--- title: "Throw and catch: a hundred quick reps with Dad" published: "2026-10-15" updated: "2026-10-15" author: "Dad Field Manual editors (drafted with AI help)" time: "20 min" cost: "$0" ages: "3 to 10" where: "A patch of grass, a driveway away from the street, or a hallway or basement with a soft ball on a rainy day." topics: ["outdoors","indoor"] print: "https://dadfieldmanual.com/print?p=throw-and-catch" url: "https://dadfieldmanual.com/plans/throw-and-catch/" --- # Throw and catch: a hundred quick reps with Dad > Kids learn to catch by catching. Sit down, feed them soft tosses, and in twenty minutes they'll catch, throw and kick dozens of times. ## What you need - A soft ball, beanbag or rolled-up pair of socks (have) - A bigger soft ball or playground ball for kicking (have) - A laundry basket, bucket or box for a target (have) - Paper and a pencil to tally touches (have) ## Before you start - **Soft balls only.** Beanbags, foam or rubber playground balls. Save hard baseballs for later, and toss underhand at chest height, never at the face. - **Pick a safe spot.** Well away from the street and the driveway, or indoors away from lamps, TVs and windows. - **Short and easy.** Young kids have short attention spans. A few minutes per round is plenty, with a water break between rounds. - **Throwing arms need rest.** Mix in kicking and catching rather than a long stretch of hard throws. ## Steps 1. **Sit down and set a goal** (Dad) Sit or kneel on the grass so you're at their height, with the kid four or five feet away. Say, "Let's see how many touches we can get. A catch, a throw or a kick each counts as one." 2. **Catching round** (Together) Toss the beanbag underhand, softly, to their chest. Count every catch out loud. Misses don't count against anything; just toss again. After five catches in a row, they take one step back. About five minutes. 3. **Throwing round** (Kid) Set the basket a few steps from them. They throw beanbags into it while you hand them back fast, so they're throwing, not fetching. Each throw is a touch; a basket is a cheer. Move the basket back when it gets easy. 4. **Kicking round** (Together) Roll the big ball to them. They stop it with the bottom of a foot, then kick it back to you. Then try kicking it back without stopping it first. Ten in a row, then switch feet. 5. **Let them pick the last round** (Kid) Ask, "Which one do you want to finish with?" Do their favorite for two more minutes. Ending on the thing they like is how they ask for it again tomorrow. 6. **Add up the touches and stop** (Together) Tally the touches on paper and write the date. Stop while they still want more, even if you planned another round. Say, "That was a lot of catches. Same time tomorrow?" ## If it stalls - If they keep missing, move closer and use a bigger, softer ball. A string of easy catches beats a pile of misses. - If they get bored, make the target silly: a cardboard box with a face drawn on it, fed beanbags for dinner. - If they start fooling around, that's the signal to stop for today, not a reason to push through. - If the count starts to feel like homework, quit counting for a week and just play. ## Variations - **Ages 3–5:** Big soft ball, two or three feet apart, and rolling instead of tossing at first. Count together for fun, but don't keep score or compare. A few minutes of each round is a full session. - **Ages 6–8:** The full plan. Add a bounce catch (toss it off the ground first) and a target that's farther away. - **Ages 9–10:** Toss a little off to the side so they have to move their feet, and try to beat last week's total. Let them feed you a round, too. - **Rain:** Move to a hallway or basement with beanbags or rolled socks only. Skip the kicking round, or roll a soft ball gently along the floor. - **Cold:** Gloves make catching harder for little hands. Use a bigger ball and keep rounds short so nobody stands still too long. ## Sources - **Kids' daily activity.** CDC says children 3 to 5 should be active throughout the day, children 6 to 17 need at least 60 minutes a day, and suggests encouraging a variety of age-appropriate activities that kids enjoy. (checked 2026-10-15) - **Throwing and catching take time.** The AAP says toddlers and preschoolers spend a lot of time mastering basic skills like running, kicking, catching and throwing, that fewer than a third of 2- to 5-year-olds are truly effective at throwing and catching, and that most kids pick these skills up by early elementary school. (checked 2026-10-15) - **Basic skills before sports.** The AAP says most children under 6 don't yet have the motor skills for organized sports and have short attention spans, suggests activities built on basics like running, throwing and catching, and says the focus should be learning skills and having fun rather than winning. (checked 2026-10-15) - **Preschoolers: play, not scores.** For young children the AAP says the goals are playfulness, exploration and fun, that any organized play should be very brief, not to keep score, and notes that kids in throwing sports can stress the growth plates of the shoulder or elbow. (checked 2026-10-15)