Dreaming of Spring: Bunnies in Burrows Bean Bag Game
A tongue twister title gives way to a simple, but fun game. As we live near a wooded river-valley area, in spring our neighbourhood sees bunnies running about, much to our daughter’s delight!
you'll need Materials
- Black or brown felt for the burrows
- White, brown, grey felt for the bunnies (or go with any colours that appeals to you!)
- Pink felt for the noses
- Black fabric paint
- Fabric scissors
- Fabric glue
- Sewing materials
- Plastic pellets (purchased from craft or dollar stores)
- Funnel
- Measuring cup or scoop
- Clear plastic zippered bag
- Smock
Directions
- Fold your felt over and cut out two rectangles to form your bean bag pieces for as many bean bags as you would like.
- Cut out a set of ears and a nose (we did a triangle and rounded the corners).
- Don your smock. Make two eyes out of fabric paint on one of your rectangles. You could also sew on buttons. Our bunny is quite simple- “make it your own”!
- Glue on your felt nose and allow your bunny face to dry overnight. (You could also sew it on.)
- Sew around the edge of your bean bag, tucking the ears in between the two layers. We used our sewing machine foot as a guide and then trimmed off the excess to make it uniform. Be sure to leave a space in your sewing big enough to fit your funnel to fill your bean bag (as seen in the photograph).
- Put your beanbag into a see-through bag and add your plastic pellets, using a scoop and a funnel. You don’t want to fill your bean bag too full to allow for movement.
- Move your pellets to the side opposite of the hole in your bean bag (to avoid needle breakage) and sew up your hole.
- Cut out various sizes and shapes of burrow holes out of dark felt.
- Arrange your burrows on the ground with some near and some further away and try to toss your bunny bean bags into the burrows. We made a fox based on an old drawing of my son’s to hang on the wall, imagining the bunnies escaping their predator!
Purpose
- Learning how to sew, developing fine motor skills.
- Developing gross motor skills through play (tossing, working on aim towards a target etc.)
Safety Notes
- Use scissors with care & supervision.
- Plastic pellets can be a choking hazard, be sure to keep them out of reach from children 0-3 years of age.
- A sewing machine is for adult use or depending on the age and abilities of your child, with direct supervision and guidance.
- Be sure to wear a smock to prevent damage to your clothing from the paint and glue and use a craft tray to protect surfaces.
