Thursday, March 29, 2012

10 Hula Hoop Games for Preschoolers

When I saw some kid-sized hula-hoops at the craft store, I couldn't resist getting them for the girls.  I'm glad I did - they've been the source of hours of entertainment.  Here is a collection of some hula hoop games and activities we've tried:



1. Hokey-pokey: Sing the "hokey-pokey' song ("You put your right hand in, you take your right hand out, you put your right hand in and you shake it all about..."), and put the correct body part inside the hula hoop.  You can do this with the hula hoop on the ground, or hold it upright.

2. Ring Around the Rosies: Have everyone hold the hula hoop and spin around the circle as you sing "Ring around the rosies, a bucket full of posies, ashes, ashes we all fall down" (or a variation if you don't like singing about the plague).  The girls really liked the falling down part.

3. Up and Down: Hold the hula hoop and recite a rhyme that has Up and Down in it.  When you say 'Up', lift the hula hoop up, and for 'Down' lower it to the ground.  Examples are "The Grand Old Duke of York" and "Dickory Dickory Dare, the Pig Flew Up in the Air".


4. Hula Hoop Jump: You could make up a variety of games involving jumping in and out of the hula hoops.  If you have more than one hula hoop, line them up and jump from one to the other.  Try placing them further and further apart to see how far you can jump.

5. Simon Says: Play traditional Simon Says, but using the hula hoop as a prop.  "Simon says... jump in/out of the hula hoop, lift it over your head, put your hand in the hoop, balance it on your foot, etc.."



6. Bean bag / ball toss: Practice throwing balls or bean bags through the hula hoop.  You can try holding it in different way - horizontal like a basketball hoop, vertical, or even placed on the ground.

7. Circus hoop dive: Have the kids dive through the hoop.  Alternatively, they can teach their stuffed animals how to dive through the hoops.  For extra fun, you can tape colored tissue paper around the edges and pretend the hoop is on fire.

8. Hula Hoop Spin/Roll:  Let the kids experiment with spinning and rolling the hula hoop.  Our hula hoops make a cool sound when they move, which adds to the fun.

9. Hula Hoop Catch:  Spin or roll the hula hoop and challenge your children to catch it.  This activity builds great hand-eye coordination and is sure to generate lots of giggles.

10. Horse-Drawn Carriage: This was the kids' favorite activity.  Both girls went into the hula hoop and one pretended to be the horse while the other one was the passenger.  They walked/ran all around the house like this.  They even convinced Daddy to be the horse for a while.


There are definitely more involved hula hoop activity ideas out there, but these ten are just perfect for the active toddler thru kindergarten age group.  Enjoy!




12 comments:

  1. You read my mind: MUST PURCHASE HULA HOOPS THIS WEEK! Thank you!! :-)

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  2. What a fantastic post...so many ideas with hoops here! Love the photos, i have 22 mth old twin girls and they love watching their teenage sister hula hoop...one now holds it in front of her and moves hips around and that's her version...hilarious!
    Glad i found your blog, i shall have to follow you.....thanks so much for linking up to the Kid's Co-Op!

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  3. What fun ideas! Just shared your post on the Kids Kids Co-op facebook page :)

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  4. INCREDIBLE THINKING!! You did really making sense. My little baby girl like different things to do and I think this will be enjoyable for me also when I'll see she is making this.

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  6. Brilliant thanks my 2 year old got 2 hoops the other day the sun is out so we will be doing them all, she has already rolled them and tried to skip throught them but she is a little to small for that.

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