I Send You the Wheel

In pairs, children roll a hoop back and forth and stop it before it falls, moving a little farther apart and trying new ways each time. Children practice pushing and stopping a rolling object and looking out for their partner.

How to play

1. Get into pairs, facing each other two steps apart, with one hoop per pair (1 min).
2. Roll the hoop to your partner, who stops it with both hands and rolls it back (3 min).
3. If it gets there okay, each of you takes a step back so the wheel has a longer trip (2 min).
4. Stop the wheel in new ways: one hand, sitting on the floor, or kneeling (2 min).
5. Say your partner's name before sending; then the pair makes up their own way to send and catch the wheel (2 min).
6. Switch partners: take the wheel to a new friend and show them your invention (2 min).

Rules

• I look at my partner before I send the wheel.
• I push gently so they can stop it.
• If the wheel gets away, I walk to get it.
• My wheel goes to my partner, not to other pairs.

Variations

Adaptations

• Limited mobility: play at wheelchair height with the partner seated too, using a pool noodle to stop the hoop if needed.
• Visual impairment: the partner claps to show where to send it and calls "Here it comes!"
• Autism: keep the same familiar partner all session, with no final switch.

Learning goals

• Roll a hoop toward a partner with direction.
• Stop an object rolling toward them.
• Cooperate by adjusting force for a partner.

Equipment for a class of 25

• Hoops: 13

Teacher tip

Line pairs up in two parallel rows, like a hallway, so the wheels don't cross. The usual mistake is pushing hard "so it gets there": play with the idea that the wheel is going to nap in your friend's arms.

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