Adapted Slalom: Design a Gate Course with Penalties

Groups design a slalom course with gates, turns and reverse sections inspired by wheelchair slalom, a competitive sport in Spain for athletes with severe physical disabilities. Other groups test it, and it's tweaked to be challenging and fair for everyone.

How to play

1. Intro: wheelchair slalom is raced against the clock with penalties for touching or missing gates. Groups of five get 8 cones and 4 poles (3 min).
2. Design in 6 × 10 m: each group builds a course with at least six gates, one full turn and a reverse section, and sketches it on their card (7 min).
3. Cross-testing: each group runs another group's course at a fast walk, with a 5-second penalty per touched or missed gate; one timer and one judge per course (10 min).
4. Tweak: designers change one gate based on the data and explain whether their course rewards skill or just speed (5 min).

Rules

• Fast walk only, no running: the challenge is precision.
• Reverse sections are always straight and slow.
• Gates at least 1 m wide.
• The judge's penalty calls are final.

Variations

Adaptations

• Wheelchair user: runs the course in their chair, and their time checks that the design is accessible.
• Visually impaired student: runs it with a guide giving turn cues.
• Student with an ankle injury: timer and judge, and helps design.

Learning goals

• Design a course with fair difficulty criteria.
• Know wheelchair slalom as a competitive sport.
• Use data to improve a design.

Equipment for a class of 25

• cones: 40
• poles: 20
• stopwatches: 5
• course cards: 5

Teacher tip

Short on gear? Full water bottles work as cones. The usual mistake is gates so narrow nobody clears them: require at least two of five runs to be penalty-free.

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