=SPA Cai = "5 O Activity Ideas ToDoAt Common tiPB SmHELLO THERE! Thank you for getting a copy of this book. We hope these ideas go a long way in providing hours of fun for your children, and you too! More importantly, we hope they inspire little ones to enjoy the magic and fun that can be found in everyday spaces. These games are simple, require very few materials or preparation. All you need is your imagination and a willingness to try! We know how it feels - when you're put on the spot with “We're bored!” it can be difficult to make regularly-visited urban spaces more fun. That’s why we've created this handy guide.HELLO THERE! Most of these games are played outdoors - where your child can soak up sunshine, breathe fresh air, move their bodies freely, connect with nature and use their imagination. You'll find that kids will be inspired to create their own games and variations once they get started, which is really what we want to achieve. Have fun! [Pro Tip: Keep this guide in the car or your to-go backpack. If you have a chance to plan ahead, pop in a few things like rope, paper, ball, pencils, balloons, bubbles, cardboard. You'll be so glad you did! You'll be the envy of all other parents who are probably thinking, ‘Oh, why didn’t | think of that!’]WHAT IS SPACETIVITY? Urban neighbourhoods are such common sights that we overlook them when looking for fun things to do. Going to attractions and parks are fun. But you can also have an awesome time outside, in the neighbourhood! With easy-to-implement ideas and minimal equipment, you'll start to see these urban common spaces around the neighbourhood in a new light. It's no longer just a place to call home - it's a place for epic adventures and loads of fun!AN IMPORTANT NOTE While these ideas have been purposefully created to instill fun & love of the outdoors, do take note of these important points: 1. All activities involve a certain level of risk especially when playing with children of varied ages. While carrying out any activity, be aware of what risks are present for each person, the different abilities they might have and facilitate accordingly. 2. We recommend you to have a walk through of the location before starting on any activity and bring along an outdoor play kit (water, simple first aid kit) if you're planning on an activity.AN IMPORTANT NOTE 3. In a public space, be mindful of other people around and the laws that govern the area so as to not break any rules while having fun. 4. Leave no trace. Shared spaces are for the enjoyment of everyone. Clean up after each activity, clear out any rubbish and be mindful of the plants & animals in that area so as to not destroy them. 5. As outdoor educators, it's a common practise for us to brief on the rules of the place and activity with our participants once we reach the area. This way, we are all reminded to be more aware and mindful of our presence in the space.Hello There! 1 Mud Painting 23 Hide and Seek 43 What is Spacetivity 3 Musical Chairs 24 Hopscotch 44 ‘An Important Note 4 Rocky Road 25 Human Gate 45 Content Page 6 — ScavengerHuntRace 26 ~—‘I Spy 46 WATER PLAY 7 Seek & Follow (and find!) 27 Level Up Catching. 47 Drain Race 8 Stick Hockey 28 Mini Tee-Pee 48 Paper Boat Race 9 Tree Fort 29 Parachute Paradise 49 Puddle Jumping 10 Twigs Tic Tac Toe 30 Pilot Obstacle Course 50 ‘Sponge Relay 11 (CARDBOARDGAMES! 31 = RaceYoutotheTop! = 51. Spray Art 12 Cardboard Slide 32 RampitUp Bowling! 52 Spray Wars 13. Cardboard Tennis 33 Ramp Orchestra 53 Water Balloon Pinatas 14. Dice Call 34 Rope Rangers 54 Water Bending 15 Leaf Race 35 Runway Racers 55 Water Painting 16 Race Car Ramp 36 Shadow Tag 56 NATURE PLAY 17 Shadow Puppet Show 37 _ Slingshot 57 Nature Darts 18 "SIMPLYFUNGAMES) 938 — Spiderweb 58 Confetti Leaves 19 Beach Ball Volleyball 39 Staircase Olympics 59 It's Raining Leaves! 20 Bubble Attack 40 Tallest Tower 60 Longest Line 21 Bubble Blower 41 (WELLDONE! 