A collection of ideas for infant/toddler play, recreation, and games

Newspaper Spiderweb Circuit

[Ages 0–5] Let’s play boldly! Use the whole room to make a spider web!

Tear it! Stick it! Crawl through and play! Here’s an idea for a newspaper spiderweb circuit.

You’ll need plastic ribbon (suzuran tape), newspaper, and tape.

This is a great idea when you want to include crawling movements in your circuit.

Some children find tunnels challenging because they’re dark and long.

By tearing and sticking newspaper as part of everyday activities, you can naturally encourage crawling movements! The making process also stimulates children’s creativity—what a wonderful idea.

Morning Noon Night game

Indoor games for large groups starting from age 3! Even elementary school kids can have fun while practicing moving quickly!

Here’s an introduction to the Morning-Afternoon-Night game.

You can play it anytime, anywhere, with any number of people, so it’s perfect for filling small gaps of time! When the teacher says “morning,” the children stand up.

For “afternoon,” they sit in seiza (kneel with legs folded under).

For “night,” they lie down right where they are.

The fun is in doing each action as quickly as possible.

Once they get used to it, try adding twists like “duck” or “monkey.” How will the children respond? Will they imitate the animals, get confused, or tell you, “Teacher, that’s wrong!”? That uncertainty is part of the fun of this game.

Clay play

[3-year-olds] Clay play!

Let’s try a classic sensory activity: playing with clay.

By age three, few children are likely to put things in their mouth, but using homemade play dough is the safest choice.

You can easily make it by mixing flour, water, vegetable oil, and salt.

Before starting the activity, show the children the dough and ask, “How does it feel?” “What does it smell like?” They’ll surely get excited thinking about what to make with it! Roll it into balls, stretch it, or flatten it with a smack.

Encourage the children’s rich imaginations and see what wonderful things they create!

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sasashina

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Paper airplane throwing

[Boost Coordination] 5 Paper Airplane Play Ideas

Here’s a paper airplane throwing game that kids and adults alike can enjoy.

Let’s fold paper airplanes using origami paper or flyers.

The size of the paper matters, too.

One of the fun parts of paper airplane throwing is that the flight distance changes depending on how you fold and throw it! If your flight distance isn’t improving, you might discover ways to make it go farther by trying again and again.

Try a variety of games using paper airplanes, such as high-score battles, cup knockdowns, dog-run catches, and pair catches!

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mayumi

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Picture shiritori

Animal drawing shiritori♪ Drawing animals shiritori cheetah, raccoon dog, giraffe, pig, woodpecker, crayon, Sansan, Kumorin, toys, anime

Let me introduce a drawing shiritori game that gets everyone excited while you draw.

The drawing shiritori game can be enjoyed by two or more people.

First, decide on a theme for the first drawing in turn.

The first person draws a picture on paper based on the theme.

The next person looks at the previous person’s drawing and draws a picture that starts with the last letter of the previous drawing’s word.

Take turns and keep going.

It gets even more fun if you set final rules in advance, such as what happens if a word ends with “n” (which would normally end the game) or if someone can’t draw on their turn.

Have fun and give it a try!

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mayumi

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