4th of July Activities: Firecracker Tag

Tag games are always a hit when kids get together.  Freeze tag, flashlight tag, ghosts in the graveyard, tour guide, etc.

Tag is also a great game to promote developmental skills like balance, endurance, motor planning, motor control and proprioception.  I thought it would be really fun to incorporate a game of tag into our 4th of July line-up.

Get ready for some firecracker sounds and giggles!

What You’ll Need:

-Red, white and blue balloons

-String

What to do:

Blow up a balloon for each child and tie it to a string.  Tie the empty end of the string to a child’s ankle so that every child has a balloon attached to them.  When they hear “ready, set, go”, everyone will run around attempting to “tag” a friend by popping their balloon with their free foot, making a sound like a firecracker!  The last child to have an unpopped balloon WINS!

How to change it up:

-Don’t have a group of kids to get a game of tag going?  Have your child try to pop his own balloon that’s attached to his ankle.  This is a challenge in itself!
-Instead of tying balloons to ankles, give kids the challenge of creating that firecracker pop of the balloon with their bottoms, one hand, their bellies, their knee, etc.  Great for proprioception!!

Skill areas addressed:

Gross motor skills, balance, coordination, endurance

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Lauren Drobnjak

Lauren Drobnjak is co-author of The Inspired Treehouse blog and a pediatric physical therapist who currently practices in the educational environment. She has been a physical therapist for 18 years, with 17 of those years specifically in pediatrics. Her drive to make a difference in the lives of kids has led her entrepreneurial spirit in the direction of creating opportunities for play-based wellness and child development. She is a busy mama of 3 who thrives on chaos. To come down from the stress, Lauren enjoys exercising like she’s still 20, yoga, chocolate, a great book, browsing Pinterest, and anything crafty!

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