Optional quick idea · About 10–15 minutes

Turn a cushion into an expedition

A cushion can be a ship, a chair can be an island, and the floor can be an ocean. Decide where you are going and what you need to bring home.

What you’ll need.

• A cushion or a clear space on the rug
• A favourite soft toy
• A piece of paper and a crayon

Let’s try it.

1. Choose your ship or spaceship. Keep it on the floor and give it a name.
2. Draw a very simple map: where are you starting, where is the island or planet, and what is between them?
3. Give your toy a job. Perhaps it needs a birthday delivery or a lift home.
4. Set off with your own sound effects. One person describes a surprise and the other decides what the crew tries.
5. Reach your destination, deliver your toy and tell the story of the journey back.

The story that started it.

The sofa is a ship. The rug is the sea. All aboard.