Balloon Keep It Up
What you need
- balloon
- open floor space
How to do it
- Blow up a balloon and gently bat it into the air.
- Take turns tapping it up before it touches the floor.
- Count out loud together each time it's tapped.
- Chase it down together if it lands and start again.
Why it matters
Reaching up to tap a slow, floaty balloon gives your toddler time to judge where it's going, which is much easier practice for hand-eye coordination than a fast ball.
What they're learning
- hand-eye tracking
- Watching a slow balloon and timing a tap builds the tracking skill behind catching a ball later.
- reaching and stretching
- Reaching up on tiptoes stretches muscles used for reaching shelves and climbing.
- turn-taking
- Passing the balloon back and forth practises waiting for a turn, a key skill for playing with other children.
What to look for
Watch for them tracking the balloon with their eyes and moving their whole body underneath it before tapping.
A tip
Only play this with an adult right there, and bin the balloon the moment it pops or deflates.
Make it easier or harder
Easier: let them just catch and drop the balloon instead of batting it
Harder: see how many taps you can get in a row before it lands
