Post on 27-Mar-2020
HopscotchSardines
Stuck in the Mud
Digging for DinosaursTre
asure
Island
Skipping
The Imagination
Station
Adventure
Headquarters
Fun and imaginative play ideas for you and your littles ones
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
IntroductionOk adventurers, gather ‘round! Summer is here, so it’s time to get outdoors and today you will embark on an epic quest that will change your lives forever. Will you search for buried treasure on a secret pirate island or will you try to survive in the wilderness, keeping an eye out for lions and tigers and bears? Oh my!
The kitEvery good adventurer needs the right equipment if they’re to be successful. You’ll need food, water and some essential items – you don’tknow what you’ll encounter and the best adventurers are always prepared.
Tools• Backpack• Torch• Map• Jarsorplasticbags• Compass• Magnifyingglass• Camera
Outfit• Hat• Bandana(tiedaroundneckorforehead)• Raincoat• Runners(waterproof)• Gloves
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Peach and berry smoothie
What you need:A handful of fresh mixed berries of choice1 medium fresh peach, cut into chunks235ml low-fat milk
170g mixed berry yoghurtFreshmintforgarnish(optional)
Method:• Blenduntilsmooth,garnishwithfreshmintif
using.
Homemade Apple Crisps
What you need:4 pink lady or galaGroundcinnamon(optional)
Method:• Preheattheovento150°C/300°F/Gas
mark 2.• Linetwobakingtrayswithgreaseproofpaper
and set aside.• Removetheapplecoreswithanapplecorer.
Cuttheapplesinto2mmslicesandlayonthebaking trays. Sprinkle with cinnamon if using.
• Bakefor2hours,turningafteronehour.Coolon wire racks.
• Storeinanairtightcontainerwhencooled.
Supplies
How to make a map
Your destination
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Homepage Sausage Rolls
What you need:Plainflour,fordustingPuffpastry(1lb2oz)8 herby sausages, cut in twoSmall handful of thyme leavesSalt and freshly ground black pepper1 egg, beaten
Method:• Preheattheovento200°C/400°F/GasMark6.• Sprinkleflouracrossyourworksurfaceand
roll out the pastry into a rectangle shape of about 28cm x 32cm.
• Makesureyouareroughwiththepastrybecauseyoudon’twantthepastrytobetoopuffed out for the sausage rolls.
• Hitthepastrywiththerollinginafewtimestoreducepuffing.• Cutthepastryinhalf,lengthways.Thencutthesetwohalvesintoeightsmallersections
each,leavingyouwith16equalrectangles.• Placeapieceofsausageatoneendofarectangleandsprinklesomethyme,saltand
pepper over the sausage.• Brushtheotherendoftherectanglewithalittlebeatenegg.Rollthesausageupand
repeat with the rest of the sausages.• Placethesausagerollsinthefridgefor20minutesandletthepastryharden.• Afterthe20minutes,scorethetopsofthesausagerollsorprickwithfork.• Usetherestofthebeateneggtobrushthesausagerollsandplaceintheovenfor
25-30minutes.
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Mini Turkey Wraps
What you need:5 tbsp mayonnaise to spread8 slices turkeyHandfuloflettuce4plainflourwraps
Method:• Spreadathicklayerofmayonnaiseovereach
wrap.• Topwiththelettuceandlayer2turkeysslices
onto teach wrap. • Rollthewrapsintotightrollsandcutintotwo
or three slices, depending on how big you want your bites.
• Wrapinclingfilmtoholdtogetherandleavetochillinthefridgeuntilreadytoserve.
Lunchbox Pasties
What you need:1 small orange sweet potato, peeled, coarsely chopped1carrotpeeled,finelychopped1potato,peeled,finelychopped65goffrozenpeas125g can corn, rinsed, drained50g coarsely grated cheddar2 eggs, lightly beaten3sheetsready-rolledfrozenshortcrustpastry,thawed2 tsp sesame seedsFlour for dusting
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Method:• Preheattheovento240°C/475°F/Gasmark9.• Lineanoventraywithgreaseproofpaperandsetaside.• Bringwaterinamediumsaucepantotheboil.• Cookthesweetpotatofor10minutesoruntiltender.• Drainwell,mashuntilsmooththenallowtocool.• Inanothersaucepan,bringwatertotheboilandcookthecarrotsandpotatountiltender.• Addpeasandcornandcookfor5minutes.Drainwell.• Combineallofthevegetableswiththesweetpotatomashalongwiththecheeseandegg.• Stirwellandseason.• Siftalittleflourontoacleansurfaceandrolloutthepastrysheets.• Usea12cm-diameterpastrycuttertocut12discsfromthepastrysheets.• Spoonvegetablemixtureevenlyamongpastrydiscs.Brushedgesofpastrylightlywithremaining
egg.Foldpastriesinhalftoenclosefilling.Usefingertipstogentlypresstogethertoseal.• Placeonthebakingtrayandlightlybrushwithremainingegg.Sprinklewithsesameseeds.• Bakeintheovenfor15minutesoruntilgoldenbrownandcookedthrough.• Removefromovenandsetasidetocool.• Allowtocool.
