Homemade Bowling

Physical games and sports are great ways for children and adults to socialize, exercise, and have fun. This activity is designed to help children and adults have fun playing a homemade version of bowling together while simultaneously building children's large muscle control and social skills. 

Age Group: This activity is very moldable and can easily be used with children ranging from 2-5 years

Learning Objectives: 

• Children will practice sharing and turn-taking.
• Children will practice rolling and kicking a ball.

Type of Activity: This activity can be completed one-on-one with a child or with a group of children.

What Children Will Learn: 

As children play bowling they...

Practice gross motor skills-  Gross motor refers to the large muscles that help us do activities such as sit, move our arms, jump, bend, and walk (The Early Childhood Advisory Council, 2012). As children roll, throw, and kick a ball, they engage these muscles and gain better control of them. 

Practice social skills- As children play bowling with other adults and/or children, they practice important social skills such as following directions, sharing, and taking turns. 

Materials

• 6-10 empty plastic bottles or plastic cups
• Small ball or socks to make a ball

Activity Prep

To play this game, you will need a few homemade pins and a ball. You can use several household items to make pins, such as empty plastic bottles, styrofoam cups, or plastic cups. For my pins, I used some tall plastic cups I had lying around the house. I ended up using six cups. However, the number of pins you use will depend on the level of challenge you want to create. If you want to make the game more challenging, add more pins, and if you want to make it easier, use fewer.

 For the ball, I tried a couple of random balls I had around the house. I found that balls that are a little shorter than the pins work best, but almost any size ball will work. If you don't have a ball handy, you can make one by rolling socks together.

Completing the Activity: 

Set up the pins on a hard surface. You can set them up in rows or in the typical pyramid shape. Invite children over to play and explain to them that the goal is to try to knock down as many pins as they can. Encourage children to roll or kick the ball towards the pins. For children who struggle with rolling or kicking, you made need to model how to use the ball or offer some physical assistance. Once children knock down the pins, have them help stack the pins back up for the next person. Again, some children may need physical assistance, especially if the pins fall over easily. Support children in taking turns and sharing by reminding them to let each participant have a turn and to hand the ball to the next person when they are done. If children really struggle with turn-taking, you can try setting a timer to indicate when a child's turn is over. Also, if children struggle with sharing, you can start by giving each child a ball and gradually work down to only having one ball. Continue the activity until children become tired or start to lose interest. 

Ways to Expand and Adapt the Activity:

• For children with mobility restrictions, you can create tabletop bowling with paper cups and a soft foam ball.
• Incorporate art by having children help decorate the pins with stickers, paint, markers, etc.
• Use cups for pins and have children practice fine motor skills by stacking them on top of each other. 

References

The Early Childhood Advisory Council. (, 2012). New York State Early Learning Guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.ccf.ny.gov/files/7813/8177/1285/ELG.pdf