Zone Tag

Game Category: Zone Games

Type of Activity: Large Group Play

What’s It All About?

Sports such as basketball, rugby, and sledge hockey can be categorized as zone games. In these sports, participants work to control the various zones within the playing area and maintain possession of an object to score points. In this activity, participants are working in groups to enter another group’s zone by sending and receiving an object, while also trying to defend their own zone.

Did You Know?

• In Wheelchair Basketball, players must dribble the ball on the ground once for every two pushes on their wheelchair. There is no double dribble rule.¹
• In Special Olympics, 3x3 Basketball is a game for participants with disabilities that is played for 10 minutes, or until one team scores 21 points.¹
• In Para Ice Hockey (formerly known as sledge hockey), participants sit on a sledge consisting of a metal frame with a “bucket” mounted on top. Two skate blades are attached under the bucket on which the player balances.²

Equipment

• 1 hoops per group
• 5 objects to send per group (e.g., rugby balls, beanbags, rubber chickens, various balls)
• 1 pool noodle/implement for tagging per group

Safety

For participant safety, please review the Disability-Centred Movement Activities safety page and the activity instructions prior to the activity.

Set-up

• Divide participants into groups of 4 – 5.
• Provide each group with a hoop and 5 objects of various shapes and sizes to send and receive.
• Designate an area for each group to place their hoop, which represents their goal.

Learn To Play

• On the signal to begin, participants in each group work together to move their objects from their goal (their hoop) into another group’s goal.
• The objective of the activity is for each group to empty the objects out of their goal into any other group’s goal the fastest. Group members can attempt to enter into any other group’s zone at any time.
• Participants move their objects by sending and receiving them as they move toward the other group’s goal.
• Groups must make 5 successful passes before placing an object into another group’s goal.
• When a participant is holding an object, they cannot travel/move. Participants can only move when they are not holding an object.
• Groups can send and receive only 1 object at a time in any direction.
• If the object is dropped, the group must return to their goal with their object before making another attempt.

Action to Play

• Invite participants to explore the different ways to make the activity more or less challenging to play. For example:
  • Participants play the activity while travelling using different locomotor skills (e.g., sliding, skipping).
  • Place a pylon in the playing area. Designate some participants to play the activity in a static position, where the participant keeps 1 foot at the pylon and can only pivot around it.
  • Add a goal minder who must remain outside of the hoop and tag participants who must then return to their hoop before another attempt.
• Participants can each have different roles, or the same roles.

Power All to Play

• Invite participants to explore the Action to Play co-created list of different ways to send an object when playing the activity.
• The objective of this activity is for each group to empty the objects from their goal by placing their objects into any other group’s goal. Groups can attempt to enter any other group’s zone.

• In each group, designate a defender.
• Provide the defender with an implement (e.g., pool noodle) to tag opponents.
• The defender’s role is to protect their goal and/or intercept the object.
• If a defender tags an opponent, the opponent must return to their goal with their object before returning to play.
• Participants in each group can send and receive only 1 object at a time.
• If the object is dropped, the group must return to their goal with their object before returning to play.

Play & Ponder

Use the following question prompts throughout the activity to encourage students to think about and apply the skills, concepts, and strategies used in the activity.

• Describe how your group can work together to move the objects into another group’s goal. What is successful? What is challenging?
• Describe how your group can adapt the gameplay to ensure that all members, with their specific roles, are able to participate in each phase of the activity.
• Describe how your group works together to prevent other participants from getting their object into your goal. What is successful? What is challenging?
• How does your group support each other when playing offence? How do you support each other when playing defence (e.g., communication, encouragement)?
• How can you adjust the activity to make it more challenging for your team (e.g., boundaries, implements, objects)?
• How can you adjust the activity so that your team is more successful (e.g., decreasing the distance between the offence and defence, changing the object)?
• Describe other sports, games, and activities that use the same skills, concepts, and strategies like this zone game.