Your backyard can be a great place for kids to work out and develop their large motor skills. And if you have kids with disabilities you can be right there to supervise or help out as necessary. Your kids are away from public view and more likely to try harder or a new activity, because no one outside the yard is watching. It is a safe place to gain the large skills and workout.

Think of the backyard workouts as a fun assignment. And, remember that physical movement develops connections between both sides of the brain, necessary for academic work. Movement on the right side of the body is controlled from the left side of the brain and vice versa, the movements of the left side come from commands in the right brain.

Hop scotch

If you have a concrete patio slab, purchase some sidewalk chalk, or alternately use a soft stone to draw out a large rectangle. Divide the inside into squares about 15 inches in diameter or smaller if that is too big a space to hop over on one foot.

In this game each player has a pebble. The aim is to toss the pebble on square further on with each turn. To complete a turn the player hops on one foot to the square before their pebble and then either hops or jumps over the square with the pebble to land in the further adjoining square.

If it is too far to hop or jump over the square, the player can reach down, pick up the pebble and jump into the square, then hop into the squares that follow out to the other side of the rectangle.

This game gives practice with both the hopping (one foot) and jumping both feet) large motor skills.

Tumbling

This time you'll need a soft patch of grass or thick mats laid out on the patio or deck so the kids don't hurt their backs.

Begin at one long side of the area and tuck and tumble then come up to sitting. Repeat the sequence across the mat. It is very important in tumbling that the back of the neck does not touch the ground, because that could cause spinal injury.

As a side note, headstands and shoulder stands should be avoided to prevent neck injuries while kids are growing and cartilage has not hardened into bone in the spinal column.

Help the kids as needed with the tumbling and praise their efforts. Mastering the skill comes with time and repetition.

For practice

16 basic rhythmic motor skills and dances for practice are in my book:
Rhythms and Dances for School Age Kids


Article by Susan Kramer