Try this hilarious indoor game for preschoolers. We all know children learn and play in various ways. This indoor game for preschoolers is a hoot! And it’s a good time and boosts perseverance, fine motor, and hand-eye coordination. Grab the kitchen tongs and stuffed animals covering your child’s entire bed. We’ve got a game to play.
RELATED: I am a big believer that children learn through play. Here are 101 preschool activities organized by categories for quick searching.
What makes this indoor game great
When planning simple games, I want to touch on all the different play categories and integrate various concepts that prepare our children for life. Kindergarten topics are important, but life skills are essential.
So what better way to get kids taking turns, using descriptive words, and improving arm strength than using one giant claw similar to what they watch on Toy Story Three? I’ll admit. I joined in on the fun as well. Who can resist a claw game?! This indoor game had us all laughing! Adding to your rainy day or winter activity list is a must.
RELATED: Another way to practice taking turns is by playing family board games. Here is a list of my top 15 board games for kids.
Who has time to search for ideas?
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How this game hits gross motor muscles
Large motor activities and gross motor games are essentially the same. Having your preschooler move their body literally wakes up their brain.
These activities involve using the larger muscles in your body. Strengthening these muscles will help with many other skills, like crossing the midline. Read this article about crossing the midline to understand the significance further.
Gross motor skills include:
What about fine motor skills?
Yep! This indoor game hits gross and fine motor skills—a double win for your toddler and preschooler.
We want to practice strengthening the large muscles just as much as we practice the fine motor skills. (cutting, pasting, gluing, writing, buttoning, tying, etc.)
Both fine and gross motor skills are important for development.
Let’s set up this indoor game!
Like most kid activities at home, we will use most of what we already own. This activity has us gathering items from the kitchen and the child’s bedroom. Need spare supplies? The sensory bin and kitchen are in my outdoor sensory supplies post.
- Find a large basket and gather stuffed animals.
- Next, collect a large sensory bin.
- Find large kitchen tongs.
- Place a small chair next to the bin of animals. I did this so my preschooler would use his strength to grab, lift, and drop the animals into the bin using his arm strength. (this is the combination of fine and gross motor skills at work)
- Finally, turn up the music and invite your child to play!
RELATED: Curious how fine motor games like this help with pencil grip? Here’s what you need to know.
Variations to this indoor game
The idea is to see which animal you could grab using the claw. My preschoolers took turns seeing which animal they could hold. Since all the animals were mixed up, it was funny to see their reaction as each one was captured.
- Blindfold the child pulling from the basket. Say clues to help them guess which animal they picked.
- Keep the blindfold off and use descriptive words to help increase their vocabulary and pay attention to detail.
- Count the animals grabbed.
- Sort the animals by classifying them into different categories—animals found in water, land animals, animals with a tail, etc.
We played this indoor game dozens of times before the boys grabbed thier stuffed animals and headed out.
RELATED: Curious about how to spend the days with kids? Check out our predictable schedule.
FAQ
We all know it is important to allow kids time to be bored. But sometimes, a few ideas can go a long way to spark independent play. This list of 101 preschool activities for kids is an excellent starting place.
Toy storage and keeping toys at eye level are essential to inspiring more play at home. Use this toy storage post to see how we organize what we need for indoor play.
Pushing writing letters before their hands are ready is like driving a car without gas. We don’t get very far if we don’t add what’s needed to help it go the distance. We allow our children to explore the fine motor tool and put them down when they lose interest. Picking up small objects with their pointer and thumb is another way to improve fine motor skills. Here are 50 fine motor activities to explore new ways to play.
Great way to engage kids for long hours enjoying these fun games. Some fun & new activities were known after reading your blog. I am going to use many of your activities to play with my loved ones. One can also find many interesting indoor games to enjoy with kids at jenjoes.com. Thanks for sharing this list with us.