Whoosh! Parachute Play

From Flickr by Big Kohuna

No! I don't push kids off the bookshelves with their own personal mini-chute. That is not what parachute play is and that is also very uncool.
Parachute play is taking a flat chute and doing movement activities with it like moving the chute itself, having the kids "hide" underneath, running under and out of the chute. You know, fun stuff.
For my baby-toddler storytime, I like to switch between parachute play and the Hokey Pokey as a closing movement.


My Parachute Play Routine

Ring Around the Rosie
Ring around the rosie
Pocket full of posies
Ashes! Ashes!
We all fall down!

When you're down with the parachute, you have options. You can sing Fishies in the Water or the next verse of Ring Around the Rosie. 

The cows are in the meadow
Eating buttercups.
Ashes! Ashes!
We all stand up!

Fishies in the Water
Fishies in the water.
Fishies in the sea.
We all jump up 
With a 1, 2, 3!

Grand Ol' Duke of York 
I have the kids go underneath the chute for this one and then the parents and I have fun moving it up, down and around.

The grand ol' Duke of York
He had ten thousand men.
He marched them up to the top of the hill 
And he marched them down again.
And when they're up, they're up.
And when they're down, they're down.
And when they're only halfway up,
They're neither up nor down!

Popcorn 

I used large pom-poms as the popcorn, but if you have ball pit balls, or about 30 pieces of a lightweight, non-dangerous, rounded object that could work, too.

You throw the corn into the pot (pour the balls in)
Then shake it! Shake it! Shake it alot! (gently shake the chute)
And when they start to heat up (start to shake harder)
From the bottom to the top... (shake the chute down, then up)
Then its time to pop! Pop! Pop! (shake vigorously, so the balls can fly all over the place)

Here's a video of some adults talking about different parachute play songs and rhymes. I thought it was pretty good.