Patting My Balloon Home
Children move their balloon across the room without holding it, patting it forward through the air along a path marked with ropes. They practice striking with the hand while moving.
How to play
- Everyone with a balloon: pat it upward without moving from your spot (2 min).
- Walk behind your balloon patting it forward (2 min).
- Follow the rope path to home (the hoops at the far end) (3 min).
- Try with your other hand, then both hands taking turns (3 min).
- Arrive home, catch the balloon gently and set it inside the hoop (2 min).
Rules
- I don't hold the balloon, I only pat it.
- If it falls, I pick it up and keep going from there.
- I stay on the path without stepping on the ropes.
- Everyone at their own pace; it's not a race.
Variations
Easier
For 3-year-olds, a wide path and catching it now and then is fine.
Standard
For 4-year-olds, no catching and using the hand the teacher calls.
Harder
For 5-year-olds, a curvy path and alternating hands on every pat.
Adaptations
- Limited mobility: a classmate pushes the wheelchair slowly while the child pats, or use a short straight path.
- Visual impairment: thick ropes they can feel underfoot and a brightly colored balloon.
- Less coordination: a bigger balloon, which falls more slowly.
Learning goals
- Strike the balloon with the palm while moving.
- Control the direction of the hit.
- Use both hands.
Equipment for a class of 25
- Balloons: 25
- Ropes: 4
- Hoops: 6
Teacher tip
Set up two or three parallel paths so they don't bunch up. Model low little pats: if they hit too hard, the balloon drifts into another path.
PatioLab has "Patting My Balloon Home" and 8714 more activities ready to drag into your lesson and run from your phone in the gym.
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