Share the knowledge and be creative!

Teachers often have a small space at their disposal in schools to work on gross motor skills. This requires creative ideas to get students moving without the benefit of a large gym or outdoor space. Luckily, there are a number of activities that can help children develop their gross motor skills, even in confined spaces. In this blog, I want to share some of these ideas with you, and I will also point you to some useful kids yoga articles that you can use to make the activities even more fun.
Do you have an activity that is really popular with the children? Share it with us. Additions are always welcome

1. Balance game with yoga dice

A balance game is a great activity to improve children's stability and coordination. Using yoga dice, you can add a fun twist to the game. Let the children roll the dice and perform the poses they are shown. This not only helps develop gross motor skills, but also promotes mindfulness and concentration.

2. Yoga stories with the children's yoga adventure box

The Kids Yoga Adventure Box is a great tool to engage children in small space yoga activities. This box contains illustrated cards and instructions for different yoga poses. You can use the cards to create yoga stories with the children. Have them act out the poses as you tell the story. This not only helps develop gross motor skills, but also stimulates the imagination and creativity of the children.

3. Yoga memory game

Another fun and educational game is the “Toys42Hands Memory Yoga” game. This memory game is specially designed to help children learn and recognize different yoga poses. The game consists of cards with pictures of poses that the children have to match. This game can be played in small groups or even individually, and it not only promotes gross motor skills, but also memory and cognitive skills.

4. Cloth dance party

An energetic and fun activity for children in small spaces is the cloth dance party. Make a playlist with cheerful music and have the children perform different yoga poses to the rhythm of the music. The throw cloths can be used to make the movements bigger, without bumping into each other or furniture. A cloth in each hand and rotate with the arms and shoulders. This festive and moving game will promote gross motor skills and the sense of rhythm, which is important for reading.

5. Table activity with exercise ball

The confetti ball is small with its 40 cm diameter, ideal for children to sit on. This way, every game at the table also becomes a balance stimulation. Choose a specific game or corner where the ball or multiple balls can be used in combination with a fixed agreed activity. For example, think of playing with clay with MadMattr clay. Free play is ideal to combine.

Conclusion

Such a small-space activity cannot replace “jumping, flying, diving, falling, getting up and going again” on the schoolyard or in the gym. But it is certainly advisable as a supplement and during long days to also build in small moments of movement in between the school day. Applied regularly, it can also help to structure the day.