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Obstacle Course

Sujata Iyer
An obstacle course is a fun way of improving a child's motor skills. Read on for some ideas on the same.
A child needs to get enough exercise: physical and mental. Whether it is to improve his motor skills, or to get him thinking, an obstacle course works the best. And what's more is, the kids enjoy this activity tremendously. In this article, we will see some obstacle course games that can be used to give the kids a rigorous physical exercise and also test their mental abilities.

Using Obstacle Courses for Kids

You can use an obstacle course race to liven up a boring birthday party or also as a camp game. The more children that participate, the more fun this game is. First, let us understand the basics of an obstacle course. The point is to encourage the kids to get from one obstacle to another as fast as possible, overcome it, and reach the finish line.
This is also a symbolic representation of how their lives, as human beings, are going to be filled with obstacles, and how, the only way to reach your destination, is to learn to overcome them, rather than shy away from them. Here are some ideas that you can incorporate in your next party or camp.
  • Begin with a healthy sandwich, a few steps into the race. The kids have to reach the sandwich, eat it completely, and then rush forward for the next obstacle.
  • The next obstacle can be a glass of water or juice, that will help them to wash down the sandwich that they just ate.
  • After the 'breakfast', let them have a dress-up table, where they must put on their school uniforms, shoes and socks.
  • Then, they can go 'off-to-school' and proceed to a table, which has a two pieces of paper. One with a short poem written on it, and the other piece blank....
....Place a pencil next to each blank paper. The kids have to copy-write the entire poem, as it is, neatly, with the appropriate punctuations, onto the blank piece, and then proceed to the next obstacle.
  • The next obstacle can be a math quiz that they must solve before they move on further.
  • After that, let there be a table with a banana for their lunch.
  • After lunch, it's time for some sports! Have a few basketballs placed as the next obstacle. What they have to do is, take the balls, and shoot them into baskets, that you'll place a little further away from the balls.
  • After the sport, they can do dome drawing, and coloring as their next obstacle.
  • After drawing and coloring, it is time to go home, so let the last obstacle be a trumpet that every kid must blow thrice, before running towards the finish line, not before crossing a few hurdles on the way.
Make sure that each child who participates in the race completes each obstacle properly. If he does not, make him repeat it until he does it right or simply disqualify him. This will show them that there's no room for shortcuts in life. And that, even though it may seem like an easier way out, it often leads to more trouble than you can handle. 
 In this way, you can use this fun and educational method to enhance the physical agility and also, at the same time make them mentally prepared for obstacles.
In addition to the ideas mentioned here, you can also plan an indoor obstacle course, that can take the form of a treasure hunt. Divide a group into teams and have mind-boggling clues to get from one obstacle to another. The team that solves the clues first and reaches the treasure, wins it! Have fun!