One Fish, Two Fish, Starfish, Blue Fish
Child Development
Physical health and well-being; Language and cognitive development
Equipment
Red starfish and blue fish made from paper.
Physical Activity
This activity aims to build the fundamental movement skills of locomotion (running) and coordination (jumping).
How to Play
- Print out or create images of red starfish and blue fish (between 6 and 10 of each).
- Place the images around the room in locations that are visible to the children.
- Children explore the room trying to find all the images.
- When a starfish is found, the children lie down on the floor and make a star with arms and legs spread out straight. When a blue fish is found, children jump up and down.
Change it up / Alternatives / Additional Options
- Try reading this book with this activity: One Fish, Two Fish, Three, Four, Five Fish! by Dr. Seuss
- When a starfish and blue fish are found together, children do jumping jacks
- Add more fish to the game, using different colours and different actions when found — finding an orange jellyfish might mean children lies on their backs and wiggle their legs and arms in the air.
Adaptations:
- For children with impairments in flexibility or gross motor skills, encourage them to perform the movements as much as they can, understanding that it may look different to others.
- For a child with a visual impairment, make sure to cut the fish and starfish in to those specific shapes, allowing the individual to feel which object they have found. Alternatively, place different textured surfaces on fish and starfish to signal which one is which.
- If you have a participant who uses a wheelchair, be intentional around the movements that you select to allow them to participate. Instead of lying on the ground, they could stretch their arms out to make a star.
- If you have a child with another type of disability not mentioned above, they may be able to participate in this activity without adaptations or modifications.
