How to Practise Jumping Drills With Your Child at Home

Jumping is one of those big, joyful milestones — and the good news is your living room floor is the perfect place to build it.

In short

You can work on jumping drills at home with simple, playful steps: start with two-footed jumps in place, add gentle hops over a soft line on the floor, then progress to jumping off a low step and forward over small targets. Keep sessions short, fun and barefoot on a non-slip surface, and celebrate every attempt — repetition through play builds the leg strength, balance and coordination jumping needs.

How to do it at home

Begin with the building blocks

• Bend and bounce: Hold your child's hands and play "squash like a spring" — bend the knees, then bounce up. This teaches the knee-bend that powers a jump.
• Jump in place: Encourage two-footed jumps trying to leave the floor together. Bubbles to pop or a balloon to tap gives a fun target overhead.

Add a little challenge

• Jump the line: Lay a ribbon or chalk line on the floor and play "jump over the river." Progress to two parallel lines as a wider "river."
• Jump off a step: From a low, stable step (ankle height), hold hands and jump down with a soft landing — knees bent, like a cat.
• Lily pads: Place flat cushions or paper circles and hop from one to the next.

Make it stick

• Keep it short — 5–10 minutes of play beats a long drill.
• Demonstrate yourself; children copy what they see.
• Always land on bent knees on a soft, non-slip surface, barefoot for grip.

When to check in

Most children begin two-footed jumping between 2 and 2.5 years. If by around 2.5–3 years your child cannot get both feet off the ground, tires very quickly, or strongly avoids gross-motor play, a friendly developmental check is wise — not a worry, just a chance to make sure the building blocks underneath (core strength, balance) are in place. Read more about jumping drills and supportive occupational therapy at home.

The Pinnacle way

Developmental measurement supports care planning; diagnosis requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional. under qualified clinician care — home drills are for play and practice, never assessment. If you'd like an objective picture of your child's motor development, our AbilityScore® is a clinician-administered structured assessment that maps strengths across domains and guides next steps. With 25 million+ therapy sessions and 700+ therapists across 70+ centres, we tailor gross-motor plans to your child.

Trusted sources

Guided by gross-motor milestone guidance from the CDC's developmental milestones, the American Academy of Pediatrics' HealthyChildren resources, and occupational-therapy practice frameworks from ASHA-aligned bodies.

Next step — message our team on WhatsApp at +91 91001 81181 to book a developmental check or ask which jumping drills suit your child's age.

This is general information, not a diagnosis — individual assessment and diagnosis require an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.