Rainy-day hallway obstacle course
Young kids need to move, and rain doesn't change that. In 30 minutes you build a five-station course out of things you already own, and let them burn off energy without leaving the house.
- Time
- 30 min
- Cost
- $0
- Ages
- 2 to 6
- Where
- Hallway or living room
What you need
- Couch cushions or pillows
- Painter's tape or masking tape for floor lines
- A blanket and two chairs, or a big cardboard box, for a tunnel
- Rolled-up socks and a laundry basket
- A timer, or just you counting out loud
Before you start
- Clear the course. Move anything sharp or breakable, keep it well away from stairs, and go barefoot or in grippy socks, not slick socks on hard floors.
- Nothing to climb that can tip. Cushions on the floor only. No climbing dressers, shelves or stacked chairs; unanchored furniture can tip onto a child.
- One kid at a time through the tunnel and the lava, so heads don't meet in the middle.
- Soft things to throw. Rolled socks or soft balls, not hard toys.
Steps
- Clear the runway. Clear the floor, move sharp or breakable things, and keep the course away from stairs.
- Build five stations. Set up a tape tightrope, cushion stepping stones, a tunnel, a sock toss and a bear-crawl finish.
- Walk it slow first. Walk the whole course slowly with them behind you, naming each station.
- Run it and time it. Count or time each run and cheer at every station. Three or four rounds.
- Let them be the boss. Each round, they change one station. Then you run their course while they time you.
- Slow down and clean up. Do a slow-motion round, lie down for ten slow breaths, then race to clean up.
If it stalls
- If they fall apart over being slower than a sibling, stop timing. Race the stuffed animal instead, or count how many socks went in.
- If they only want the tunnel, make it all tunnels. The point is moving.
Best time · stations they invented
Signed off: can do this.Signed by Date