Vote for this Best Practice | Email to a Friend
Teacher: Susan Jastraub who teaches at Paragon Elementary School in Paragon, IN. Susan Jastraub can be contacted at buckeyes@iquest.net.
Name of Best Practice: Halloween Obstacle Course
Rationale/Purpose of Event: To practice manipulative skills, locomotor skills, balancing skills, and fitness skills using a Halloween theme.
Suggested Grade Level: K-5
Materials Needed: Halloween music (monster mash, purple people eater, Adams family song, Ghostbusters, etc.), Halloween costume for teacher, Equipment for each of the activities.
Halloween Obstacle Course
The following is a Halloween Obstacle Course I do each year. It is not truly an obstacle course, because the students are put in groups of about four and stay at each activity for about three minutes. This activity takes two physical education class periods to complete. The following is a description of each station. Two tables put together draped with black plastic table cloths, laminated bats hang in the cave, and blinking lights. Students have to crab walk through the cave, while avoiding the bats. A batting tee, whiffleball bat, and whiffleball. Students take turns practicing batting skills to hit ball off tee. SOCCER GHOUL Two cones set up against the wall about ten feet apart from each other. Students stand at a designated line and use the inside of the foot kick to score a goal. Eight cones, four half hoops, black plastic tablecloth, funny skeleton pictures, two scooterboards, and blinking lights. Students get on their stomachs and scooterboard through the tunnel. One large pumpkin garbage bag, cageball, several cones to make a circle, and punchballs(older kids use basketballs) Put the cageball in the garbage bag and make a circle around it with the cones. Students use the punchballs (basketballs) and weave in and out of the cones. Nine pumpkin paper plates, bulletin board paper, and beanbags. Glue the paper plates to the paper in a tic-tac-toe formation. Students throw a total of three beanbags one at a time trying to make a tic-tac-toe from a designated line. GRAVEYARD SPIDER WEB GHOST THROW Six whiffleballs, plastic ghost bags, and one large box with a ghost picture on it. Put whiffleballs in a ghost bag. Students take turns throwing ghosts at the box from a designated line. Balance beam and tumbling mats. Students take turns walking across the balance beam using forward, backward, and sideways. This is great fun for the students. They ask every year when school starts, "When are we going to do the Halloween Obstacle Course?" If you think the older kids will think it is boring, you could have them come with a Kindergarten or first grade class and have them take the little ones through the stations. You can pick and choose which stations you would like to do, or create your own. I also turn the lights down to give a Halloweeny feel. Also, arrows on the floor or walls to indicate where to go to next helps the students.
BAT CAVE
BATS ABOUT HALLOWEEN
SKELETON TUNNEL
PUMPKIN PATCH
RATTLE THE BONES
One large skeleton laminated so it will not tear and fleece balls. Hang the skeleton from the basketball goal(or whatever available) and students use fleece balls to try to hit skeleton from a designated line.
PUMPKIN TOSS
Two tumbling mats, and four funny graveyard signs. Students take turns performing about 20 curl-ups.
HAUNTED TRAIL
20-30 bowling pins or soda bottles and plastic ghost bags. Put bags on pins and scatter. Students have to use locomotor skills to move through the haunted trail without knocking any ghosts down.
Two soccer goals, volleyball net, fake spiders, and two scooterboards. Put the goals upside down and drape the net over top of them. Put the fake spiders on the web. Students scooterboard on their bottomside through the web.
WALK THE PLANK
(Any Practice receiving 5 Votes earns Blue Ribbon Status on PEC)
Posted on PEC: 10/4/2001 and has received 179 votes.

Previous Comments:
There are currently no comments to display. Be the first to add a comment!