I decided to name this thing The Rough And Tumble Sidekick because it is an effective inanimate playmate for kids who want to kick, punch, push, and generally play aggressively. It could have just as easily been named The Letitoutinator or The Superduper Behavior Management Assistant since it has also worked effectively in helping violently angry young children release their intense emotions and find calm again.

Then again, maybe I should’ve named it The Milk Jug Clump since that’s what it is. 

Whatever you prefer to call it, The Rough And Tumble Sidekick is a simple-to-build tool. Kids interested in kicking, punching, and pushing will enjoy it, and kids needing an emotional release from big aggressive feelings will benefit from it. It is an alluring target for both playful and angry aggression.

The fact that it moves is one of the things that make it inviting. So is the satisfying THWACK produced by every punch and kick. Ultimately, kids will be drawn to it because it offers an adult-sanctioned opportunity to engage in play that is often taboo or restricted in early learning settings.

Use Scenarios

Here are some examples of when the Rough And Tumble Sidekick might come in handy:

• Your three-year-old thinks she’s The Batman
• The kid Justin likes to play fight with is sick, and he has no one to battle with
• You need to redirect Kimberly from hurting her classmates during a meltdown; “You can’t hit Bryce, but you can go punch the Rough And Tumble Sidekick if you need to hit something.”
• You’re interested in introducing rough and tumble play but not yet comfortable with allowing kids to rough house with each other

Rough And Tumble Sidekick Video

Here’s a quick video explaining the construction process:

Materials Needed

You’ll Need:

• Empty gallon jugs (5-20 of them)
• Glue (Amazon Associates link to the stuff I prefer)
• 3/8 inch rope
• Scissors
• Lighter (optional)
• Electrical tape (optional)

Prepare The Jugs

To get your gallon jugs ready for battle, rinse them out and allow them to try thoroughly. After that, the only preparatory step is to glue the lid onto the jug. Superglue and hot glue work well; traditional, white classroom glue or glue sticks do not work as well. (I have linked to the stuff I prefer above.)

Securely attaching the lids gives the jugs structural integrity. The lids trap air inside the jugs so they won’t collapse when punched and kicked.

Cut And Prep The Rope

The amount of rope you need depends on how many jugs you use; more jugs equals more rope. To make a Rough And Tumble Sidekick composed of 8 to 14 jugs, you’ll probably need to use about 8 feet of rope. Don’t worry too much about it. If it’s too long, you can cut some off; if it’s too short, you can tie on another length of rope.

Let’s spend a moment on rope ends. If you like, you can leave your rope ends as-is. They will fry a bit over time, but that won’t affect the rope’s ability to do its job.

If you want your rope ends to be a little bit more tidy, there are three options. First, you can tie a knot at the rope’s ends and trim any excess. The second option is to melt the rope’s ends to prevent fraying (This only works with nylon and other synthetic ropes). Finally, you can use some electrical tape to tie off the ends of the rope.

Next, create a loop on one end of the rope by folding it over 6 to 8 inches and then tying a knot.

String The Jugs Together

To complete your Rough And Tumble Sidekick, string the jugs onto the rope, then thread the straight end through the loop created in the previous step. Pull the slack out of the rope, and you’ll end up with a nice clump of milk jugs nearly ready to assist in rough-and-tumble play.

Hang It For Play

The final step is to hang the jug clump securely so children can hit, kick, and push it. Aim to hang your Rough And Tumble Sidekick so its bottom is about a foot off the surface or somewhere between the waist and ankles of the kids using it.

Make sure you tie the clump securely to a solidly anchored location. Tying it to a tree branch at least 3 inches in diameter or a ceiling hook anchored to a joist is a good idea. Tying it to a ceiling fan blade or a flimsy 1-inch diameter tree branch will likely cause problems.

Kids get aggressive with their Rough And Tumble Sidekick, so ensure it won’t plummet to the floor after a single axe kick or left hook.

Tips And Tricks

Here are some final tips and tricks you may find helpful:

• Vary The Height–Hanging it high, for example, means the kids would have to reach and leap to hit it
• Vary The Number Of Jugs–Fewer jugs mean kicks and punches have to be more accurate to connect; more jugs mean an easier-to-hit target
• Provide Weapons–Allow kids to whack the Rough And Tumble Sidekick with pool noodles or wrapping paper tubes
• Make It A Target–Use your Rough And Tumble Sidekick as a target for thrown balls, sandbags, or pillows
• Let It Roam–Instead of hanging it, tie off the rope holding the jugs together and place it on the floor so kids can battle it on the ground or move it around as they please
• Decorate It–Before stringing the jugs together, let kids decorate them with markers, stickers, or paint

Rough And Tumble Sidekick Wrap-Up

The Rough And Tumble Sidekick is a helpful tool for supporting children’s desire to engage in power play and helping them self-regulate when they are awash in strong, physically aggressive feelings. It also allows those who want to venture into allowing rough-and-tumble an easy way to start. It’s time to stop reading and start emptying one-gallon jugs!

Contribute content to Playvolution HQ
Brought to you by Explorations Early Learning

Browse Trainings