General Adaptations

Adapted Physical Education (Success For All Students)

Equipment: Vary balls (size, weight, color, texture), larger, lighter, brighter, less bounce (deflate balls). Equipment for all students.

Targets: Start off with no targets; then larger, brighter, closer, lower, and many targets

Visuals: Use visual markers for boundaries, personal space, pathways, start and end

Signals: Use consistent start and stop signals (word cue, drum beat)

Playing Area: Have visual boundaries, smaller, remove obstacles

Rules: Partner assisted, disregard time limits, verbal/physical prompts, more space between students, eliminate outs, allow ball to remain stationary

**Always demonstrate/model activity expectations (See)

**Use vocabulary of skill (Hear)

**Student SAY skill if able (Speech)

**Student DO skill (Kinesthetic)

Home Equipment for APE

Throwing Skills

1. Tape ball (tape up newspaper), sock balls (rolled up socks), nylon sock balls (rolled up nylons)

2. Tape t-shirt (tape up t-shirt) for bigger ball

3. 6 pack soda ring around tape up shirt (for students with problems gripping the ball)

Catching Skills (Self toss catch and catch with adult until skill improves)

1. Scarves, plastic bags, small towels

2. Punch balloons, beach balls

3. Sock ball, Taped t-shirt, soda ring balls

Kicking Skills

1. Milk / juice carton or plastic containers

2. Put taped t-shirt in nylon stocking in one leg and use other leg to hold (self kicking)

3. Put small ball in nylon stocking and self kick

4. Flat ball (Students don't have to chase ball after kick)

Striking Skills (with hand or with implement)

1. Punch balloons, regular balloons, beach balls

2. Hanging object on string from ceiling

3. Ball on cone or tee

4. Tape ball on tray table of wheelchair

Ball Handling Skills (Dribbling)

1. Exercise ball

Home Gross Motor Activity Ideas

Stretch

Pick three stretches and do them routinely before picking a locomotor and manipulative skill to work on. Examples:

1) Reach up

2) Reach down to toes

3) Flamingo stretch

4) Arm circles

Locomotor Skills (pick 1 to work on)

1) Walk

Equipment: walking shoes

• Find a route around your house or neighborhood that you enjoy doing and say “Hi” to the neighbors.

2) Obstacle Course – can be created from practically anything you have around the house.

• Need a large open space to accommodate various stations.

• Provide equipment to balance on, step into and out of (tires, boxes), step over, walk around, walk/crawl through (prop up a sheet with chairs like creating a fort), step down off of, throw/kick station, etc.

Benefits:

Physical Fitness Skills – Strength, endurance, and flexibility.

Neuromuscular Skills – Coordination, balance, motor planning, and basic motor skills.

Cognitive Skills – Following directions, creating own obstacle course stations, etc.

Social Skills – Setting up and putting away equipment to assist others, taking turns

Manipulative Skills (pick 1 to work on)

1) Striking Skills

Equipment: ball (whiffle ideally because it has holes to put string through) or balloon, striking implement

• Suspend a ball/balloon from a string and strike 5-10x before rest; repeat (3 sets)

• Strike ball/balloon with open hand then with extension of hand (racquet, bat, roll of paper towel)

2) Throwing Skills

Equipment: ball, paper balls, yarn balls, bean bags, target (hamper, box, trash bin)

• Throw ball underhand/overhand to a target

• Clean Out the Backyard – make a lot of newspaper/paper balls and overhand throw them to the other side of a rope/table/barrier of some sort.

