Earth Day Hoops Preschool Game

By Charlene Haukom

Celebrate Earth Day by playing Earth Day Hoops with preschoolers! Preschoolers will love playing this nature inspired game and you’ll end up with a lawn and garden ready for spring!

What You Will Need

3 Buckets or Storage Bins
Rope
Timer

How to Play

1. Using the rope, hang the buckets from a branch just above the preschoolers’ heads. If the branches are too high, tie the buckets to the trunk of the tree. If it is too difficult or not possible to hang the buckets from trees or branches, then you can place the buckets or storage bins on the ground.

2. Designate each bucket as “Sticks and Branches”, “Pine Cones”, and “Leaves”. Assign the preschoolers to a single bucket. For example, one preschooler will be finding sticks and branches, another will be searching for pine cones, and the third will be focusing on leaves.

You can adjust this step according to the number of preschoolers playing. If you have several preschoolers, a lot of leaves, and only a few pine cones, then assign a few preschoolers to leaves and only one to pine cones. If you’re playing with just one preschooler, then focus on one bucket at a time.

3. Set the timer for 5 minutes.

4. Ready, get set…GO! Send the preschoolers off to find their designated items. Fill the buckets as much as possible before the timer goes off.

5. As long as all the preschoolers participated equally, reward them all as winners for their efforts. Try to choose a nature-related prize in celebration of Earth Day, like peanut butter apples or a sundae bowl filled with fresh fruit and whipped cream.

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