Alphabet Hopscotch

[20 Minutes]

Your child can get some exercise and learn alphabet letters in this variation to a traditional game.

You'll need:

• chalk • one stone per player • hard surface such as cement or asphalt

What to do:

1. Using chalk, draw a hopscotch playing surface.
2. Instead of printing numbers in each of the squares, as in traditional hopscotch, place one letter of the alphabet (or simple word) in each square.
3. Show your child how to play by throwing a stone onto the first letter of the hopscotch. Challenge him to jump over the box with the stone in it and proceed to jump and hop down and back over the entire hopscotch board.
4. On the return trip, when reaching the box with the stone in it, tell your child to bend over, pick up the stone and to name the letter in the box.
5. Encourage him to continue playing by throwing the stone into each of the alphabet boxes and traveling up and down the board.
6. Challenge him by replacing letters from the previous game with new letters or words to read.

Let's Talk: Ideas to Explore Together.

• How did you learn to hop and jump so well?
• What letters (words) did you learn today?
• What other hopscotch games could we make up?

Useful information:

While you are having fun together, this activity provides experiences for developing skills related to reading and writing. Hoping and jumping develops large muscle skills.