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!