Balancing Waiter: An Obstacle Course With Objects

At stations, students travel short courses balancing objects on their heads, the backs of their hands or a makeshift tray, like circus waiters. It trains object balance and posture while moving.

How to play

1. Free exploration: find where each object will stay put (head, shoulder, back of the hand, a raised knee) (5 min).
2. Rotate through four 3-minute stations: bean bag on the head through a zigzag, ball on a plate held in one hand, upside-down cone on the back of the hand, and bench walk with a bean bag on the head (12 min).
3. In pairs: carry a ball on a plate held between both partners, with no hands on the ball (4 min).
4. Each pair invents a new course section and shows it to the class (4 min).

Rules

• Only one person on the bench at a time.
• If an object drops, stop, pick it up and continue from that spot.
• Walk with eyes forward, not down at the object.
• Rotate stations clockwise.

Variations

Adaptations

• Wheelchair users: carry the plate and ball on the lap or in one hand, and replace the bench with a cone lane.
• Students with low vision: courses marked with colored tape on the floor and a partner as guide.
• Students with balance difficulties: walk the bench with no object, holding a partner's hand.

Learning goals

• Balance objects on different body parts.
• Keep an upright posture while moving.
• Create balance challenges for others.

Equipment for a class of 25

• bean bags: 15
• plastic plates: 15
• tennis balls: 15
• cones: 20
• gym benches: 2

Teacher tip

Bean bags are easy to make from socks filled with rice or dried beans. Set the stations in the corners so nobody walks across the bench.

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