Muscle Moving

Wall Wash

Large up and down arm motions strengthen core muscles that are a precursor to bring able to write well.

Supplies:

• Clean sponges – one per child and one for you. Alternatively, use a baby wipe or clean cloth.
  (Do not give your child a Magic Eraser sponge as these contain many chemicals that should not be consumed.)

Time to Play:

• Model how to pretend to clean the walls or an empty bookshelf using the clean sponge.
• Invite your child to join in. Be encouraging and thank your child for helping clean.
• (If using damp baby wipes, your child can truly help clean, but be sure they don’t try to clean surfaces that are sensitive to moisture.)

Brain Boosting

Dish Wash

Supplies:

• One tub such as a plastic 15L container. A large bowl could work, but might tip over.
• Water
• Several small containers (such as clean yogurt containers) or bath toys to wash
• A cloth or sponge to wash with
• A water friendly area (Consider using a bathtub or doing this activity outside. Alternatively, place a large towel beneath the tub of water to catch spills.)
• Optional: dish soap or bubble bath

Prep:

• Fill the tub with 3-5 inches (5-15 cm) of water.
• Optional: Add a drop of dish soap or bubble bath for added bubbly fun
• Place the cloth and containers in the tub
• Place the tub in a water friendly area

Note: Adult Supervision Required – As with any activity involving water at this age, supervision is required due to risk of drowning.

Time to Play:

• Invite your child to sit down and wash some dishes for you. If needed, join in the washing fun to set an example.
• Expect your child and the surrounding area to get a bit wet. Don’t be anxious about this. It is part of the learning experience. If needed, help them change their clothes afterwards.
• Thank your child for washing the dishes.

Muscle Moving

Run, Run, Run

Prep:

• Clear an area for running. Ideally find an area that allows for continuous running in a circle. Otherwise, a hallway or the length of a room will do.
  (The more children you have, the more valuable having a circle to run in can be. This helps decrease incidents of children running into each other.)

Time to Play:

• Run with your child in the space you have cleared for at least a minute or two. Be encouraging as you run.
• Encourage your child to continue running.
• After giving your child some time to burn through some of their energy, join in again, but this time moving very slowly. Encourage your child to move slowly with you.
• Continue moving, alternating between fast and slow.
• For more advanced children, consider adding other movements such as hopping, taking big steps, taking little steps, and walking backwards.
• (When teaching 2 year olds, I love to begin or end each gym time with having the whole class run in a circle. It amazes me how much their endurance increases after only a few days of running.)

Brain Boosting

Ramp

STEM – experimenting with friction and gravity

Supplies:

• One large but relatively flat cardboard box, or one wide board
• Something to prop the box on, ideally about the shoulder height of your child. This could be your couch, a chair, or a half-height bookshelf.
• Toys that roll well – cars or balls
• Toys that slide slowly rather than rolling – stuffed animals, bean bags

Prep:

• Prop the box or board against the chair, or whatever you are using.
• Experiment a few times to figure out what angle works well by rolling a ball or car down the ramp.

Time to Play:

• Invite your child to join in the fun by rolling balls and cars down the ramp.
• Talk about how the balls and cars go fast!
• Encourage your child to try sliding other things down the ramp like a stuffed animal.
• Talk about how the stuffed animal goes slow because it is rubbing on the ramp rather than rolling – that’s called friction.