Clapping Bubbles
Materials
Bubble mixture (can
be made from dish soap and water), bubble wands
Procedure
Child will chase
the bubbles being blown by the adult and try to “clap” them.
Activity
Analysis
Hand eye
coordination to catch the bubbles.
Bilateral
integration to be able to clap the bubbles.
Frustration
tolerance when a bubble floats out of reach.
Coordination to
clap bubbles while moving.
Tactile processing
of the wet bubbles.
Depth perception to
recognize where the bubble is to clap.
Lava with Wood Slices
Materials
Thin slices cut
from a large tree trunk
Procedure
Set up the slices
around the outdoor area and allow the child to jump from section to section
without touching the ground, which is the “lava”.
Activity
Analysis
Righting reactions
when they land to remain upright.
Gross motor
movements hopping and jumping from spot to spot.
Frustration
tolerance when they fall off the slice.
Depth perception to
recognize how far they have to jump.
Proprioceptive
processing through the increased pressure from jumping and hopping.
Motor planning to
get to another slice without falling.
Nature Bracelet
Materials
Wide masking tape,
natural objects
Procedure
1. Place a length
of masking tape, sticky side out around the child’s wrist.
2. Go outdoors and
look for natural objects to stick to the tape.
Activity
Analysis
Tactile processing
of the sticky tape.
Eye hand
coordination to be able to place the objects onto the tape.
Decision making of
what to include on the bracelet.
Figure ground to
locate objects in the natural terrain.
Frustration
tolerance if an object will not remain on the tape.
Pressure
discrimination to know how hard to press to get the objects to stick without
hurting the arm the bracelet is on.
Nature Photography
Materials
Digital camera
Procedure
1. Allow the child
to go outdoors and take pictures from nature.
2. Use a computer
or the screen on the camera to determine which photos to keep and print and
which to delete.
Activity Analysis
Self confidence in
being successful at the task of taking pictures.
Decision making in
what to take a picture of and how to shoot the photo.
Upper extremity
stability to hold arms still to take the photos.
Finger dexterity to
press the picture button.
Figure ground to
locate objects in the midst of other distractions.
Pressure
discrimination to hold the camera securely.
Self expression to
say which photos they like and which they do not.
Obstacle Course
Materials
Items to make a
challenge (bench, fabric tunnel, trampoline, stairs, stepping stones, cones,
etc.)
Procedure
1. The adult will
set up an obstacle course and tell the child how to complete it. To focus on
motor planning, the adult can have the child repeat what the steps are.
2. The child will
run the obstacle course.
Activity
Analysis
Motor planning to
switch motor activities swiftly.
Gross motor
movements to go from crawling to hopping to running.
Vestibular processing
to keep from falling over when moving swiftly up and down.
Following
directions to complete the obstacle course.
Self confidence
when successfully completing the course.
Outdoor Hunt and Find
Materials
Pictorial or word
checklist of items to locate outdoors (trees, animals, rocks, flowers, sun,
clouds, etc.)
Procedure
1. Give the child
the list of items to be found.
2. Go outdoors and
try to find everything!
Activity
Analysis
Frustration
tolerance if everything is not found immediately.
Motivation to
locate everything on the list.
Gross motor
movements in walking to locate the items.
Listening to try
and hear for animal sounds.
Memory to recall
the items on the list, even if not looking at it.
Figure ground to
espy items even if they are in the middle of a landscape.
Outdoor
Twister
Materials
Multiple colors of
spray paint, a grassy area, a spinner from the game Twister or construction
paper squares to play the game
Procedure
Use the spray paint
to spray circles onto the grass in rows, as in a normal twister game. Play the
game as normal!
Activity
Analysis
Tactile processing
of the hard ground and grass.
Motor planning to
determine how to move one extremity to be on the appropriate colored circle.
Frustration
tolerance if they fall over.
Problem solving if
there is another player and they must move around them.
Muscle endurance to
remain up on the extremities without collapsing.
Peanut Hunt
Materials
Peanuts (or another
nut, if there are allergies)
Procedure
Like an egg hunt,
except peanuts are smaller and blend in to the terrain more. Hide the peanuts
in a specific area outdoors and let the child search for them.
Activity
Analysis
Figure ground to
locate the hidden peanuts.
Frustration
tolerance when unable to locate them.
Self confidence
when successful in finding a peanut.
Grasp patterns when
picking up the peanut.
Reaching for the
peanut.
Visual processing
to focus on scanning the ground for peanuts.
Gross motor
movements to be able to bend and pick up the peanuts and then stand upright
again.
Spraying Plants
Materials
Spray bottle filled
with water, plants
Procedure
Allow the child to
spray down various plants that need watering. This can be done indoors or
outdoors, but children often become overly enthusiastic with this task!
Activity
Analysis
Impulse control to
spray only the plants and nothing else.
Muscle strength to
be able to squeeze the trigger of the water bottle.
Grasp pattern to
hold the bottle and be able to spray it.
Reach to be able to
get to plants at a variety of heights.
Tactile processing
if some water gets on the skin.
Depth perception to
know how close to stand to spray the plants.
Squeeze
Bottle Painting
Materials
Squeezable water
bottles, water
Procedure
The child can
squirt the water onto the sidewalk or side of the building, making designs or
letters. (This can also be done in snow with colored water.)
Activity
Analysis
Muscle strength to
squeeze the bottle enough to get water to come out, especially as the water
level decreases.
Frustration
tolerance when they run out of water.
Creativity to
decide what to draw out of water.
Tactile processing
in handling the water.
Bilateral
integration to use both hands to squeeze the bottle and move it around.
Crossing midline
when using both hands on the bottle and drawing designs.
Unnature Trail
Materials
Rope, small
household objects (plastic eggs, buttons, figurines, etc.)
Procedure
1. Use the rope
mark off how long the path will be. This is best done where there are some
variations in the terrain (bushes, trees, grass, dirt, etc.)
2. Hide the objects along the path, some in
plain view, some less obvious.
3. Tell the child
how many objects were hidden and have them follow the rope and try to locate
them. Keep walking along the path until they are all located.
Activity
Analysis
Figure ground in
recognizing the objects hidden in the terrain.
Grasp pattern to
pick up the various objects.
Frustration
tolerance when unable to locate the objects quickly.
Following
directions to stay on the path to find the objects.
Vestibular
processing when bending over to pick up the objects and then standing upright
again.
Visual processing
to recognize the human objects in the middle of nature.
