Build their Bounce-and Relationships-as the “Snow” Flies!
Mother Holly
Retold and Illustrated by Bernadine Watts
Whether you live in a snowy place or not: winter imagery is everywhere at certain times of the year.
And children wonder: where does that snow come from?
During early childhood, the scientific explanations mean little. Children believe in magic and it’s magical causation that makes the most sense til their logical thinking develops a bit more.
In the story, Mother Holle (Holly, in this book), asks her visitors to, above all, shake her feather bed til the feathers fly because that is how snow comes to earth.
With a parachute, some ripped, snipped, or scrunched scraps of white paper, and a bit of cooperation, kids can joyfully help with the magic!
What You’ll Need
A large area
A parachute, sheet, or fabric that fits spread out in the area, with room to move around it
A quantity of white paper scraps that children have ripped, snipped, or scrunched
The Basics
Have children sit or stand around parachute and grab onto an edge (rolling a bit helps if there are no handles)
Practice raising and lowering as a group before you add “snow.”
Share song if you want.
Begin the fun!
If you have never played with parachutes with your kids before, this article offers some great tips!
And if you think a video might help you get started, here’s a simple one with music to try out!
How This Develops Relationships and Resilience
We usually think of parachute play as a way to develop gross motor skills and coordination, and proprioception. And it does!
But it also is a valuable way for children to actively and joyfully work as a group, and to “decenter” (be aware of where their friends are and what they are doing).
This is hard for kids, developmentally. When their attention, however, is “held together” around or under a bouncing parachute, it becomes more concrete.
Young children define friendship as the people they play with. So offering them ways to collaborate in group play can nurture these friendships with a wider range of children.
Do you use parachutes in your setting? Please comment below!