61 Mini Twigs Village 22 Capture the Planets 42 Fillers 62WATER PLAY Water play is the best! We don’t know any child that doesn’t enjoy playing with or IN water. It's fun, splash-able, can sink or float items, unpredictable and moves fast or slow and it's cooling. Water play can teach a lot of things too - there's Math, Science, fine motor skills, problem-solving and more. Best thing to play especially after a rainy day! —===f}8 DRAIN RACE Wait for a rainy day, then prepare your Super Paper Boat for a race down ‘Try leaf or twig boats instead. Which the drain! Whose boat will win? goes faster?P INSTRUCTION $ After a rainy day, find a large puddle. Make a Super Paper Boat (origami Try using leaves to create wind to make style), and have a race with your friends. the boats go faster.PUDDLE JUMPING ; TSiare After a rainy day, go outside and jump over the puddles on the ground. When you're done jumping, why not jump in them and make a SPLASH! Who can make the biggest splash? Try hopping over the puddles instead. Tricky! 10Be SPONGE RELAY Wet sponge with rainwater then relay it to a friend who has to fill up a Why not grab more friends (grownups bucket. Remember - when you are holding the sponge, you can't move too), make up some teams and have a your feet! rain race!SPRAY ART Fill spray bottles with water and use them to draw on the ground. Aad) With pencils, draw coloured patterns onto white paper. Spray your picture with your water spray and see the pretty effect! 2AYN a PAY Fill your spray bottles with water and have a soaking good time! Get everybody to hop on one leg when spraying.Te Pony pithy ¢ -- oa Se Tie balloons filled with water to tree branches and let the kids hit the ___ balloons - perfect for a hot day! Try having a go at the pinata, one at a time - blindfolded!anf WATER BENDING INSTRUCTION Ona rainy day, place a plastic bottle at the void deck. Using various Make it challenging by going farther items, try to fill the bottle up! each time.anf WATER PAINTING Ona rainy day, using plain water and brush, paint on void deck pillars Do a challenge of “Guess my painting” or floor,La id oN Studies have shown how much learning happens when children play. Playing in nature too have awesome benefits for the little ones. Once children enjoy games that include elements of nature such as leaves, twigs, mud and more - they will grow to love and feel connected with nature. It’s one of the best (and free) play resource there is! wl wgmeng NATURE DARTS SEE Find a coloured area (or area with shapes printed) at the playground. (Once your dart hits the target, jump onto Collect some twigs and try to throw them onto the playground the shape and stay there before moving floor pattems. to throw your dart to the next shape. 8Collect dried leaves around you and throw them up into the air like Try to dodge the falling leaves, The person confetti. Don't forget to tidy up after! with the least number of leaves on them wins! 9S RAINING LEAVES! Fp: a a Windy day activity - catch as many leaves falling from trees ‘Set a timer and see how many you can catch, as possible. in the time given. 20Use items around you (twigs, leaves etc) to make the longest line within Have a shape challenge - see who can allimited time, make the biggest circle, square etc.Collect twigs and turn them to a beautiful mini village for your toys! Combine the twigs together to create one giant house.Tater WN ‘After a rainy day go out and find some mud or damp soil! Use it to Take a leaf/twig and use it as paint brushes paint some masterpieces. to paint on the floor with the mud.MUSICAL CHAIRS Collect large leaves around you and use them as chairs. Play some music Once you sit down on your leaf, you and dance around. When the music stops, sit on an empty ‘chair. have to freeze! If you move, you're out! Whoever is left without a chair is eliminated. 24Eg ROCKY ROAD Collect pebbles from the area to make a road for your toy cars. Use the same pebbles to make a character and create a story.cM NL oe Make a list and collect all of the items. Who can collect them all first? Use different tools to pick up the items Each player gets one point for collecting each item. (eg. diy tweezers, tongs etc)437 SEEK AND FOLLOW (AND FIND!) Laya line of rope through the grass and foliage, hiding it with leaves ‘Tumit into a treasure hunt by hiding little and amongst the plants. Let the kids search for the start point and have _treats for the players to find - such as them follow the rope to the endpoint. ‘small wrapped lollies or toys.Tce f VARIATION 4 Grab a nice branch or stick and play hockey with your friends! You can Have the same target for everyone to hit use a puck, small ball, paper ball, empty can or even a ping pong ball. (like stick golf), 28Bea Wrap large pieces of cloth around three to four trees to create an Use the cloth to create an obstacle maze awesome fort. Protect your fort from attackers! with the trees. 