The Leaky Cup

Kids carry water in cups with holes from a basin to their group's bottle, plugging the holes with their fingers and moving quickly without running. It builds hand-eye coordination, problem solving, and shared effort.

How to play

1. The teacher shows a full cup with holes: the water escapes! We ask how we could carry it (2 min).
2. We try ideas: plugging with fingers, with a palm, holding it against our tummy, walking super fast (2 min).
3. In three groups, each with its own basin and bottle, we make trips to fill the group bottle (3 min).
4. Trips in pairs: one plugs the bottom holes and the other the side holes, carrying the cup together (2 min).
5. We pour the three bottles into one and use the water for plants or to wet the sandbox (2 min).
6. We sit in the shade, drink some real water, and share which trick worked best (1 min).

Rules

• I walk fast, but I don't run.
• I find my own trick to keep the water in.
• I wait my turn at the basin.
• The bottle belongs to the whole group.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: the group bottle sits beside the child, who receives water from friends, or carries the cup on the lap nested inside another cup.
• Less dexterity: cups with big holes on just one side, easy to cover with a palm.
• Autism: explain the route with a drawing (basin, path, bottle) and give a different-colored cup so they know which is theirs.

Learning goals

• Coordinate the hands to cover holes while moving.
• Find their own solutions to a problem.
• Contribute to a group goal.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Plastic cups with holes: 25
• Shallow basin: 3
• Clear wide-mouth bottles: 3

Teacher tip

Make the holes ahead of time with a heated awl and check there are no sharp edges. Reuse the water at the end for plants so they see water isn't wasted. Play on grass, since all the back and forth makes puddles.

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