Foil River Rock Toss
Purpose
This activity is an amazing workout for your child’s hands. Crumpling aluminum foil requires strong resistance, which provides excellent proprioceptive feedback to the hands. This input helps develop hand muscles needed for future skills like coloring and managing clothing fasteners. The process of tearing and squeezing also promotes strong bilateral hand use. Finally, aiming the finished, dense 'river rock' into a small target cup enhances eye-hand coordination and motor control.
Activity Steps
Steps:
- Tear off a large, square piece of aluminum foil (about 12 inches per side). Tearing this resistant material gives hands a great workout.
- Use two hands to crumple the foil. Squeeze it intensely into the smallest, tightest ‘river rock’ ball possible.
- Set up the target: Use masking tape to secure two small paper cups firmly inside the large plastic container.
- Stand back slightly from the target container. Carefully toss the heavy foil rock, aiming for one of the narrow paper cup targets.
- Repeat this process until you have used all the foil. Try tossing from different angles or distances for an extra challenge.
Safety Tip:
Always supervise children closely during this activity. Ensure the foil pieces are crumpled tightly into balls before handling to eliminate sharp edges. Remind the child to stay behind the toss line during play.
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