“Let’s Go Fishing” Kids Games and Crafts
By Kandi Traxel
http://www.aloveofcoffee.com
Materials Needed:
Cardboard Box (at least 12×12x12; larger is better)
Blue Wrapping Paper (Light Blue Works Best)
Construction Paper in Several Colors
Roll of Magnet Strip (At crafts stores; you can cut it into pieces)
Black Marker
Pencil
Scissors
Dowel Rods (For “Fishing Poles”) Use the ones that are about as big around as a pencil
String
4-6 Metal Nuts (i.e. nuts and bolts) or Metal Washers
Making the Game:
Make The Pond: Cut all the flaps from the cardboard box and discard. Wrap the box in the light blue paper; then you can use the black marker to create “waves” on the outside, making it look like “water”. You may also line the inside of the box with the blue paper, cuttting it into pieces to fit the inside walls and floor of the box and using glue to adhere it.
Make The Fish: To make the fish, use several colors of construction paper and draw your fish shapes on with a pencil. The easiest way to make the shapes is to draw an oval, and then attach a upside down triangle “tail” to the end. Make the small enough to get at least 3-4 fish from one sheet of paper, but no smaller. If you wish, you can use the marker and make little eyes and smiles on them, but do NOT decorate them. You will need to leave them “blank”. Once you have all of them cut out that you want, take the roll of magnet strip, cut it into pieces about 1/2 long, remove the backing and stick them onto or near the tails on BOTH sides of your fish. In a later step we will be working with the fish again, so lay them aside after you get the magnets stuck on them.
Make the Pole: To make the fishing pole, cut a long piece of string about 2-3 feet long, and tie it to one end of the dowel rod. Tie the nut or washer to one end for the “fish hook”. Now you can return to the fish and decide what you want to put on them according to your child’s grade level. You can draw on colored shapes, letters of the alphabet, simple words, math problems, etc.
Playing the Game
Place all the fish into the “pond” and give each child a fishing pole. The object of the game is to “go fishing”, catch the fish, and then the child will have to indentify, read or solve what it on the outside of the fish. For example if your child is learning to read, write words on each of the fish, and when they catch one, they will have to read what is on the fish. Every one they get right, then will get to keep. If they miss it, they have to put the fish back for another try.
The child with the most fish “caught” when all the fish are gone, wins!