, kids can practice their swing indoors or out. Batter up!
Skills developed: striking
Long Jump
Just how far can your child jump? Challenge them indoors by having them jump on lines made by painters’ tape on the floor or outdoors on grass or in the sand.
Skills developed: jumping
Yoga
Kids can learn all kinds of yoga movements at this age. Look up some easy moves online and teach your children some movements such as a tree pose, downward dog, or sun salutation.
Skills developed: balancing
Music Parade
Whether you have traditional instruments or pots and pans, kids love to make noise. Gather a bunch of kids and with different instruments in hand, celebrate a real or a made-up holiday.
Skills developed: agility, coordination, object manipulation
Action Songs
Sing together or find recordings of songs that have kids moving their bodies in different ways. Hokey Pokey, Shake My Sillies Out, I’m A Little Teapot, and Zoom, Zoom, Zoom are all examples of fun ways to get kids moving and shaking to sing along songs.
Skills developed: agility
Colour Run
On a driveway, sidewalk, in a yard, colour four areas (draw circles or squares) with different colours of chalk. Call out a colour and have your child run to that coloured area. Continue to call out different colours in varying order.
Skills developed: running
Door Fringe
Purchase a door fringe from a dollar or party store or hang streamers from a door frame. Make sure no one is on the other side of the door as your child runs, hops, or dances through the fringe.
Skills developed: running, agility
Beach Ball Blanket Toss
Have two or four children hold the corners of a blanket (or towel). Throw a beach ball onto the blanket and listen to the kids giggle as they bounce the ball up and catch it.
Skills developed: throwing, catching
Hide and Seek
Kids can hide either themselves or objects such as their stuffed animals in this favourite game played by kids around the world.
Skills developed: agility
Limbo
How low can you go? A fun game indoors or out, use your imagination when it comes to using objects under which your child must go under without their hands touching the floor. Objects could include a pool noodle, a broom, or a rope.
Skills developed: balancing
Reuben Spiteri
KGE PE teacher
St Ignatius College, Patri Ġużè Delia, Siġġiewi Primary 