The Imagination
Station
Adventure
Headquarters
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Anadventurerwillneverfindtheirdestination(orthetreasure!)withoutatrustymapandit’suptoMumtomakesuretheyget it.
What you’ll need• Teabag• Water• Whitepaper• Bakingsheet• Hairdryer• Markers
What you’ll need to do1. Fill a cup with warm water and let the teabag stew. Allow the water to cool.2. Meanwhile,riptheedgesofthepaperandcrumpleitintoaball.3. Flatten the paper out on a baking sheet and pour your cooled tea mixture onto the
sheet.4. When the paper has been completely stained, lift it out of the liquid and set to work
with the hairdryer.5. Once it has dried, use your markers todraw the path and directions you want your child
tofollow.Don’tforgetthatXmarksthespot!
Supplies
How to make a map
Your destination
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Right in your Back Garden
Stuck in the Wilderness
What you’ll need• Tent• Sleepingbag• Pillows• Extralayersofclothing(wedoliveinIreland!)• Food• DisposableBBQ(optional)
How to play• Pitchyourtent,unrollthosesleepingbagsandpretendyou’restayinginthemiddleofa
wild forest.• Searchforfirewood,tellcampfirestories(aroundatorch)andgohuntingforwild
animals.ExtrapointsifMumorDadwearanimalmasksandroamaroundthetent!• Ifyouhaveone,useadisposableBBQtotoasts’mores.Ifnot,Mumcanwhipupa
quickindoorversion(link:http://www.mummypages.ie/recipes/smores).• Anddon’tforgettowrapupwarm!
Digging for Dinosaurs
What you’ll need• Mum’smap• Oldcrockery• Loosechange• Newspaper• Whitetape• Sand• Paintbrush
Supplies
How to make a map
Your destination
1
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
How to play1. Tocreateyourdinosaurskeletons,twistandmanipulatesheetsofnewspaperintothe
shape of a bone and cover in white tape.2. Buryyourartefactsinvariouspartsofthegardenundersmallpilesofsand.3. Giveyourchildrenamapdirectingthemtoeachsectionandletthemexcavatethesite
with old paintbrushes.
Further Afield
Obstacle course
What you’ll need:• Mum’smap• Apark
How to play:• Studyyourlocalparkanddecideontheobstaclecourse.• Drawaroughdiagramoftheparkonyourmap–andgivefun,adventureappropriate
names to different places in the park. For example, you could call the climbing frame, MountainofDoom.
• Markthedifferentareaswhereyourchildmustcompleteatask(eg:slipdowntheSlipperySlope(slide)threetimes,walkalaparoundtheHauntedCastle(playground)backwards).
• Giveyourchildaquest,suchasrescuingaunicornorfreeingacaptiveknight–andbesuretohaveaprizereadyforwhentheycompleteit!
2
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
Treasure Island
What you’ll need: • Mum’smap• Abeach• Chocolategoldcoins
How to play• Takethekidstoabeachthatyouknowwellenoughtodrawamapof.• Givethemthestartpointandgetthemtowalktodifferentareasofthebeachandgive
thematasktodoateachpoint(jumpingjacks,singingthealphabetbackwards)• Oncethey’vesetoff,positionyourselfatthefinalpointandburyapileofchocolate
gold coins in the sand.• MarkthespotwithanXandoncetheygetthere,theyshouldstartdigging.Afterthat,
they’ll no doubt be inspired to play as pirates for the afternoon.
The simple life
Even top adventurers need to take a break from their epic quests once in a while – and sometimestheirmumsjustdon’thavetheenergytohelpthem.Forthosedays,herearesome fab ideas to keep your little ones active in the fresh air.
HopscotchOnepieceofchalkcangiveyourkidsanafternoonoffun.Letthemdrawahopscotchcourseon the pavement, encouraging them to make it as elaborate as they can.
Red Light, Green LightOnepersonisinchargeandeveryoneelselinesupacrossfromthem(makesurethere’sadecentamountofdistance).Therulesoftheroadapply,sothepersoninchargecallsout‘RedLight,’‘OrangeLight’or‘GreenLight’todictatewhenplayerscanmoveandhowfastthey can go. First person to reach the player in charge wins.
3
The Imagination Station Adventure Headquarters
SkippingSolo, with some friends or double-dutch with two ropes, this is fantastic exercise and helps improve your little one’s hand-eye coordination.
SardinesHideandSeekwithatwist.Onepersonhidesandeveryonesearchesforthem.Onceyoufindthem,youmusthidewiththeplayerwithoutbeingspottedbyanyoneelse.Playerscontinueto hide in the same spot until everyone has found the hiding place
Stuck in the MudThisissimilartochasingexceptonceyou’retagged,youhavetofreeze.Dependingonthenumberofpeopleplaying,oneortwopeopleare‘on’.Ifyou’vebeentagged,youcanbeunfrozenifanotherplayercrawlsbetweenyourlegs.Thegameendsonceeveryonehasbeenfrozen,atwhichpointthelasttwopeopletaggedare‘on’.Or…
Take a trip to the beachYour little ones can collect shells, create a sand fort, draw pictures in the sand and build sandcastles,sandsculpturesorevenaSandman.EndlessfunforthekidswhileMumandDadrestinthesunforawhile.Don’tforgettobringapicnic!