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The other day Josh told me he read that toddlers have the same energy level as a professional endurance athlete. Like, it’s a proven fact….I’ll just let that soak in for a minute.
So when you multiply that never ending energy supply by three kids (and add one tired mama), you can bet I’m always on the hunt for gross motor activities to keep these kiddos moving and hopefully a little tired by bed time. Bonus points if the activity is also educational.
So when I stumbled across this post by The Pennington Point, I was all over this Color Race game. It takes practically no set up and minimal materials, the kids love it, and I can literally just sit back and call out instructions.
Introducing the Color Races! Here’s how to play.
Grab a stack of construction paper, one sheet for every color, and some tape. This is a great use for that super cheep dollar store construction paper that seems to repel glue and stickers. Seriously, I hate dollar store paper and so do my kids. But I bought a pack once, and now I have a use for it. We use this construction paper for the real crafting, and it’s awesome.
Using the tape, stick each sheet of paper randomly around the house or yard. Another reason I love this game, it can be played indoors on rainy days or those ridiculously hot days here in CA, or outdoors during good weather.
Pick a color as the starting line then just sit back and start yelling out colors. If your kids are anything like mine they’ll love the little bit of competition to see who can run the fastest or find the color first. Or in a kind of Simon-Says fashion I can yell out one child’s name and a color for them to run too. Or try it obstacle course style and have them crawl under things or climb over things to get to colors. You could also add my color wheel and have the kids take turns spinning to find the next color.
This game will keep my kids running for close to half an hour! Talk about gross motor awesomeness! And it is seriously improving Little Dude’s color recognition too.
There are benefits for mom too. Since my only roll is to call out colors, I can get things done while they play. I can fold laundry, make dinner, or nurse flash all while I supervise. I just keep calling out until they get a little breathless and then announce the next activity, whether it’s snack time or quiet time; something slow paced.
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