Load the cannon ball and blast it through the hoop or shoot out a water stream. Bath time will be a blast from now on with a circus cannon coming to life that’s just right for the tub. Ready, aim, splash
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Attach the cannon to the bottom of the tub and the target hoop to the bottom or side. Place the target at a distance from the cannon.
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Load one of the five balls inside the cannon, aim towards the target, and fire!
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Using the power of water, the ball can fly and shoot to a distance of over 3 feet (more than 1 meter)!
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Have fun swiveling the cannon from side to side and up and down, and firing in different directions.
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Change the height of the cannon by raising or lowering it.
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Refine hand-eye coordination, and adjust the challenge by extending or shortening the target leg.
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Play with the cannon in the tub or outside in the pool.
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When play is done, place the balls in the storage net so they can dry out.
Knowledge Acquisition
Shooting the cannon, your child begins to see that there is a range in force and in their own strength. Different applications of force end in different results. They witness the use of waterpower and start to understand pointing and directing as they aim the cannon at the target. The toy’s built-in stages and repetition activate the feedback and feed-forward mechanism in the brain, leading to training and improving cognitive abilities.
Learning skills
Your child learns problem solving as they play with the cannon. Trial and error with aiming and shooting lets them see that it is okay to fail at first, that success may not come immediately, but only with practice, new learning, and perseverance.
Imagination & Creativity
The water cannon sets a scene of excitement in which your child can participate and even become a character themselves. They can pretend to be a circus clown shooting a cannon and imagine all kinds of stories.
Gross Motor Skills
As your child presses the red button to activate the cannon and thrust the ball out through it with their force, they are exerting big, gross motor movement with their hand. Muscles throughout your child’s whole body are used in running after balls and collecting them, not to mention in throwing up their hands triumphantly after a great shot!
Senses
The challenge of the toy, aiming the cannon, pressing with force, and trying to get the ball through the target is balanced out by the calming and empowering experience of the water.
Coordination
The water cannon supports greater hand-eye coordination as your child learns to aim towards the target, adjust the angle of the target, and press the button to activate the cannon and shoot the balls out through it. A short, hard press and a long, soft press make use of different muscles and affect the ball differently, and your child coordinates the use of both hands together.
Communication
At this stage, your child is no longer solely engaging in parallel play but wants to play with other children. The water cannon can be shared with other children, like siblings in the tub or friends in the baby pool, fostering lively communication.
Confidence
The water cannon challenge raises the bar just enough on achievement along with a great fun of splashing water and shooting balls in the air. Your child does not need easy wins now, but builds confidence at this stage from challenges that encourage just enough growth and progress.
Cooperation
The cannon encourages cooperative play. In the tub or baby pool, with siblings or with friends, they can practice taking turns shooting the five balls. Each child can have a different role in the game, one shoots, and one collects balls. Their natural feelings of wild energy can also be harmlessly validated as they play at shooting the soft balls.