Libby Public School Series: Obstacles

Obstacles, we run into them all the time, whether they are physically, emotionally, socially or academically. The trick is how do you overcome obstacles.  For a child with a developmental delay or physical disability basic mobility can be a challenge.

I love using obstacle courses to work with the kids, they are fun, can be modified to each child's needs and teach a variety of skills at once.

Skills:

• Balance : Balance is the ability to stay upright and in control of the body.  The primary goal of an obstacle course geared towards improving agility requires obstacles that challenge balance such as balance beams and steps of varies sizes and heights. 
• Static Balance; Maintaining an upright position when e.g. sitting or standing
• Dynamic Balance; Maintaining control of the body while moving using the senses; ears, eyes, touch, body awareness  
• Coordination:  Coordination is the ability to move two or more body parts in a controlled, fluent and efficient manner. The more challenging the obstacles the more coordination it requires e.g. walking on flat ground is much easier than walking on a balance beam or across rocks. 
• Core Strength: Strength and tolerance of the muscles that determine posture, located in  the trunk with an additional role for  the muscles in the pelvic and shoulder girdle. These muscle need to be able to work for long periods of time (during any upright position or activity) and play a crucial stabilizing role in other areas of movement including but not limited to fine motor skills such as writing. You can build core strength in an obstacle course by making the obstacles harder  while challenging multiple positions, higher steps to step on, crawling under lower barriers or stepping over items. 
• Visual Perception: The ability to interpret what you see e.g. how far is something away how deep or high is that step. In an obstacle course you may be thinking of stairs, jumping down or throwing a ball at a target. 
• Focus and Attention: The brain's ability to detect and respond to stimuli. When navigating an obstacle course you have to pay attention as to not fall or step off the obstacles, you need to be able to make quick decisions in regards to how to navigate the obstacle and respond when off balance, to correct your body posture. 
• Sequencing: The ability to perform steps in a certain order. In child development small children , 2-3 yrs old, when they first see an obstacle course will not follow the course, they will gravitate to the first activity that catches their eye. By the time the child is 4 yrs old they generally see the pattern and automatically start at one end and move through the course.   Many children with developmental or learning challenges struggle with sequencing. Sequencing is needed for reading, writing, math, following recipes but also getting dressed and taking a shower. An obstacle course with multiple activities build within can teach the beginning concepts of sequencing by doing them in order.
• Sense of Direction: Obstacle courses can be put together with random obstacles, however if you want to teach directional concepts you will need to start by making the course with a start and finish and change up the direction by using go forward and backward on the course. With older children you can build in multiple directions and add left and right or even crossing two paths in a figure eight pattern.
• Other Targeting, Letters and Numbers, Puzzles Writing, Creativity: Within the course you can build in additional balance tasks by putting items on the floor next to the obstacle, the child will have to pick them up while staying balanced and at a later part in the course do something with the item e.g. target the ball in a bucket, write the letter on a piece of paper, over several times through the course pick up letters and make a word etc. 

Obstacle courses can be very elaborate with many skills and activities build within the course such as jumping, balance beam, and targeting. You could make a simple course for younger children in your home using your furniture and laundry baskets. For older children you may need to get out in the yard, use a log to stand on and jump down, a 2 by 4 for a balance beam, medium and large rocks for balance steps and a garbage can as a basket. If you don't have a ball to throw you can always use pine cones. An obstacle course can also focus just on one skill, for instance,  stairs; lay puzzle pieces at the bottom of the stairs and the puzzle form at the top, the child can go up and down to make the puzzle. Obstacle courses can naturally occur when you go into the woods, walk on logs,  climb on and jump down stumps, go over and under branches. You can go for a hike along the river or lake stepping from rock to rock climbing up and down the rocks. When you live in town walk on the edge of the sidewalk like a balance beam, walk and do not step on the lines on the ground or find a park with climbing equipment. If a course is not readily available you can play follow the leader and build in your own activities e.g. run, frog hop to bunny hop, go around in a circle, crawl on hands and knees or walk like a crab. 

Conquering obstacles teaches new skills, is fun, but most of all it teaches us not to give up and if we try we can accomplish almost anything.

Everyday items to use to build your own obstacle course:

• Laundry baskets: stepping in and out without using your hands, tip two over put a broom handle across; step over or crawl under
• Kitchen chairs: use several and line them up crawl across the seats, tip them over and commando crawl underneath or put something across to crawl under, set them out with 2 feet of space in between and zig zag through them.
• Firewood: line multiple pieces up about 2 feet apart and step over , a large round can be used to step on and jump down.
• Couch cushions, beanbags, pillows; line them up and crawl or walk across them, jump from one to the next (make sure they don't slide on the floor)
• Rope or 2x4: walk on the rope or use the rope to jump left, right, left with two feet, make shapes to jump from one to the next
• Large Card Board box; step in and out, crawl through

Related links

Indoor Obstacle Course Example

Other Links
Libby Public School Speech Language Pathology

Libby Public Schools Mental Health News Letter