Inside Moves, Part Three

More ideas about playing inside when the weather does not permit. However, I urge you to brave the weather and take them outside anyway, even when it's freezing out  -- kids don't seem to mind the cold nearly as much as we do!


Hullabaloo is a fun game that preschoolers enjoy.  You could probably make your own version.  The instructions are to hop, crawl, spin, jump, skip, or twist  to a specific square among a dozen or so spread out on the floor.  The squares are different colors and have pictures on them.  If you make your own version, you can increase the difficulty by making the movements more challenging and by having children solve problems to find their squares by posing the directions as riddles.


Hippity hops are large balls with handles on them that the child sits on and bounces to move forward.  They are great for providing lots of input and for improving balance and increasing trunk and leg strength.  You can make an obstacle course for the child to bounce through, and challenge the child to propel himself forward, backward, and sideways.


Peanut balls can be used for sitting and for movement.  At the clinic, I have children ride them like horses up and down the hallway.  They are superb for working on leg strength and trunk balance while providing lots of input.

A Balance board adds a dimension of challenge to games that involve tossing and catching.  A child can stand on the balance board and toss a ball against a wall and catch it, toss bean bags at targets, or play catch.


Nerf balls have lots of indoor possibilities.


 Simon Says.


Twister.


 The game red light yellow light, green light, which is another way of playing statues, is a great way to spend a rainy afternoon.  It's a perfect combination of activity and stillness.  Speaking of which, how about being the DJ for a game of freeze dance?


Does your child know how to jump rope?  Here are some rhymes to get her started.


Foam  rollers are great for many activities.   A child can kneel on two of them {one under his knees, one  under his hands} and roll across the floor.  Two children can use them as swords {my rule in the clinic is that they can hit the other's sword as hard as they like but not aim for the body}.  They can also be used to balance targets on for shooting practice.  


Chinese jump rope, which promotes balance, sequencing, motor planning, and endurance, can easily be played inside.  When I worked at a little clinic in Brooklyn, I would sometimes have the neighborhood girls come and play with the children I was treating so that they could teach them the moves that were popular on the playground.  The games could have gone on for hours.


Stilts can be challenging and fun.  After mastering the basics, the child can walk along a designated course and try to pick up objects and toss them at targets without falling off.


When everyone is happily tired out, it's time to break out the art supplies and crafts.  A stash of scissors, construction paper, beads, feathers, sequins, modeling clay, paints, chalk, rubber stamps, pipe cleaners, and anything else that catches your fancy is great to have on hand when the weather is bad and everyone is bored and antsy.