Materials:
Large tub of sand or a sandbox
Cardboard tubes of various sizes and circumferences (from toilet paper, paper towels, wrapping paper, etc.)
Funnels
Large spoons
Directions: Place the cardboard tubes upright in the sand. We used serving spoons to spoon sand into the tubes. We put a funnel in one of the tubes and encouraged the children to see if that made the process more efficient. Apparently it did, since they put the extra funnels in other tubes. When a tube was filled with sand, the children picked up the tube and planted it in another spot to fill again. This was such a simple activity to set up, but it engaged the children for quite a while!
