Lovely childcare

Recommended for childcare! Game and activity ideas to liven up a summer festival

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.
Nursery Teacher Mom Writertsukada moe
After working for five years at an after-school childcare club and three years at a nursery school, I began working as a freelance writer. I’m a mother of two children. Inspired by playing the flute in the school wind ensemble in elementary school, I joined a jazz club at university. I’ve also incorporated ukulele and piano performance into childcare. Playing, laughing, feeling sad, feeling frustrated—through all kinds of experiences, I want children to grow.

The once-a-year summer festival that the kids look forward to is here! At nursery schools and kindergartens, you’ll want to make the special time with friends even more exciting.

Here, we’ll share recommended ideas for games and activities you can do together with the children.

Enjoy the preparation time together, too.

Classic activities like target tossing and yo-yo fishing can be even more fun with a few simple twists.

Choose ideas that fit the size and atmosphere of your school, and make it a summer festival that thrills both children and adults!

Recommended for childcare! Game and performance ideas that will liven up a summer festival (1–10)

Handmade Whac-A-Croc

@mammybear_
A handmade Whac-A-Gator game by a newly graduated teacher made its debut at the pretend summer festival! It was so much fun!#Summer Festival Role play #Nursery school Wani Wani Panic lol
♬ Cute and playful song(1169385) – zomap

Great for kids trying it for the first time! Here are some ideas for making your own Whac-A-Gator game.

Whac-A-Gator is the game where crocodiles pop out of holes at random and you hit them with a hammer, right? This time, let’s try making a homemade version.

You’ll need cardboard or empty boxes, colored construction paper, plastic ribbon, milk cartons, tape, and more.

It looks like you can make the hammer with a paper cup and disposable chopsticks! It’s sure to be a popular station that children from infant to preschool classes can enjoy.

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A waterless yo-yo

https://www.tiktok.com/@niconico_mama/video/7388843831325773072

Enjoy decorating it too! Here’s an idea for a no-water yo-yo.

How about making the popular water yo-yo from summer festival stalls without using any water? The bouncy, springy feel when you flick it with your hand is so fun! You’ll need balloons, washi tape, rubber bands, and stickers.

Inflate the balloon, wrap it with washi tape, then attach a rubber band—and you’re done! You can also use your favorite washi tapes or decorate with stickers to make it even more exciting!

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Ring toss set

@hoiku.labo
Usable at summer festivals! Make-and-play ring toss set ✨ Preschool craft, childcare worker, ideas for childcare, together with children, easy craft, ring toss, summer festival, let’s make and play, preschool teacher
♪ Original Song – Hoiku Kyujin Labo – Hoiku Kyujin Labo | Nursery Teacher Job Changes and Helpful Information

Let’s make and play! Here are some ideas for a DIY ring toss set.

These tips are perfect when you want to set up a ring toss corner but don’t have the equipment.

All you need are toilet paper rolls, origami paper, and foil origami.

Just wrap your favorite origami paper around a toilet paper roll to create a target.

Making and setting up lots of targets will make it even more exciting.

For the rings, twist strips of foil origami to form loops.

Give it a try!

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Recommended for childcare! Game and activity ideas that will energize your summer festival (11–20)

smart ball

Discovered a giant, DIY retro-game smart ball at a summer festival! Nikko Kinugawa Spa Hotel Mikazuki ~

smart ball

Let’s make a retro game! Here’s an idea for a “smart ball” game.

Smart ball is a type of pinball where you shoot balls into winning holes on the board.

This time, let’s try making a handmade smart ball.

Hammer nails into a board to set up winning and losing zones.

If you add a spinning mechanism, the ball’s movement becomes unpredictable and exciting.

It’s also a good idea to build a small-scale version using materials like cardboard.

Give it a try!

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[Can Stacking] How many can you stack?

A scene from the nursery school’s summer festival, 2012.07.05

[Can Stacking] How many can you stack?

Although the can-stacking game looks simple, it’s surprisingly challenging, so both kids and adults get excited.

The key preparations are to gather plenty of cans and cover the rims and edges with vinyl tape or construction paper to prevent cuts.

The winner is whoever stacks the most cans, so the kids get really serious! They’ll likely come up with all sorts of stacking techniques.

Another fun point is that store-bought cans vary slightly in size depending on the beverage they originally held.

Let’s cheer on the kids as they give it their all.

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[Whac-A-Mole] Let’s hit a lot!

DIY Whack-a-Mole! A Simple How-To Explained for Preschool Use

[Whac-A-Mole] Let's hit a lot!

Whack-a-mole is a game that’s sure to get everyone fired up.

If you make the game together with the kids, you’ll end up with a one-of-a-kind whack-a-mole they feel attached to.

Since both the mole poppers and the whackers tend to get a little too absorbed in the game, it’s a good idea to set a short time limit and see how it goes.

If you let the 4- and 5-year-olds play the role of the moles, they can help guide the younger children kindly while running the game.

Can’t wait to see how many moles you can whack!

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Target practice with a candy box

[Easy Craft] A Shooting Gallery Game with Candy Boxes! Enjoy a Festival at Home [Wacky After School]

Target practice with a candy box

Let’s make and play! Here are some ideas for a target-shooting game using candy boxes.

Target games are one of those corners that really excite kids, right? This time, let’s try making one with candy boxes.

You’ll need empty candy boxes, a stapler, rubber bands, and double-sided tape or regular tape.

It seems you can even make a rubber band gun and a festival-style headband out of empty candy boxes, so give it a try! For the targets, just line up the candy boxes and assign point values to each—easy to set up and play.

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