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Playing with balloons helps our tamariki to :

• use their big muscles and strengthen their ball handling skills when indoors
• practice taking turns
• talk about and agree on rules for the game
• have fun at very little cost.

Balloon play is especially good so that tamariki get regular physical activity when it’s too wet to be outside. Read more about the importance of physical play on page 13 of the Whakatipu booklet Te Māhuri 1.  [PDF, 9.5 MB]

• Move any precious or fragile things out of the way.
• Blow the balloon up, but not too tight.
• Bat the balloon up with your hands as many times as you can. Count how many bats before the balloon drops.
• Try hand-batting between you and your tamaiti.
• Play hand-batting the balloon over a string between two chairs — lounge volleyball! How many times can you get the balloon over the string before it touches the ground?
• Add a challenge by using a cardboard tube, like an empty cling-wrap roll, as a bat.
• Make up new games together with your Tamariki using objects and obstacles from around the house. 

Using more teo reo Māori