Fun with Hoola Hoops

The classic spin:

1. Getting the hula hoop to spin around your waist can be a good physical challenge.
2. See if your chid can do it.
3. Once s/he gets the hang of it, let him/her try to spin for longer periods of time.

Try other tricks while spinning e.g.:

1. Making the hoop spin around one arm.
2. Make the hoop go up and down the arm while spinning it around.
3. Change the spinning hoop from one arm to the other without stopping it.
4. Make the hoop go slowly around the arm without stopping it.
5. Make the hoop travel fast around the waist.
6. Make the hoop go slowly around the waist.
7. Make the hoop go from fast to slow.
8. Make the hoop turn circles around the knees.
9. Balance on one foot and spin the hoop around the ankle of the elevated leg while maintaining balance.
10. Walk forward while spinning the hoop around the waist.

Hula hoops musical chairs:

1. Scatter hula hoops at random spots.
2. There must be one hoop less than children playing.
3. Play music and let the children walk/run/march/skip/ hop/boogie around the hoops until the music stops.
4. When the music stops each child has to jump into a hula hoop. The child who couldn’t get a hula hoop is out of the game.
5. Continue the game until there is only one hula hoop left.

Hula Hoop Knockout!

1. Each child gets a hula hoop.
2. On the “start” command each player starts spinning the hoop around their waist, walking towards other players and trying to knock down their hoops.
3. Last player still spinning their hoop is the winner.

Hula Hoop Pass:

1. Have all players stand in line/circle holding hands.
2. Give the first person the hoop looped over one arm.
3. Players must pass the hoop down the line or around the circle without letting go of each other’s hands. Human

Ring Toss:

1. Have your child put on a bike helmet to protect his/her head and mark an X for him/her to stand on.
2. See if you can toss a hoop over his/her head as you would in a ring toss game.
3. Keep moving the boundary line to make the game harder.
4. Be sure to take turns being the target and the thrower.

Hula Hoop Jump:

Show your child how to hold the hula hoop vertically in front of his/her body, flipping it down towards his/her feet, jumping over it and bringing it back behind his/her body and over his/her head like a skipping rope.

Hula Hoop Basket:

1. Hang the hula hoop in a tree or suspend it in the air with a rope.
2. Have your child throw a ball through the hoop.
3. Let your child try to kick the ball through the hoop.
4. Next try flying a paper plane through the hoop.

Hokey-Pokey:

Sing the hokey-pokey song and put the correct body part inside the hula hoop.

Ring Around the Rosies:

Have everyone hold the hula hoop and spin around the circle as you sing “ring around the rosies, a bucket full of posies, ashes, ashes we all fall down.”

Simon Says:

1. Play traditional Simon Says, but using the hula hoop as a prop.
2. “Simon says… jump in/out of the hula hoop, lift it over your head, put your hand in the hoop, balance it on your foot etc.”

Hula Hoop Bubble Wand:

1. Fill a kiddie pool with a 1 to 2 ratio of water to dish soap. Let the solution sit overnight and try to keep the kids from splashing – foam is the enemy of big beautiful bubbles.
2. Let your child stand in the middle of the pool with the hoop at the bottom, pulling the hula hoop slowly out of the soapy water and watch giant bubbles forming!!

Hula Hoop Croquet:

1. Cut some cheap store bought hula hoops in half to make wickets that are perfect for young players.
2. Let the children kick their balls through the “hoop- wickets”.

Hula Hoop Hop Scotch:

1. Place the hula hoops in a row on the ground.
2. Ask your child to show you how s/he can hop through the hoops with his/her Left Foot/Right Foot
3. Place the hula hoops in two rows next to each other.
4. Ask your child to show you how s/he can Run through the hoops/Straddle jump (one foot in each hoop)
5. Place the hula hoops in a 1-2-1-2-1 pattern.
6. Ask your child to show you how s/he can jump alternating a jump and a straddle jump/Combine hops with straddle jumps.
7. See below for more patterns.