In-House Fishing

Especially during the winter, we are always looking for fun activities and games to play in the house!  One of my kids favorite activities this winter is in-door fishing. They usually find a boat to fish in first. They have used bins, beds and my living room table for a boat, but today we made a fishing pond in the basement that proved to be a lot of fun!  

Making the Poles and Fish:

Materials:

• dowel rods 
• magnets
• string
• card stock paper
• large paper clips

I first made Oliver his fishing poles for his "fishing themed" third birthday party.  All I did was take some dowel rods (you can buy these at any craft store) and carved a small notch in one end with a steak knife.  I used the notch to wrap and secure the string around one end.  I bought some thick/round magnets in the craft section at Walmart and drilled some small holes in the center. Tie the other end of the string through the hole in the magnet and you have yourself a magnet fishing pole! (If you don't have access to a drill you can also use packing tape to secure the string to the magnet.)

To make the fish I simply took some card stock paper and drew the fish on it myself.  I cut out the fish and let the kids do some coloring to make them beautiful!  I then slipped a large paper clip on end of each fish (in its mouth) and taped it in place to secure it.

We happen to be storing our swimming pool in the basement for the winter, so we decided that for the time being it would make a great fishing pond.  The bathtub would also be a fun alternative! Even Gideon (1) was having a blast "swimming" in the pond and catching the fish with his super man fishing net!  I love how easily kids can be entertained!

Teaching Tip: Even fishing can be an educational activity!  It will help to develop your kids hand eye coordination.  Imaginative play is also incredibly important for development! 

Other Fun Games for the Fishing Pole:

• I have also had my kids try to fish for magnetic letters and other objects.  Of course they need to identify the letter when they catch it, or you can call out a letter that they should try to catch.
• You can also spread both magnetic and non-magnetic items on the floor and do an experiment to see which items the fishing pole will pick up.