Have fun, be silly, expend excess energy in a positive way. Also improve gross motor skills and hand-eye coordination – A win-win situation! Here are some ideas for fun at-home games. You can make them no-winners so you have no tears; it’s all about playing the game, not keeping score.
With a paper plate tennis racket and a ballon ball, she’s not likely to cause any harm in the house. If you prefer, use a lightweight toy tennis racket instead of a paper plate.
Http://loveyvery.com/a/blog/diy-balloon-tennis/ for details about playing indoor balloon tennis, keep-it-up, and monkey in the middle. (Tip: use duct tape or packing tape to attach the sticks to the paper plate rackets.)
He can also bat the ballon around with the cardboard cylinder from a roll of wrapping paper or aluminum foil, or a plastic bat.
Once you’ve tried these out, why don’t you and your child make up your own game!
Set the mood for silly – have your child use markers to give the balloon a funny face before she starts whacking it .
See how far your child can walk with a bag of rice or a bean bag balanced on his head.
What happens when he does this while also holding a spoon with a ping pong ball on it? If he walks backwards? sideways? on a bed?
Make up your own variations. He’ll love the goofy challenges and you’ll enjoy watching him have fun while his vestibular function (balance) and proprioception (sense of muscle and joint movements) improve.
Hand over some beanbags for your child to toss into a bucket or shoebox from near or far, depending on her level of coordination and skill.
Place the buckets one to the left and one to the right and have your child use the same hand for a pre-set number of tosses in a row, then switch hands (for example, 5 tosses in a row using the left hand into the left bucket, then 5 tosses using the right hand into the right bucket. Or he can alternate hands for each toss.
Here are a few suggestions:
Check out https://icebreakerideas.com/hand-clapping-games/ for words, instructions, and videos for these 15 classic hand-clapping games:
You probably (at least partially) remember some of these from your own childhood!
Some of these games work better if there are more people playing (enlist other family members?), and some can be adapted for two people taking turns:
Another unusual multi-person game from the same source: https://childhood101.com/games-for-kids-how-to-play-captains-orders/
More for your gaming repertoire
Here are a few more kid-pleasers.
– If the dying-in-hot-lava premise would be disturbing to your child, the floor can be the ocean and the players must avoid touching it so they don’t fall in (Tip: for extra giggles, grab a spray bottle or plant mister and lightly mist anyone who “falls in”) – If your furniture is too widely spaced for your child to navigate without “falling in” to the lava or water, you can put a few hand or bath towel “islands” on the floor – Instead of executing separate challenges, you can play rounds where the players must remain in motion, constantly moving from one “safe” place to another
You’re it! Who’s up for vigorous game of flashlight tag? Lie on your backs in a darkened room and move your lights quickly around on the ceiling and walls, chasing each other’s beams.
In the next post, we will discuss calming sensory activities and reasoning games.
What are your family’s favorite games? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below. Also, let me know there or via email what topics you would like to discuss or hear more about.
Feel free to share or quote from this blog (with attribution, please, and if possible, a link), and to repost on social media.
I look forward to hearing from you!
All the best,
Miriam