Balancing Cleanup: Gear Goes Back With a Scarf on Your Head
The class puts away all the juggling gear while walking slowly with a scarf balanced on their heads. It brings heart rates down with a posture-control task and leaves the gear organized.
How to play
- Everyone lays a scarf flat on their head and walks slowly around the space without letting it fall (2 min).
- Carry the gear to its bin one item at a time without dropping the scarf; if it falls, stop, count to three, and keep going (3 min).
- Carry the last items in pairs, held between the backs of both partners' hands (2 min).
- Each group checks its bin and tells the teacher how many items are in it (1 min).
Rules
- Walk, never run.
- One item per trip.
- Bins stay put; take the gear to the bin, not the bin to the gear.
- If a scarf falls, nobody laughs or picks it up for that person.
Variations
Easier
Balance the scarf on a shoulder instead of the head.
Standard
Scarf on the head, one item per trip.
Harder
Scarf on the head plus another on the back of one hand.
Adaptations
- Wheelchair users: rest the scarf on the knees and carry items in the lap.
- Students with low vision: walk the route with a partner, with the bin marked by a sound object.
- Restless students: put them in charge of checking each bin's final count.
Learning goals
- Lower activation with a posture-control task.
- Put gear away in an orderly way.
- Cooperate while carrying in pairs.
Equipment for a class of 25
- juggling scarves: 30
- bins: 4
Teacher tip
Place the bins in the four corners, one per type of gear, to avoid jams. Cleanup becomes part of the lesson instead of a chore.
PatioLab has "Balancing Cleanup: Gear Goes Back With a Scarf on Your Head" and 8714 more activities ready to drag into your lesson and run from your phone in the gym.
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