Activity – Marshmallow Popper

This fun activity can be used for stories about celebrations where it makes a party popper. It can also represent David’s sling or the stuff that the residents of Jericho no doubt flung at the Israelites as they marched around or even the seeds in the parable of the sower..

You will need sturdy plastic, paper or polystyrene cups or yoghurt pots, balloons, sticky tape and sharp scissors. You will also need projectiles. These could be balls of plasticine, small pom-poms, paper balls or sweets such as mini-marshmallows. If you use sweets, please note that they will end up everywhere!

Cut a large hole in the base of your cup, leaving a small (3mm, 1/8″) rim for strength.

Tie a knot in the neck of your balloon, as high as possible, then cut a slice off the top. You’ll need to experiment with how much to cut off depending on the sizes of your cups and balloons – less than 1/4, usually.

Stretch the balloon over the bottom of the cup with the knot on the outside and secure with the sticky tape.