With a few items from the dollar store and you are set to make your very own fishing game for your children. As yet I haven’t met a child who doesn’t love a magnetic fishing game; they are great for hand-eye coordination, as well as spatial awareness.
You will need
- Dowel rods (you can just as easily use a stick from outside, or a pencil, or paint brush)
- Small magnets
- Split pins (if you don’t have these you can use paperclips or bobby pins to attach to the fish)
- Laces (Or lengths of string/ribbon/wool)
You’ll also need
- A hot glue gun (because we don’t want the magnet to come loose I wouldn’t use any other glue except possibly super glue)
- Scrap paper
- Pen
- Scissors
Make the Magnetic Fishing Rod
Tie a lace around the rod and secure with hot glue.
Place a blob of glue on the magnet and then hold the lace onto the glue so it is covered. Trim the end
Put rod aside to dry
Make the fish for the game
Draw and cut some fish out of the paper; this is a great part get kids involved in! Let them draw and cut out the fish shapes. Remember its about the process, not just having pretty fish at the end.
Use a pen to make a small hole in the paper fish, then push the split pin through the fish shapes, (they make great eyes for the fish). The metal in the pins are what will stick to the magnet when fishing.
Then set up the fish on the floor and let your children catch as many fish as they like, this is a great activity to keep little ones busy for an extended period of time.
Why don’t you make lots of fish then have a race to see how many fish you can catch in one minute?
The only caution I would make is that the magnet will never be 100% secure, so if you have a little one who is prone to putting things in their mouth I would supervise closely while they are playing.
Have a Play-Full day! – Erin
Barefoot Play 