We live in upstate New York, where the weather isn’t always prime for getting little ones outside. During those long winter months and rainy days, we have to get creative with our indoor play. So for this activity, we brought the ice rink into the living room!
We started with the book, “It’s Hockey Time, Franklin” by Jason Cooper (Adapter), Charles M. Schulz (Author), Scott Jeralds (Illustrator). In this cute story, the peanuts gang figures out how to work together to give everyone an opportunity to skate. It’s also a great way to introduce ice skating and playing hockey to your preschooler.
After reading the story, we played our own version of indoor hockey. My preschooler and I each got a hockey stick (half a pool noodle) and we took turns scoring goals until we made it up to 10. This activity was great for indoor exercise, gross motor skills practice (hitting the ball with the noodle), hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills (moving the clothes pin to the correct number on the scoreboard).
My little one was on the younger side when we played, so I decided we would work together with one goal, but this activity could easily be modified for older kids by setting up two goals and playing against each other.
GOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!
Little learners today, leaders tomorrow… happy creating!
Want to try this activity out? Just pick up the materials below and have fun!
MATERIALS:
- Box or basket
- Clothespin
- Small ball
- Pool noodle (cut in half)
- Hockey Scoreboard (FREE PDF download)
BOOKS: