Play Extreme Hopscotch

What You Need:

• Chalk
• Sidewalk space
• Lots of imagination

What You Do:

1. Have your child use chalk on the sidewalk to draw several connected boxes in a row, like those she might make for traditional hopscotch. The boxes should be rectangle shape, and each box should be large enough for a child to jump in it and to fit several words of directions.
2. Instead of numbers that are usually in hospcotch boxes, tell your child she should come up with some creative activities for players that jump in the boxes to do, before advancing to further boxes. A list of examples is provided here to give your child a head start:

• Pose like a ninja
• Count backwards from 10 to 1
• March in a Circle
• Hop twice (like a bunny)
• Do a jumping jack
• Hop on one foot for five seconds
• Do the chicken dance
• Try to whistle
• Do a ballerina twirl
• Be a swaying tree
• Meow like a cat
• Moo like a cow
• Rub your belly and pat your head at the same time
• Pose your body in the shape of an alphabet letter
• Yodel

3. Encourage her to come up with some ideas of her own, too.
4. She may want to add illustrations to help clarify her directions inside some of the chalk boxes.
5. Now that your child has exercised her imagination, help her invite friends to play Extreme Hopscotch. She’ll exercise her body while having a blast!