With the weather turning colder, it is a good idea to have ideas on hand to keep the kids occupied and moving. This indoor play motor planning activity is a creative way to use items you probably have on hand to help kids develop important skills while getting out some of that excess energy.
Grab a jump rope and a ball, and get ready for some giggle inducing creative play!
Easy Indoor Play Motor Planning Activity for Kids
You probably have a jump rope (affiliate link) in your house. You’ll use it for this activity, along with a ball. Any size ball would work, but a smaller sized ball would be better for kids to manipulate.
If you don’t have a jump rope, a strand of rope or cord would work for this indoor play idea, too.
To set up the activity, simply lay the jump rope out in a straight line on the floor.
Place the ball next to the rope and show your child how to move the ball along the rope. Start by using your hand or finger to move the ball.
Next, make the activity just a little bit more difficult by asking your child if they can move the ball from one end of the rope to the other using their toe. To do this task, your child will have to stand on one foot while moving the ball with their other foot.
This is an excellent way to promote balance and strengthening of the core muscles.
Expand on this activity further by showing your child how to move the ball with their elbow or nose.
You can challenge your child by calling out different body parts and having them move the ball with first their elbow then their toes.
This is a sure way to induce the giggles in a fun movement activity!
Try this activity with shapes on the floor, too!
Motor Planning Activity for Kids
What is happening in this activity?
By asking your child to move the ball along the rope with different parts of their body, they are being challenged in motor planning.
Motor planning is a coordinated action that incorporates fine motor or gross motor skills in order to plan out, organize, and carry out an action amidst incoming information, including sensory input and obstacles.
When you ask your child to move the ball and change gross motor actions, they need to create an execute a motor plan to move the ball with their nose or toes.
This is a simple activity with a lot of movement!
Here are 40 more ways to get kids moving!
Want to make this indoor play motor planning activity a bit harder?
Lay the jump rope out on the floor in a curved or zig-zag line.
The rope will allow the ball to stay in place beside the rope, but kids can work on motor planning to move the ball along the line with a greater challenge.
What are your favorite movement and indoor play ideas?
Follow the Line Motor Planning Activity on handsonaswegrow.com
from Hands On As We Grow http://handsonaswegrow.com/line-motor-planning-activity/
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