3) Kicking Skills

Equipment: ball, goal (cones, box, hamper laid to the side)

• Kick ball into a goal

• Suspend a ball and kick 5-10x before rest; repeat (3 sets)

4) Ball Handling Skills (Dribbling)

Equipment: exercise ball, playground ball, basketball (various sizes), adapted basket, box, trash can

• Stationary dribble practice both hands

• Dribble in general space

Ball Handling Cues

1. Using finger pads, push the ball down towards the ground

2. Firmly push the ball with a flexible wrist (verbal cue “Hello” waving to the ground)

3. Consistent force waist high with bent knees

4. Keep head up and eyes down the court

Equipment: Large exercise ball --> Playground ball --> Basketball

- Less air in ball for more control (so does not bounce too high; have to work on force more)

5) Catching Skills

Equipment: Scarves, Punch balloons, yarn balls, success balls, and bean bags for advanced students

Self toss

Adult toss to student

Partner toss (only if students able to toss. Gr. 2-6) Increase distance as student improves catching skills.

Heavy Work Activities

1) Water plants around the house / yard.

2) Body Bowling – child log rolls (or rock and reach) to knock over as many plastic bowling pins or water bottles as possible with any part of their bodies. Do activity on a carpeted or matted area for safety and comfort.

· Benefits:

Motor/tactile skills – Motor planning, coordination, balance, sensory stimulation

Locomotor skills -- Rolling, combat crawling, creeping

Non-Locomotor skills -- Reaching, rocking, kneeling

Physical Fitness Skills – Strength (trunk, neck, back, legs, glutes, hands, arms), endurance, and flexibility, bilateral movements

Cognitive Skills– Counting pins hit, following directions, rules, etc.

Social Skills– Helping to set up pins for peers’ turns, cheering on peers.

Emotional Skills – Improving confidence, having fun.

Alternative Activities

1) Parachute Activities – Use the largest bed sheet or blanket you have for the parachute and make newspaper/paper balls to toss and catch in your parachute.

· Benefits:

Motor/ tactile skills – Motor planning, coordination, balance, sensory stimulation

Locomotor skills – shaking arms up and down, side-to-side, or holding parachute up in the air.

Non-Locomotor skills – Reaching, holding, rocking.

Physical Fitness Skills – Trunk strength, endurance, arm ROM

Cognitive Skills – Following the directions and rules of the activity.

Social Skills – Helping in each parachute activity to accomplish the goal in the game, cheering on other classmates.

Emotional Skills – Improving confidence, pride, teamwork, and having fun.

2) Bubble Play – blowing bubbles

Benefits:

Motor/tactile skills – Motor planning, coordination, sensory

Fine Motor Skills – Grasping

Visual Tracking Skills – Following where the bubbles go

Hand/Eye Coordination – linking what the eyes are doing and hand (dipping the wand)

Sensory Processing – Bubbles are wet and slimy; the act of blowing can be a calming sensory processing affect for the child.

Oral Motor Skills

3) Body Tracing – child lies supine on large paper, cut to their body size, someone traces and outline of their body with a crayon; reverse the roles. Then draw in features. Can do on a smaller scale and trace hand.

Benefits:

Motor/tactile skills – Motor planning, coordination, balance, sensory stimulation

Non-Locomotor skills – Lying; squatting and reaching to draw, etc.

Physical Fitness Skills – Strength (especially trunk), endurance, and flexibility.

Cognitive Skills – Learning body image, laterality, directionality, following directions, etc.

Social Skills– Cooperation and teamwork, children are responsible for other’s tracings!

Emotional Skills – Improving self-concept and body image, having fun.

LOCOMOTOR SKILLS CRITERIA

WALK:

• Body upright, head and shoulders aligned over feet

• Foot placement in a wide path

• Alternating steps

• Heel-toe foot placement, not flat-footed

• Arms in opposition to leg action, arms near body, below shoulders

RUN:

• Eyes and Body-eyes focus in the direction of travel, and the body moves in an upright position with a slight forward lean

• Flight-both feet are temporarily off the ground in a stride position

• Arms-arms are bent at about a 90 degree angle and move in a forward and backward direction without crossing the midline of the body

• Knees-knee is bent to bring the heel up behind the body and parallel to the ground

Hop:

• Eyes and Body-eyes look forward in the direction of travel and the body moves in an upright position

• Foot and Take-Off Leg-take off and land on the same foot, bending the knee on landing

