Parachute Games
Fruit salad
All children should have a space around the parachute. Go around each child telling them which type of fruit they are going to be for this game e.g banana, orange, apple, grape. Four different fruits is normally enough to make the groups small enough to avoid too many under the parachute. To play the game the children need to lift the parachute up together at the same time and let it float back down. It is best to count the children in so they all lift at the same time. When the children lift the parachute the teacher shouts one (or two or three) of the fruits and the children designated as those fruits have to run under the parachute and find a new space before the parachute sinks and touches them.
If you are feeling adventurous you can call fruit salad and all children run!!
Colours
Similar to fruit salad but using colours instead. Teacher calls out a colour and the 2 children holding that colour change places under the parachute, before the parachute comes down. Game emailed to us by Jennie Jonsson Many thanks!!!!
Cat and Mouse
This game can be played with different numbers depending on class size.
Small class - one cat and one or two mice, bigger class - two cats and three mice.
The cats crawl on top of the parachute and the mice crawl under the parachute - the cats have to try and catch the mice, the other children holding on around the parachute should wave it to make it hard for the cats to see the mice.
Sharks and Lifeguards
All children sit on the floor in a big circle holding the parachute in the hands with their legs tucked under the parachute.Two lifeguards patrol the outside of the circle and two sharks go under the parachute. The sharks have to try and pull people under the parachute, to do this they take hold of the child legs and pull. The lifeguards have to try and stop this happening by saving the children that are being pulled under by taking their hands and pulling them back out.
Safety for this game, when the sharks touch the childrens legs to pull them under the children need to lie back so that they do not bump their heads when the sharks pull. When the lifeguard starts to pull the shark must let go - to avoid a tug o war!!
Again numbers can depend on size of class/parachute.
Popcorn
All children stand around the parachute holding on so that they can lift the parachute. Place 3 light balls on the parachute and choose two or three people to go under the parachute. These children have to try and hit the balls of the parachute while all the other children around the edge have to keep the balls on top.
This game can also be played with no one under the parachute, where half the class are trying to wave the parachute to get the balls of and the other half are trying to keep the balls on top.
Very young children enjoy to simply wave the parachute and watch the balls jump up and down.
Rollerball
All children hold the parachute at waist level. To begin get children to do the 'Mexican Wave' to establish a good rhythm. Next, place a light ball on the parachute. The aim is to roll the ball around the parachute through co-operatively raising and lowering the it.
See Saw
Al the children sit and hold their handle. The children then work co operatively to pull the parachute in a see saw motion.
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