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Jump like a kangaroo, hop like a frog. Next time your child is up and moving around, challenge them to a game of imagination. Can you jump like a kangaroo? How does a frog jump? How many different animals can you and your child pretend to be?
Most children love to challenge themselves physically and explore the different ways they can move around, through and over different objects. You might find your child likes to try and balance on or along lines or other surfaces. Next time you are outside with your child or walking somewhere, encourage them to try a bit of balancing.
Can you run and touch that tree? Next time you are all outside you can play a game with lots of actions. Ask your child to follow your instructions, but keep it simple at first. Can you run to that tree? Can you walk to the fence? Okay, now crawl back to me. Try to think of lots of different ways to get your child moving. Younger children can walk, crawl and run.
There are many different ways you can move about. You can crawl, run, jump, roll or climb. You can climb up, over, under and through things. Next time you are outside, at the park or moving about talk to your child about the different things they can climb. We are going to the park with the big trees and logs. When we get there you can climb up the trees or over the logs.
Let's party! Friday night could be party time at your house. First set the scene. Where will the dance party be? Do you need to move some furniture? Have you got music? Do you have some coloured lights? Let’s move the chairs out of the way. They’re heavy so we’ll need to push hard. Put the music on and dance with your children. Think of lots of ways to move and let the music guide you.
It’s raining it’s pouring, everything’s wet and boring…The weather has changed and winter has arrived. Often when this happens and the rain rolls in it is hard to find things to do outside to keep your child busy and active. Rain puddles are just made for jumping. You can try jumping over puddles with your child.
Most children find it fun to play - seeking out adventures and actively exploring the world with their bodies. Playing at a park or a playground will give your child an opportunity to use all their big muscles and experiment with how to move their bodies in different directions. They can run as fast as the wind or roll down the hills like a spinning top.
When you and your child are playing outside see how many different ways can you move your body. How many jumps or hops can you do on your right leg and can you do the same amount on your left leg? Can you keep a ball or balloon in the air for one minute before it touches the ground? How quickly can you crawl to the back fence and then hop to the side gate?
Playing with balls outside provides children with the opportunity to catch and throw, roll and kick, push, punch and chase after the ball. As the ball moves, talk about the way it is moving. Is it moving along the ground at a fast pace or bouncing up and down on the same spot? Can you roll the ball under the chair or throw it at a target on the shed?
Children often experiment with moving their bodies in different ways. They might move in time to music or try and fit their bodies inside different spaces. Sometimes they will try and figure out how to move without using their legs and feet. Next time you are near a hill encourage your child to experiment with different ways to roll down the hill.