• Swing Knee-swing knee is bent and swings forward

• Arms-elbows are bent and the arm opposite the swing leg moves forward

• Glide-body moves with a smooth, rhythmical motion

HORIZONTAL JUMP:

• Knees and Arms-knees are bent and arms are back to begin the jump

• Feet and Body-feet are shoulder-width apart with a slight forward lean of the body

• Arms-arms swing forward and out in the direction of travel

• Legs-legs forcefully thrust the body forward in a stretched position

• Landing-knees are bent, feet are shoulder-width apart, and arms are in front of the body for balance

GALLOP:

• Eyes and Body-eyes look in direction of travel, and the body moves in an upright position with a slight forward lean

• Flight-step forward with the lead foot and the back foot closes. Both fee are temporarily off the ground

• Arms-arms re bent and swinging forward and back

• Glide-body moves with a smooth rhythmical motion

SLIDE:

• Chin, Eyes, and Body-chin is placed over the lead shoulder, the eyes focus in the direction of travel, and the body maintains an upright position

• Feet-feet stay parallel to each other throughout the entire movement as the body moves either right or left

• Flight-both feet are temporarily off the ground

• Glide-body moves with smooth, rhythmical motion

SKIP:

• Eyes and Body-eyes focus in the direction of travel and the body maintains an upright position

• Step and Hop-step and hop on the same foot

• Arms-arms move in opposition

• Flight-both feet are temporarily off the ground. The nonsupport leg is bent as the hopping leg leaves the ground

• Glide-the body moves with a smooth, rhythmical motion

LEAP:

• Run-take several running steps before starting to leap

• Takeoff-push off the ground with one foot

• Flight-both feet are temporarily off the ground in a stride position and the arm opposite the lead foot reaches forward

• Landing-land on the opposite foot from the takeoff foot, knee is bent to absorb force

• Run-run a few steps after landing

MANIPULATIVE SKILLS CRITERIA

OVERHAND THROW:

• Ready Position-facing target, feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, eyes on target, object held in front of body

• T-body turns and non-dominant side is toward the target. Extend the arms to create a T. The non-throwing hand points toward the target

• Step/Throw/Point-step with the foot opposite the throwing arm, hip, and shoulder rotate toward the target, front body surface faces the target, arm comes through past the head

• Follow Through-throwing hand continues toward the target and continues down diagonally across body

CATCHING:

• Ready Position-face the target, feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, eyes on the object, elbows bent near sides, palms up

• Step and Reach-as ball is released, step toward object and extend the arms and hands out to catch ball. Palms up for ball below waist. Fingers up for balls above waist.

• Fingers Only-use only fingers and thumbs to catch the object

• Give-absorb the force of the object by bringing the arms back toward the body

BALL HANDLING (Dribble):

• Ready Position-knees bent, feet shoulder-width apart, eyes looking forward, ball held with both hands in front of body

• Push-one hand contacts the ball at waist level or below. Push downward using finger pads only. Flex wrist ("Hello") and the elbow extends downward as the ball is pushed down.

• Eyes Forward-head is up and eyes are focused forward as dribble

• Keep Ball in Front of Body-Ball should be bounced in front of body away from feet

STRIKING:

• Ready Position-front of the body toward the ball, eyes on ball, feet shoulder width apart, knees bent, hands out with palms facing each other and fingers facing forward

• Before Strike-Body turns as the feet pivot, side to ball, extend the striking hand away from the ball. Eyes on the ball throughout the movement

• Step and Strike-step toward the ball with foot opposite the striking arm, arm swings through as the hip and shoulder rotate toward the target.

• Follow Through-hand continues in the direction of the strike

KICKING:

• Ready Position-stand behind the ball, focus eyes on the ball

• Step and Leap-step forward on the kicking foot to generate power for the kick, leap forward on the non-kicking foot placing the toes beside the ball, bring kicking foot forward

• Kick-contact the ball at or below center with toe or instep

• Follow Through-arm opposite the kicking leg swings forward, kicking foot continues forward in the direction of the kick