2TWIGS TIC-TAC-TOE Collect twigs/sticks around the area. Arrange into a tic-tac-toe grid, Make a grid with a small target in the middle. Use leaves & other nature elements around you to play. Try to throw small pebbles or stones right into the center square.CARDBOARD GAMES We love cardboard! And children love them too! Have you noticed how your child always gravitate to playing with the cardboard box or packaging? That's because cardboard boxes are like magnets - they attract children. And children love them because they can be creative and use the box as props, pretend objects or simply to decorate them. Start reusing all the cardboard you have for play! &INSTRUCTION Use a large piece of cardboard (or tape a few together) to slide down a ‘Try standing up - now you're cardboard grassy slope. Wheeeece! surfing!etree Use cardboard sheets as racquets, bring a ball along and play a game of tennis. Ae Use smaller cardboard racquets and a lighter ball (such as rolled-up newspaper) and you can play cardboard badminton. Make a makeshift cardboard net and your court is complete!DICE CALL Using cardboard, make two large dice. Number one of them and abel___—_‘Tryusinga timer next time - find the items the other with objects e.g. leaves, twigs. Roll the dice and start within 30 seconds! collecting according to the number and item rolled.LEAF RACE P INSTRUCTION 4 Collect dried leaves. Use a large cardboard to fan the leaves across the finish line, Happy racing! Get the leaf across the line without it touching the floor. Ifit touches the floor, restart. 35INSTRUCTION Place a large piece of cardboard over a staircase. Now you have a ramp ‘Add some lanes, tracks and paste to race your toy cars! sticks/toys as obstacles for the cars to avoid crashing!Sian SEE Place toys or paper cut-outs along the court line against the sunlight to _Line up your toys, grab some pencils and create a shadow. Now you're ready to put ona show! Paper and draw cut-out shadows. a° AP a ay It’s often the simple games that get the biggest laughs (and use up a lot of that extra energy kids need to burn off). A lot of these games have been forgotten - it’s our chance to keep them alive & introduce it to our children. Reignite the joy of these fun, easy-to-play games, Good time to play with your kids! Your kids might even make some new friends in the neighbourhood too! @ 8 i) é ”BEACH BALL VOLLEYBALL Use a beach ball to play a game of volley ball. To make things more interesting, say the name of the game before hitting it - it's quite the tongue twister! cE Try using a balloon instead of a beach ball »eC EE You may only pop the bubbles with your bubbles win, finger (can try different fingers) - if you pop one with your body, you are out. Blow bubbles and say “Bubbles Attack!” Whoever bursts the most.Eng BUBBLE BLOWER Collect twigs around to form a triangle. Secure the shape with some string or thread and you've got yourself a pretty cool bubble blower. Try experimenting with different size and shaped blowers. aMis a ky Divide the group into two teams. Each team will take turns hiding le different coloured balls. Call out the coloured balls in their areas, for the other team to find. Give each balla name of the colours and see who finds planet name, or get creative! it firstcod HIDE AND SEEK Use your communal space to place Hide and Seek. The rule is you can Allhiders stand still while the seeker walks only use pillars as hiding spots! around to guess who is hiding at each pillar “3HOPSCOTCH ‘On a multipurpose hall floor, make a hopscotch outline using tape. ‘Try using different coloured tape. Each colour represents a different hop to do.ISTRUCTION Rules Divide the group into two teams. The Gate team stands along the court If someone gets past your gate, they join lines, and can only move left & right along them. The Human team the gate team. must run through the gates without getting touched! 