Coming Soon – The Molly the Sheepdog Colouring And Activity Book

One child is “Molly”, the others are “sheep”. Molly must guide her flock safely into the “pen” (a circle made of cushions or cones) using only signals – no touching or shouting! design and analysis accessible to all levels of readers.

• A safe space indoors or outdoors
• Cushions, cones or chairs to mark the “pen”
• A few bags, coats or toys to be obstacles
• Optional: blindfolds (for older kids), a whistle, tambourine or clap

• Clap = The sheep take a step forward 
• Whistle (or “Come-bye!”) = Turn right
• Tambourine (or “Away!”) = Turn left

1. Choose one child to be Molly, others are sheep.
2. Sheep start at one end of the space; the “pen” is at the other.
3. Molly uses only claps and sounds to guide the sheep around obstacles.
4. The game ends when all the sheep are safe in the pen.

1. Younger children: No blindfolds, just follow Molly’s signals.
2. Older children: Blindfold the sheep for more challenge.
3. Family play: Take turns being Molly so everyone gets a go at herding.
4. Race challenge: Add a timer to see how quickly Molly can herd her flock!

If you use blindfolds, make sure a grown-up is watching to keep everyone safe.

Just like the Buntings collect wool from the sheep, your job is to move the “wool” safely from one basket to another – without dropping it! 

• Scrunched up paper of different sizes (to be the “wool”) – recycled paper or newspapers are excellent
• One basket, bowl, box or bag for the start to hold all the wool at the “sheep end”
• One basket, bowl, box or bag per team of players to hold the “gathered” wool
• Spoons for each team or player
• A safe space indoors or outdoors

1. Split into two or more teams.
2. Place one basket with all the “wool” at the start line (the “sheep end”) and an empty basket for each team at the finish line (the “gathered end”).
3. Each player takes a spoon, picks up one piece of wool with the spoon and races carefully to drop it into their gathered end basket.
4. If a player drops the wool on the way to their basket, they must go back to the sheep end basket and try again – no holding the wool!
5. Run back and pass the spoon to the next teammate.
6. The team with the most wool when all is gathered wins.

1. Younger children: Carry the wool in your hands instead of on a spoon. 
2. Older children: Try balancing two pieces of wool at once – or make the track longer with obstacles to go around.
3. Family play: Mix grown-ups and kids into teams for extra fun. Different spoon sizes can make the play more even if the grown-ups have smaller spoons.
4. Race challenge: Give each team their own basket of wool at the sheep end. The first team to gather all their wool wins! 

Remember – it’s not just about speed. Sheep’s wool is soft and precious, so carry it carefully. No dropping our wool!

Every animal has its own special sound – but can you remember them all? Sit in a circle and take turns making different animal noises. The challenge is to keep the sounds going without repeating any! 

• A safe space to sit in a circle – indoors or outdoors
• Lots of players (the more, the funnier!)
• Your best animal noises – moo, cluck, bray, baa, neigh, woof, meow, oink, quack...

1. Everyone sits in a circle.
2. The first player chooses an animal and says, “On our farm …” followed by the name of the animal and the sound it makes. For example: “On our farm, dogs go woof.”
3. Going round the circle, each person must make a different animal noise – no repeats!
4. If someone repeats a sound or can’t think of a new one, they are out for that round.
5. Keep going until only one player is left – or until you run out of animals.

1. Younger children: Allow repeats so everyone can join in as loudly as they like. 
2. Older children speed challenge: Keep a steady clap going so there are no gaps between one person and the next. If there is a gap, that person is out of the round. 
3. Family play: Mix grown-ups, older children and little ones – the funniest sound wins a cheer even if it’s a repeat.
4. Memory challenge: Before each new sound, repeat all the noises that came before – can the circle remember the whole farmyard? 

Remember – the sillier the sound, the better the game. Give us your loudest “hee-haw!”