41. Fitness/Learning Trail
Get scrap cardboard, a marker, tape, and you’ll be set to make your own fitness trail. Cut the cardboard into 8” x 10” pieces. Write different body and brain exercises on each card and tape to different locations on your playground. For example:
10 jumping jacks
say a nursery rhyme
8 windmills
count backwards from 20 12 squats
name your city, state, and country
15 sit ups
name 5 insects 7 push ups
sing the ABC’s forwards and then backwards
42. Foot Painting
Roll out a long sheet of butcher paper on the sidewalk. Take two pie pans and pour a little paint in each one. Let one child at a time take off her shoes, step in the paint, and then walk across the paper.
43. Banana on a Stick
Peel a banana, insert a popsicle stick, place on a cookie sheet and freeze. It’s a cool snack on a hot day. Grapes, strawberries, blue berries, and many other types of fruit can also be frozen.
44. Maps
Let children make a map of the playground. Encourage them to add the climbing equipment, sidewalks, trees, etc.
You can also make pirate maps from crumbled grocery bags.
45. Fruit Kabob
You will need: Grapes, strawberries, blueberries
Pineapple chunks or melon cut into bite size pieces
Wooden skewers or toothpicks
Children thread fruit onto toothpicks or skewers and then eat!
46. Goofy Golf
You will need several empty cardboard containers or boxes. Turn the containers upside down and cut an arch out of the bottom similar to a mouse hole. Set the containers up on the grass and let the children practice hitting golf balls in the holes. *You can also make a golf course with hula hoops.
*Use small brooms and tennis balls instead of golf clubs.
47. Measurement
Give children rulers and let them measure objects on the playground. “Can you find something 2” long? Can you find something smaller than an inch? What’s longer than 5”? How can you measure the slide?”
48. Tin Can Ice Cream
Homemade ice cream mixture
1 lb coffee can with lid
2 lb coffee can with lid
Crushed ice
Rock salt
Tape
Put the homemade ice cream mixture in the 1 lb. can and tape the lid on. Put the smaller can in the larger can and then pack it layers of ice and salt in between. Place the top on and tape it securely. Kick the can around on the playground for 10-15 minutes until the ice cream freezes. *You can do a similar activity by placing a sandwich bag of the ice cream mixture in a heavy duty gallon bag. Fill with ice and rock salt and toss. The ice cream will be runny, but children can poke a hole in the corner and suck it.
49. Water Painting
Give children plastic containers (margarine tubs, ice cream containers, etc.) filled with water. Let them use paint brushes to “paint” the playground equipment, trees, toys, etc.
50. Pinata
Staple two paper plates together ¾ of the way around with the insides of the plates facing each other. Decorate the outside of the plates with markers, paints, and paper scraps to look like a clown, sun, bear, etc. Blue on tissue paper streamers. Fill the inside with goodies and then staple the rest of the way around. Punch a hole in the top and tie with string to a long stick. Blindfold children and let them swing at the moving piñata with a rolled up newspaper. *You can also make a piñata from grocery sacks. Double the sacks and fill with goodies. Fold the top half of the bag over the bottom of a hanger and staple. Decorate with tissue paper, paints, etc.
Decorate the outside of the plates with markers, paints, and paper scraps to look like a clown, sun, bear, etc. Blue on tissue paper streamers. Fill the inside with goodies and then staple the rest of the way around. Punch a hole in the top and tie with string to a long stick. Blindfold children and let them swing at the moving piñata with a rolled up newspaper.