Hula-Hoop Ball Throw

Purpose:

When I met Child R this morning, I learned that she loves to play with balls. She really enjoys playing catch with a beach-sized ball. I played catch with Child R for several minutes before she left for school. I noticed that Child R would get excited when she would throw the ball directly into my arms.

I decided to put together an activity that incorporates Child R’s love for playing catch, while enhancing some of her motor skills.

Activity:

I decided to play this game with Child R when she returned from school as I felt that she would want to do something active and engaging. I found a blue hula-hoop that made noise when I shook it, and a yellow beach ball with orange stars.

The way the game was set up is very simple. I held the hula-hoop in the air and Child R had the ball. With two hands, Child R would attempt to throw the ball directly into the hula-hoop. When Child R successfully threw the ball into the hula-hoop I would say “good job!” and give her a high five. When the ball did not make it into the hula-hoop I would say “good try!” and still give her a high five, thus reinforcing her effort.

Evaluation:

I feel that this activity went really well with Child R. I was able to build off of a simple game of catch, something that Child R loves, and create a therapeutic activity. The majority of the throws made it into the hula-hoop and together, Child R and myself cheered for her successful throw.

If I were to do this activity again with Child R, I would gather several different sized balls and encourage her to try them all. I would do this in order to enhance her gross motor skills and her hand-eye coordination.

#Activity #Therapeutic #Motor