Rope and Hula Hoop Activity – Gross Motor Fun for Preschoolers
Add a simple rope and hula hoop activity to your outdoor play space for imaginative play and gross-motor development.
This activity was quick and easy to set up, and it didn’t cost a thing, because I already had the hula hoops and the rope. I simply strung a very long length of rope over our clothes-line, and tied a hula hoop to each end of the rope.
It provided a fun backyard obstacle for the toddlers and preschoolers to climb through, throw things through and manipulate however they wished.
If you’ve seen our Pool Noodle Abacus, our Tightrope, our pretend clothesline and our Rope and a Bucket activities you’ve probably gathered that we like using ropes for play here in my daycare.
Ropes can be classified as “loose parts” in your play space.
What’s a loose part?
You can read more about loose parts in our Bottle Babies post
To sum it up, loose parts are materials that have no pre-defined purpose in the play space. They can be moved and used in whatever manner the children like, giving kids the opportunity to explore, build, transport and create with them.
Small loose parts like bottle babies, sticks, stones, and sponges can be manipulated by little hands to be whatever the player wishes, and larger loose parts like our rope and hula hoop encourage physical exercise and help to strengthen muscle tone, balance and co-ordination.
This simple contraption provided hours of physical play for the hooligans during the week or two that it was rigged up.
My toddlers and preschoolers had a blast tossing balls through the hoops,
swinging and swatting at the hoops, and climbing and crawling through them.
There’s really not much else to say except that it provided hours of fun, and the kids got a ton of muscle and co-ordination-building exercise while playing with them.
Make your backyard the funnest backyard in the neighbourhood:
18 Free {or almost free} Cool Features to Add to Your Backyard Playground
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Jackie is a mom, wife, home daycare provider, and the creative spirit behind Happy Hooligans. She specializes in kids’ crafts and activities, easy recipes, and parenting. She began blogging in 2011, and today, Happy Hooligans inspires more than 2 million parents, caregivers and Early Years Professionals all over the globe.
