We love using nature to help with both learning and play. Here are 5 different ways to play with stones. We hope you have fun! Please do tag us in your activities on Facebook and Instagram so we can see what you have been up to!
1. Counting
Find a selection of stones and see how many your child can count. Maybe arrange the stones in the shape of that number too. Or use chalk to write numbers on the stones and put them in numerical order.
2. Building Towers
See who can build the tallest stone tower! Count the number of stones used. Try building other things using stones too – a house, a boat, a caterpillar?!
3. Rock Painting
Find some smooth, flat rocks and get creative with some paints and a paintbrush. Hide the decorated rocks around the garden or house and go on a hunt to find them all again. Or hide them in your neighbourhood for friends and family to discover.
4. Story Stones
Find a selection of flat, smooth stones and paint or draw a variety of different images on each – one image per stone. If you didn’t want to design your own you could cut out images from magazines or newspapers and stick them onto the stones.
Place the stones into a bag and choose a selection of them at random to lay out on a surface. Now see if you can tell a story using the images on the stones. Take it in turns to see what inventive tales you and your child can share with one another. This is lots of fun for all ages so older siblings can get involved too.
5. Skimming Stones
If you’re near water try and find some flat stones and see if you can teach your child to throw them so that they skim and bounce across the water. Count how many bounces you can get up to!
These are just a few of the ways in which we can use stones to help our children learn through play. There are of course many more ideas – your children will probably have plenty of their own!
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Also, don’t forget to check out where our local Little Muddy Boots classes are taking place if you have toddlers or pre-schoolers.
