Pillow pummelling

What you need

A pillow or cushion.

Benefits

This is a great physical workout, focusing on upper body strength. Building strength in the shoulders and arms from a young age is really important to prepare children for writing in the future.

The experience

For older children, get them to kneel in front of the pillow. For younger babies, have them sit in front. You can kneel or sit opposite them with your own pillow. Model to them how to pummel the pillow, so you make dents in it.

Challenge them to see if they can do the same and keep going until the pillow needs replumping and they can go again.

Older children may enjoy the challenge of seeing if they can go really fast, change the speed or have a timer for 30 seconds/1 minute or longer.

You could also place the pillow or cushion upright rather than flat on the floor and show your child how to ‘chop’ them, with hand placed so that the palm is outwards and using the hand to ‘chop’ downwards into the top of the pillow.