45I spy with my little eyes. ‘The game master chooses an item within sight, then says, “I spy with my “I spy with my little eye something - little eye something beginning ‘c’- (a letter of the alphabet). Players yellow! - (and go through the colours). must guess the item and then it is their turn. This game is a lot more fun sitting on a lovely grassy patch or a spot with a view.Play a game of catching/tag, The difference is you are safe from getting This time, you are in a safe zone if you caught if you stand on playground equipment. But beware! You can only touch a tree or flower, but only for 10 stay there for five seconds! seconds!Ltt tia 3 Wrap fabric around a tree trunk to make a tee-pee. Now you have your __-Find natural elements to decorate it and own little home! make it uniquely your own.PARACHUTE PARADISE Make a simple parachute - use a plastic bag, tie the edges with string and attach the strings to a weight, such as a plastic bottle, toy or pebble. Get up on a slope and throw down your parachute! Try throwing your parachutes off different play equipment such as slides or climbing structures. 9ceed Red F VARIATION 4 Fly paper aeroplanes across a playground & see which ‘pilot’ can Ifyour plane touches any structure, you have fly best! to doa forfeit (like take 3 steps backwards etc). 50ceed A Stand side-by-side at the base of some stairs. Play Rock-Paper-Scissors. Partner up! See which pairs are Scissors ‘The winner moves up one step from wherever the highest player is Paper Stone champions! standing. Keep playing and see who reaches the top first!bes RAMP IT UP BOWLING! Arrange plastic bottles at the end of the ramp like bowling pins _Use different sized bottles, fill some of them up with and start bowling! water and assign points to the bottles. Whichever teams get the most number of points, win!Use sticks and twigs to make music with the ramp railings. tance =e cea to create diferent sounds.anf Xe) ae cial hy Tie one end of a long rope around a tree. Run the length of it through Try this backward! f you touch someone, and around the area to create an interesting path. Use trees, lamps and youneed to go to the back of the line. other fixtures to keep the rope taut. The kids will follow the rope path while blindfolded.P INSTRUCTION 4 F VARIATION § Lay down ropes and make a runway for your paper planes. Can you Mark out the targets in the distance. The keep your plane in the lane? plane that can reach the target, wins! 55SHADOW TAG +E P INSTRUCTION 4 cE Play tag with your friends. The difference is you tag their shadows instead Use only the pointy finger (or different of their bodies! arts of the body) to tag.Tie elastic rope or material to two ends of a container, box or bucket. ‘Try using your soft toys instead - they will Tie off the other ends of rope around some trees to create a slingshot. _love being launched into the sky. Place a Who can launch the beanbag furthest? box or bucket to aim into. 7Tie ropes to make holes like a spiderweb. Ensure there is enough space Hang bells at the rope. Whoever can get for the child to get through, through without ringing any bells, wins!et STAIRCASE OLYMPICS Round 1: Play bowling down a flight of stairs. Round 2: Using a stick as a dart, Try this in pairs or teams and see throw it up from the bottom of the staircase to hit a target at the top. Round 3: which team is the best. ‘Throw a paper ball as far as you can from the top of a staircase.cod TALLEST TOWER Using toy bricks, building blocks, or other items, build the tallest tower Have a tag team challenge where only ina given time. Challenge your friends to beat your record! Use a lamp one person per team is allowed to add post as your ruler. on to the structure every 20 seconds.‘Well done! Congratulations on getting your children outside and making the most out of space and ‘opportunities in your neighbourhood! We hope your family and you created meaningful memories and experiences to treasure for years to come. The best thing is, the activities can be done over and over again, and will be different each time you play simply because that is how play is. We hope you had lots of fun! We'd love to hear about your experiences and the wonderful moments you had playing. Do tag us on social media and leave a review too while you're there. Let's share the love of playing in our beautiful urban areas. Here’s to more adventures! © vesearousiecom @ etsteamousie @ letsteamouside @ leieamarsde Ep a> =z Need more & ideas? E Visit our shop! = ba = =he Are you ans Visit our website! educator?