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Fun Stuff for Under 5'sDownload Ideas here: 10 Things to do with a Bucket / Large Yoghurt Pot and a Pre-Schooler! 1) Tie a rope to the handle and put the bucket at the bottom of a slide with the rope at the top. Let the children play with each other by one filling up the bucket and the other pulling it to the top of the slide – Great for using alternate hands and upper body strength! 2) Give each child a yoghurt pot with one piece of string attached to either side of the pot. Fill up the pot with a small amount of water and let the children swing the pot from side to side and watch the water stay in – Some of them might be able to swing it in a complete circle! 3) Put 4 or 5 buckets in a row and get the children to throw beanbags (or soft toys) into them as target practice. Fabulous for developing throwing! 4) Give each child a bucket and a balloon – let them throw the balloon into the air, watch it float down, while they catch it in the bucket. They are learning to catch and stimulate their eye tracking. 5) Set up an obstacle course outside that the children can do carrying a yoghurt pot. Stack up a large pile of little things such as beanbags, soft toys, (in fact anything small that you can find) at one end of your obstacle course and a large box at the other. Get the children to take one thing at a time to the other end of the course and pop it in the box. It’s just like a survivor challenge! 6) Give each child a bucket let them sit on the floor with their legs apart in straddle position. Ask them to turn the bucket upside down and then they can play it like a drum in time to the music. 7) Give each child a yoghurt pot and blow lots of bubbles for them to catch in their pot. – Great hand eye coordination! 8) Suspend a bucket on an angle (so that the children can put their feet in it) from underneath a slide or climbing frame. Make sure the bucket is suspended only a short distance from the floor. Let the children put their feet in the bucket and see if they can walk their hands around in a circle with their feet in the bucket. – Awesome for upper body development! 9) Give a bucket to one child and a ball to another. Let one child roll the ball along the floor and the other collect it in the bucket – Change the size of the ball to vary it. Great teamwork! 10) Put a row of 5 or 6 buckets in a line and ask the children to step into them with one foot at a time so that they are doing 5 or 6 big steps. The children have to lift their feet up high each time to clear the bucket and step into the next one. 10 Things to do with a Large Beach Towel and a Pre-Schooler! 1) Put the towel flat on the floor and ask the children to make a square by folding it in half. Them ask them to make a triangle, then a smaller triangle and so on until they cannot make the triangle any smaller. Great for teaching shapes and for the children to use their hands. 2) Lie the towel flat on the floor and ask the child to lie flat on their back across on one end with their arms straight above their head. Gently roll the child up in the towel like a sausage roll. When they are all rolled up, pull the end of the towel gently and watch them unwind and roll. Children love the rotation and spinning sensation they get from unwinding the sausage roll! 3) Lie the towel flat on the floor, and ask the child to lie flat on their back across on one end with their arms straight above their head. Gently lift the end of the towel and let the children roll off it. As with the sausage roll, it’s lots of fun! 4) Fold the towel lengthways twice until it is quite narrow and long. Put the towel under the arms of the child and hold both ends tight in your hands. Lift the child and swing them from side to side – they love the feeling of flying! 5) Fold the towel lengthways twice until it is quite narrow and long. Put the towel under the arms of the child and hold both ends tight in your hands. Lift the child and swing them around in a circle making sure you go in both directions to reduce dizziness for them and you! When you put them down just pause for a moment before letting them go to make sure they have recovered from the potential dizziness. 6) Lie the towel flat on the floor and ask the child to sit on the end of it in a curled up tucked position facing away from the towel. Ask them to hold the two ends of the towel nearest to their feet. Gently drag the towel across the floor so that the child can learn to balance in a tucked sitting position. You can drag the towel in a circle or S shape to help them learn to adjust their balance – Be careful not to go too fast as they may get carpet burns! 7) Roll the towel so that it is long and thin, as the child to sit on the floor with their legs straight and place the long thin towel around the bottom of their feet holding onto each end. Take them on an imaginary horse ride and the towel is the rein! Try walking, clip clop and moving legs up and down gently – Try trotting, up down, up down moving legs faster. Try a gentle canter, rocking from side to side. Try galloping, moving arms and legs very fast! 8) Ask the children to roll the towel so that it is long and thin. Ask them to hold one end and swing their arm in a circle over their head changing hands. This can be done circling forwards and backwards and also in a circle over the head like helicopter rotor blades – Great for shoulder mobility but give them lots of space so that they don’t knock anything over! 9) Roll the towel up as small as you possibly can and tie it up with a bit of string or wool (The shape is not important it just has to be as small as you can make it!) – Let the children hold it in both hands and move it around their middle changing hands behind their back – Ask them to try it in both directions – Or in between their legs and up behind their backs to behind their neck and over the top of their head. 10) You will need 3 or 4 beach towels for this one! Roll them up so that they are long and thin – Ask the children to lie them on the floor in different shapes such as straight lines, curved S shapes or semi circles (the choice is theirs!) and ask them to walk along the towels balancing as best as they can. To help them balance you could suggest they put their arms out to the side like aeroplane wings! 
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