Snowball Maze

Invitation to blow the snowballs through the maze is a great way to encourage children to practice the exercise of breathing. Blowing not only has calming effects on the body, it also helps develops muscles in the jaw and mouth. When a child learns how to blow it helps with their speech development as their mouth practices exercising to prepare for pronunciation.

In regards to the calming effects on the body, the more a child knows how to blow/breathe from a young age it can provide for coping skills to calm themselves. Belly breathing is a calming exercise that children and adults can practice to relax and feel grounded. So whether your child is a toddler or older, an invitation like this is a great way to introduce them to being aware of their breathe through blowing the objects through play.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

To set this invitation all you need is play-dough, ping pong or play pit balls, pom poms, and a straw. You can mold the play-dough to create the maze on a table, ramp, tray, or floor. Place the ball or pom poms at the start of the maze and then encourage the child to use the straw to move the objects to the end of maze.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

The goal is to move the ping-pong ball through the maze by blowing it with a straw and no hands. Of course, the objects will roll out of bounds many, many times, but it isn't about aiming for perfection just concentrating on getting from point a to b while exercising their breathing.