Ideas for slide-in pictures: the climbing wall / Swiss cheese game
Author: Tanja Damhof
Webshop owner and mother
The climbing wall, an old Dutch game that is also called Swiss cheese. The basis is always the same, pulling two strings to prevent the marble from falling into the holes. In a new guise, this game is interesting for young and old.
Should you pay attention to the marble or not?
Whether the goal is to sail around the holes and not drop the marble into the holes
OR
to help the marble on its way to the holes and then let it fall in?
Motorically this doesn't matter that much. However, this plate is quite difficult. It has a lot of holes and the three different routes the marble can walk without falling into the holes are challenging and perhaps confusing. The paths between the marbles are sometimes very narrow...
So it's time for some creative adjustments so that this climbing wall is also fun for younger children and remains fun as the children get older.
Insert plate with a target hole
The imagination knows no bounds. You take a sheet of paper and think of a picture for the climbing wall yourself.
How about the snowman throwing a snowball? But a hole is cut open in the picture and a nice flight path is drawn for the snowball. This picture can be adjusted by drawing an easier route.
Or a mouse that is going to the but on the way there must not fall into the holes. By cutting open a few holes this route is also challenging but not too difficult.
Sliding plate with many holes
Instead of pulling directly to a hole, you can pull over it. Children pull the marble to the mushroom and let it fall in. That is easier than aiming and specifically choosing a hole as a target. Just drive over it and it will fall somewhere.
The climbing wall can always be adapted to thematic work in the classroom . How about a gum machine, a laundry basket, a month full of Easter eggs, a lot of autumn leaves…..
Aiming with a few targets
Without giving a route, the children can pull the marble up nicely here. Then a few target holes are cut open on the slide-in plates.
If you still have a small Piet sticker, you can stick it on the marble holder, so that Piet can drop the presents up into the chimney.
Make your own slide-in plates
I placed a sheet of paper over the perforated plate and pressed the holes through with a piece of chalk using the frottage technique. Then I traced the holes with a thick black marker. I placed that perforated paper under my planned slide-in plate so that I knew where the holes were when drawing my plate.
TIPS:
– first cut the paper as narrow as the inside of the frame. Then you won't get into trouble with your drawing design.
– take into account the edge and thickness of the marble holder in your drawing. Keep the drawn lines away from the edge. In the snowman drawing it is almost too close to the edge.
– print the downloads or your own drawings on slightly thicker paper, so you can use them more often
Have you designed something and would you like to share it with us? I am a very curious person and would love to receive more pictures from you to share here.
I've been working on examples for the climbing wall again, just because they're so awesome.
