Building an obstacle course outside is a fun way for your child to get creative, active and, well, maybe a bit messy, too! All they need are household items that are light, easy and safe to move around – such as cardboard boxes and cushions. This playtime will feed their imagination, challenge their cognitive skills and get their muscles moving as they climb, run and crawl around the course.
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Anything in the house that is light and soft, such as:
Help your child/children make an obstacle course in the garden. Perhaps put a pile of different items – such as cardboard boxes, blankets, hula hoops, swimming floats etc – in the centre of the garden, and have the children come up with ideas of how to use them. Which ones can they use to crawl under, jump over or go through? Which ones can be used to balance on their head as they spin around? Once they’ve designed their course and tried it out, they can have fun introducing different rules and variations. I
Cardboard boxes and swimming floats are the best items to start with, but also think about how you could use stuffed toys, hula hoops, balls or even a blanket. Put everything in the centre of an outdoor space. Build different obstacles in a large circle around you. Consider making one obstacle that you need to climb over, one you need to jump over, one you need to go under and one you need to go through. When you are finished, test your course! Use a stopwatch to time yourself and try to keep beating your best time.
