Hide objects in the sandbox and have infants dig them out.
A playground can be a wonderful place for a young child to play. Sandboxes, sidewalks or even open areas can be ideal places for games. Infants up to four years old will enjoy the excitement of taking part in fun games with their family and friends, and there are plenty of activities suitable for their age group.
What's the Time, Mr. Wolf?
This playground game is exciting and can be played by three or more children. One player starts off as the wolf, and stands with her back turned about five meters away from the rest of the players. The other players all call out, "What's the time, Mr. Wolf?" and the wolf shouts out a time, such as nine o'clock. The other players would then move nine steps toward the wolf. Players then repeat "what's the time..." and the wolf answers with a time after every question. Players must take the same amount of steps toward the wolf as the amount of hours in the wolf's time; two o'clock would mean two steps, and five o'clock would be five steps forward. When the group gets close to the wolf, the wolf answers their question by shouting "dinner time!" and turns to run after the rest of the group, who will be running back to the start line. The wolf tries to catch another player before they all reach the start line again. If someone is caught, he then becomes the wolf for another round of the game.
Oranges and Lemons
In this group game of oranges and lemons, young children will enjoy singing a song they've learned and interacting with other children. The game starts with two children holding their arms up together to form an arch. Each child must decide which of them will be the orange and which will be the lemon. Every child in the group then sings the oranges and lemons song, which is easy to learn: "Oranges and lemons say the bells of St. Clements. You owe me five farthings, say the bells of St. Martin's. When will you pay me? Say the bells of Old Bailey. When I grow rich, say the bells of Shoreditch. When will that be? Say the bells of Stepney. I'm sure I don't know, says the great bell at Bow. Here comes a candle to light you to bed; here comes a chopper to chop off your head. Chip, Chop the old man is dead." The rest of the children run under the arch throughout the song until one is caught when the arch falls down at the end of the song. The child who is caught each time decides whether she wants to be an orange or a lemon and then stands behind the original orange or lemon, depending on which they choose. The game can be concluded with a tug of war between oranges and lemons but this option is only advised for older children.
Tic-Tac-Toss Sidewalk Game
All that is needed for this two-player game of tic-tac-toss in the playground is a sidewalk and some chalk to write with. Children begin by drawing a traditional tic-tac-toe grid onto the sidewalk with chalk. For younger children, adult assistance may be required. Each player takes turns tossing a pebble or coin in a square on the grid. The first child to successfully get his pebble or coin in a square marks that square with an 'X'. The other child then marks every square she manages to hit with an 'O'. Game play continues until one player gets three 'X's or 'O's in a row in the grid.
Digging for Treasure
Particularly suited for younger infants, this treasure-seeking game is a fun and safe activity for the sandbox. Parents, or other children if they wish, hide colorful objects in the sand for the infant to find. Infants can either use their hands or a plastic spade to dig out each object. Adults may even want to make the buried treasure more realistic by spray-painting rocks in shiny silver or gold before heading down to the playground and hiding them in the sandbox.
Tags: oranges lemons, clock would, , , other children
