Parachute Games for Preschool

Cat and Mouse

• Choose one child to be the cat and one to be the mouse. The rest of the children each hold a handle of the parachute. The mouse goes under the parachute, and the cat goes on top. As the kids shake the parachute up and down vigorously, the mouse runs around underneath, and the cat tries to pounce on the mouse from above. After the cat catches the mouse, choose two other children to play, until everyone has had a turn.

Switching Places

• All the kids hold parachute handles. The leader chooses a color, and anyone wearing that color lets go as the rest of the kids raise the parachute up. The kids wearing the color run underneath to quickly switch places with other kids wearing the same color, before the parachute comes down on them. This is good practice for preschoolers who are still learning their colors. If you're playing with a mixed-age group, you can call out ages, or if the children have been learning to write their names, use letters from their names. For example, say, "Anyone who has the letter T in his name," and Tommy and Matthew would run to switch places.

Merry-go-Round

• This game works best with younger preschoolers and several adult helpers. Have the kids and adults each grab a handle around the edge of the parachute. Choose two or three children to sit in the middle of the parachute. Then everyone walks or runs around the circle in one direction, gently spinning the children in the middle. Make sure that all the children on the parachute remain seated, so that no one falls over when the parachute moves.

Tent

• Parachute tents don't stay up for long, but they're fun while they last. Have everyone grab a handle and raise the parachute up as high as they can. (Having two or three adults spread around the parachute will help lift it higher.) Then, still holding on, have everyone step underneath the parachute and quickly sit down, tucking the edge of the parachute beneath his or her bottom. The parachute will remain aloft for a couple of minutes, and then will float gently down on the children's heads. Use the tent time to sing a song or tell a quick story. It is a nice way to wind down after the excitement of the other games, so use the tent game as a prelude to putting the parachute away.