Stackball encourages cooperation while improving throwing and catching skills. Students separate into pairs consisting of one thrower and one catcher. The thrower and catcher should stand 10 yards apart from each other. The thrower throws a ball to the catcher. If the ball drops, the catcher rolls the ball back to attempt another throw and catch. Upon catching the ball, the catcher must run to a stack of 40 cups placed approximately 10 feet away, pick up one cup, return to her original position, place the cup on the ground and roll the ball back to the thrower. The pair will repeat this process, restacking cups until no more remain in the original stack. The catcher and thrower will then switch roles, beginning a new round with the goal of restacking all cups in less time.
Children enjoy this competitive game that helps develop motor skills. Divide the class into groups of two to four golfers who will be competing against each other. The goal is for students to kick a soccer ball from a starting point and through a goal in as few attempts as possible. Identify the starting point with a cone. The goal may consist of two cones spaced approximately two to three feet from each other. Taken together, the starting point and goal cones create one hole. Teachers may use their discretion in choosing the number of holes to create. Upon completing all holes, each student tallies his number of kicks and the person with the lowest number in the group wins.
Freeze ball is a dual-purpose game that improves throwing and catching skills while increasing cardiovascular endurance. The teacher instructs students to scatter into a random formation and gives out one ball per two students. For example, 30 students would use 15 balls. The teacher begins to play music, and the students start throwing the balls to each other around the room. When the music stops, the students with balls must run and attempt to tag the person who threw the ball to them. If tagged, a student must stop moving until the music plays again. Then, the process repeats.
Children enjoy this fun physical activity and may not realize they're also improving their math skills. Teachers separate students into pairs and place floor tape or other markers to divide each pair's area into 10 sections. Identify the sections with labeled cones, each with a unique number between 1 and 10. Within each pair, one student is the "multiples of 1" value and another is the "multiples of 10" value. The teacher then calls out a locomotive skill and a two-digit number. Students must then move to their corresponding section using the locomotive skill. For example, if the teacher says "Hop 37," the student representing "multiples of 10" values must hop to three and the other "multiples of one" student must hop to 7.