Foursies Snowyball

Setting: Curricular

Season: Winter

Activity Goal

Participants send and receive objects and adjust game strategy while adapting to winter conditions and reflect on how their movements are affected by weather and outdoor clothing. Participants consider how they can play this game with friends and family to stay active in winter.

For participant safety, please review the contents of the Beyond the Walls: Safety Considerations page for information on Safety Standards, Winter Safety Considerations, and Outdoor Playing Areas and Surfaces.

Equipment

• Object to send and receive (various balls of different sizes and/or material, bean bags, rubber chickens, etc.)
• Pylons

Before Play

• Review the safety rules and activity instructions with participants prior to activity.
• Establish the boundaries for the designated play area and share them with participants.
• Divide the class into groups of four. Have groups pair up with another group who become their opponents.
• Have groups set up their “court” in the shape of a rectangle marked with one pylon in each corner. Use four pylons in a line to divide the court in half in lieu of a net. Divide each side of the “net” into a front and back court using two additional pylons per side.
• Participants set up with one group on each side of the net (the center cones). Each group decides which two participants will be positioned in the front court and which two will be positioned in the back court. If there is an odd number for a team then have the extra person alternate between the front row and back row positions.
• Provide each court with one object to send.

During Play

• Participants send the object with an underhand throw over the pylon (net) and onto their opponents’ side of the court, trying to prevent their opponents from being able to catch and return the object before it hits the ground. To increase the challenge, have the ‘server’ send the object into the back row to start the rally.
• A group receives a point if the object lands on the other group’s side and they are unable to return it before it hits the ground.
• After a few points, pause the game and use the following prompts for groups to reflect on strategies used to send their object and successfully prevent their opponent from receiving the object, accounting for the weather, and playing surface conditions:
  • How is the weather or the playing surface conditions affecting your ability to send and receive the object?
  • How does your winter clothing affect your ability to send the object accurately to avoid your opponents from receiving it?
  • How can you adjust the way you send the object to counter the weather and surface conditions?
  • What adjustments might you make to successfully receive an object to counter these conditions?
  • What strategies can you use as a team to be successful in scoring a point?
• Resume play and have participants practice the movement and game strategies they identified.
• Groups keep track of their points and work together to accumulate the maximum number of points designated to win the game.
• Have teams switch opponents and continue play, alternating positions between front and back court.

After Play

Use the following prompts for participants to reflect on how they adapted their play to winter conditions and how weather and outdoor clothing affected their movement and game strategy. Participants consider how they dress for winter activities, and the activity can be adapted to play with friends and family to stay active in winter.

Question prompts:

• How did participating in this activity in snow affect how you moved on the court?
• How did your clothing affect your ability to accurately send the object to an open space or defend the open space?
• Which strategies were most effective for your team?
• What did you find challenging about playing this version of a traditional game outside in winter?
• What did you have to do to play this type of game safely while on snow covered or slick surfaces in winter?
• What did you enjoy most about playing this game in winter?
• How could you play or adapt this game with friends to help everyone stay active in the winter?

Adaptations

Consider these tips to maximize the challenge and the fun for participants.

• Invite participants to use different objects in the game. Invite participants to decide on how many times the object must be passed before sending it over the net to the opponent.
• Increase or decrease the size of the playing area, making it wider or narrower.
• Create a four-square court, where there are four pairs playing at the same time.
• Explore playing with more than one object at the same time.

Modifications

Consider these tips to maximize inclusion and fun for all participants.

• For participants with physical disabilities, having challenges with reaction time in the activities, allow them to hold the object for longer than the designated amount of time before sending it over the middle line.
• For learners in a mobility device (e.g., wheelchair), invite all participants to play the game seated, modifying the sending object as needed.