Parachute Play
From http://www.flightsofwhimsy-ece.com
- Keep two balls on the parachute as you shake it up and down.
- Hold the parachute down low, counted 1, 2, 3 and raised it above heads to make it ‘float’ as it fills with air. Let go of the chute with one hand and wave to friends over the other side.
- Go around in a circle clockwise as you hold the parachute taught, then switch and circled anti-clockwise. Switches become faster, as you get better.
From nurturestore.co.uk
- Follow the leader: Have someone be the leader and give the rest of the group instructions – and of course the leader can be one of the children rather than the grown-up! Try giving instructions to walk to the left, skip to the right, hold up high, couch down low, shake the parachute gently, shake the parachute quickly.
- Add some bounce. You can add a seasonal element or fit parachute play to a theme by adding some props on to the top to bounce around while you play. Cotton wool balls make great snow, and we use fir cones in the autumn. We find teddies love a ride and balloons add a dash of chaotic fun!
- As well as having the children work together around the edge of the parachute, have them listen out for instructions that apply just to themselves. Have everyone lift the parachute way up high and then give instructions for children to run underneath the parachute if they are wearing something green, if they have brown hair, if they like eating bananas and so on.
- You can also pick someone to sit in the center of the circle and wrap them up like a birthday present, or spin them like a washing machine. Remind the children to keep the parachute low to the ground when you do this, so the person in the center doesn't have their head covered. It’s very funny for the children to have one of the grown-ups sit in the center to be wrapped up.
From prekandsharing.com
Items to be used with
The parachute can be used to help reinforce other basic learning: "If you are a BOY, sit under the parachute."
- leaves (fabric and real in Autumn),
- stuffed animals (various kinds to represent different topics, to sing songs and for beginning sounds etc.)
- cotton balls (as pretend "snow")
- light/heavy balls (to explore the difference in weight)
- and balloons (for work on color recognition)
The parachute can be used to help reinforce other basic learning: "If you are a BOY, sit under the parachute."