These 8 indoor gross motor activity for kids are a great way to burn off energy on cold or rainy days or even on sick days. These activities are also great for providing proprioceptive sensory input to kids and some even make awesome heavy work ideas for kids with autism and/or sensory processing disorder. But what makes these gross motor activities particularly awesome is that they are simple. They require little to no prep and use common household items.
So grab some pillows and a large bucket and get those kids moving!
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Easy Gross Motor Activities for Kids
All of these gross motor activities for kids use only two materials:- Variety of pillows
- Large toy bucket - A large laundry basket or a large plastic storage container would be a good substitute
Gross Motor Activity #1: Pillow Jumping
Scatter pillows across the floor and let the kids jump from pillow to pillow. Encourage them to try running from pillow to pillow, jumping with two feet, or jumping with one foot, etc. You could also call out specific colors of pillows for them to jump to.
Gross Motor Activity #2: Pillow "Balance Beam" & Sensory Walk
Place some pillows of different sizes and textures into a straight line. Have your child walk across the pillow "balance beam" barefoot to work on vestibular and tactile sensory input. (not pictured)Gross Motor Activity #3: Pillow Throwing
Encourage your child to throw the pillows into the large bucket from a variety of distances. You could use tape on the floor to mark where your child can throw from. Or try timing them to see how many pillows they can get into the bucket in a certain time period.
Gross Motor Activity #4: Directional Pillow Jumping
You'll need four pillows for this activity as well as a copy of our free arrow jumping printable. Place one pillow in front, one pillow behind, one pillow to the left, and one pillow to the right of your child. Create a jumping pattern using the free printable and have your child imitate the pattern by jumping to the correct pillows according to the arrows. (not pictured)Gross Motor Activity #5: Pillow Kicking
Have your child lay flat on their back with their feet up in the air. Place a pillow on their feet and have them try to kick the pillow into the bucket. The bucket will have to be less than a foot away from their legs initially, but as they get better at the activity, try pulling the bucket further and further away to see if they can still get the pillow into the bucket.
Gross Motor Activity #6: Bucket Heavy Work Push & Pull Game
One of our favorite ways to do this activity is to have one of my sons sit in the bucket and have the other one push and/or pull the bucket around the room. You could also use tape to mark spots on the floor to drag the bucket to and from. It's a great proprioceptive heavy work challenge for my kids! Alternatively, you could just fill the bucket with pillows and try pushing and pulling that around the room. (not pictured)Gross Motor Activity #7: Pillow Stomping
This activity makes me think of stomping grapes for wine, but it was totally my four year old's invention. So he deserves all the credit for it! Add pillows, one by one to the bucket, and have your child jump and stomp on the pillows to push them down as far as they can into the bucket.
Gross Motor Activity #8: Bucket Stomping
Flip the bucket upside down and have your child stomp some music on the bucket using their feet. They could also slap the bucket with their hands to create music. See how we did this bucket drumming and stomping activity here.
Other Ideas You'll Love
Easy DIY Pool Noodle Balance Beam
DIY Pool Noodle Balance Board
50 Heavy Work Activities for Kids {Free Printable}
DIY Pool Noodle Balance Board
50 Heavy Work Activities for Kids {Free Printable}
