What to do with this activity?
Encourage your child to build an obstacle course - either inside or outdoors. The obstacle course could be for a marble or pingpong ball, or for your child and their friends to run through. Use whatever objects you have to hand, like in the picture above. Be experimental and find out what works and what doesn't work.
Here are some Youtube examples of object obstacle courses for inspiration:
An obstacle course for a ping pong ball; a more complicated course for a ping pong ball (something to aim for in the future, or with an adult's help); and a marble run.
When inventing an obstacle course for kids, here are some possible challenges:
1) Jumping over a skipping rope
2) Stepping through hoops or old tyres
3) Aiming a bean bag into a bucket
4) Hopping along in a black plastic bin bag
5) Balancing on a narrow wooden plank laid on the ground
We know your child will be able to think of lots more obstacles and challenges! Time each other on a watch with a display of ticking seconds.
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Why am I doing this?
Children learn numbers and maths in a natural way through play and everyday activities. It’s different to school and should always be fun and practical – that way your child will enjoy working with numbers.
Your child also develops a sense of patterns and what time means in everyday life. This is important for helping your child to manage everyday activities – going places, how long they have to wait and understanding when things will happen in the future.
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How can I do more?
Talking about numbers helps your child’s fluency in counting, estimating and understanding numbers and money in everyday life. It takes time for children to understand addition and subtraction so use objects when helping them understand this or when doing their homework.
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