Obstacle course or obstacle race is a type of team-based physical game. Each participant (or “obstacle”) has to get through an assigned course as quickly as possible while dealing with multiple obstacles and hazards along the way, such as walls, ramps, fireballs, and movable platforms.
The “outdoor obstacle course activity plan” is a great idea for an outdoor activity that the whole family can enjoy. It will keep them active and burning calories while having fun.
Obstacle courses are not only entertaining but also useful to children. Why not build up a basic obstacle course in your garden for the kids?
Sedentary behavior is becoming more common among children. Obstacle courses will not only keep kids physically active, but they will also help them grow. Children improve their sequencing and memory abilities by working through multi-step sequences. Obstacles give a variety of sensory information, including proprioceptive, linear, side to side, and rotational. The lesson will also help them enhance their sports and dancing talents by increasing their strength and balance. These are just a few of the many advantages of creating a backyard obstacle course for kids.
Obstacle courses are also good to us as parents! You’ll be astonished at how much time your kids spend running and playing in the obstacle course. This will give you complete freedom to do anything you desire!
Obstacle courses for children may be made as short or as long as you choose. You may modify the layout of the course when your kids appear to tire of one layout for a fresh challenge! We’ve put up a list of quick and easy ways to get your outdoor obstacle course up and running!
Contents Table of Contents
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Obstacles to Balance
Every excellent obstacle course requires some kind of equilibrium. The participants’ equilibrium will be put to the test with these first few proposals. For your obstacle course, choose one or more of these suggestions.
1. Beam of Equilibrium
The traditional balancing beam is always in vogue. A balancing beam may be bought or made from scratch. If you buy one, we recommend one that is comparable to this one (pictured below).
You’ll need a 4 x 4 x 8 wood post to create your own balancing beam. A balancing board that is eight feet long is ideal, although smaller or longer boards are also available. You’ll need to put some footings in place to keep the wood from rolling while you’re walking on it. Cut a 2 x 4 board into two pieces, each approximately 18 inches long. 6 inches from either end, place the cut pieces. Two wood screws are used to secure the piece.
Giantex 4 Ft Floor Balance Beam Gymnastics Equipment for Beginners & Professional Gymnasts Skill Performance Training Easy Storage (Blue)
- Balance Beam is Sturdy and Comfortable: Constructed with 0.5″ EVA filler at the top and 3.4″ EVA filler at the bottom, the balance beam combines stability, durability, and comfort, allowing you to practice comfortably.
- Easy to Connect with Magic Sticks: Our gymnastic beam is made up of two pieces, allowing your child to pick the appropriate length. With the two end magic sticks, the two components may be connected securely and solidly.
- Easy Storage and Portability: This two-part balancing beam may be disassembled into a small package that is easy to store and transport. It’s also lightweight, making it simple to relocate from one room to another.
- Indoor Training: The balancing beam allows you to practice kicks, handstands, jumps, leaps, and other skill training exercises at home or at the gym. The 4″ broad top surface is ideal for all types of professional training while maintaining safety.
- Ideal for Improving Performance Skills: The gymnastic beam is ideal for children to undertake performance training ranging from basic balance to professional training, which not only enhances professional strength but also improves your child’s attention and eye-hand coordination.
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2. Buckets for balancing
Balance buckets are an excellent alternative for building an obstacle course for younger children. They are suitable for both indoor and outdoor usage. Children like pretending to be explorers and leaping over rocks to improve their physical agility and balance. Below are some of our favorite balancing buckets.
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a. Frisbees b. Frisbees c.
It’s right, you read that correctly. Frisbees may be used for a variety of activities. We recommend utilizing them as stepping stones in this scenario! Make a zig-zagged line with your frisbees. They should be spaced far enough apart so the children must stretch or leap to reach them. Arrange the pattern wherever you’d like, or let your youngsters make their own!
Jumping
Jumping jobs are another must-have for a backyard obstacle course for youngsters. High barriers, hurdles, tires, and lateral leaps are examples of this.
4. Hurdles made of PVC
PVC hurdles may be built to any height and simply swapped out to accommodate changing heights. In any obstacle course, three hurdles is a wonderful place to start. For instructions on how to create a PVC pipe hurdle, go to this page. You may make a basic hurdle using elbow joints and pairs of pipes trimmed to your chosen height. You may test out hurdles that are all the same height or have varied heights by not gluing the joints!
The Pool Noodle Hurdle is number five on the list.
Pool noodles are versatile and inexpensive. They are a significant stumbling block for children. When pool noodles are on sale, buy a few of them! Tape either end of the noodle to chairs or buckets of the same height to form a barrier.
If you don’t have any chairs or buckets, arching noodle hurdles may be used instead. To make a noodle rainbow, just lay two pens or chopsticks in the ground and set the noodle hole over each pen.
These pool noodles may be used as a crawl-through tunnel or as hurdles. Create an over-under course by having them jump over the first pool noodle and crawl beneath the second. As they increase their pace running over and under the noodles, the youngsters will develop agility.
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- MORE THAN JUST SWIMMING – These foam noodles can be used for DIY projects or arts & crafts. The foam tubes work excellent for padding, edge cushion, or as creative kids accessory. Use your imagination to think of even more uses.
- DURABLE & STRONG – These premium pool noodles provide excellent flotation for endless use whether you’re in the pool or the lake. The soft, but firm foam allows for last use from even the most intense pool sword fights.
- LARGE SIZED NOODLES – 52 inches in length, 2-1/4 to 2-1/2 inches in diameter, with a 3/4-inch hollow core. The actual length varies (+/- 1″) due to the manufacturing process. Fix Find pool noodles are proudly manufactured in the United States.
- ONLY FOR RECREATIONAL USE – These pool noodles are not designed to save lives. These pool noodles are not intended to be used as a floatation device for either children or adults.
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Pogo Jump is number six.
The pogo jump is an excellent skill builder. On their pogo sticks, have the youngsters hop from one starting point to the next. You may also apply it in portions of the yard where the grass isn’t growing.
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- The Deluxe Bungee BOING (BOING, BOUNCE, SQUEAK) is the simplest pogo for small children and novices. With each bounce, it squeaks, encouraging tiny ones to keep playing!
- ENCOURAGES GOOD HEALTH – Encourages children to be active and provides excellent exercise; improves motor skills, strength, balance, and coordination.
- USE ANYWHERE – Can be used both indoors and outside, and is simple to transport and store when not in use.
- HIGH-QUALITY CONSTRUCTION – Made of robust foam and rubber, this product is built to last. Independently tested and meeting all US and European safety requirements, the foam handle bar gives a pleasant grip.
- SPECIFICATIONS – Suitable for children aged 3 to 8. For children aged 8 and over, or if they have outgrown our Bungee Boing Pogo, one of our normal Boing Pogo sticks may be obtained on Amazon by Googling “Boing Pogo.” The foam jump pad is 9.75″ wide and has plenty of room for your feet.
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7. Set of Obstacles
This hurdle kit is for you if you don’t like doing things yourself. The obstacles are kid-friendly and simple to erect. It also includes recommended courses for you to put up! A start and finish flag, as well as rings, may all be included in your obstacle course. Even if you didn’t have anything else in your course, your students would be engrossed in the exercise for quite some time!
Antsy Pants Obstacle Course Set | Promote Active Play | Indoor or Outdoor Use
- 1 Obstacle Course Kit with agility ring course, start flag, finish flag, adjustable height hurdles, and weave pole course is included.
- NO TOOLS REQUIRED FOR SETUP
- PLAY WITHOUT LIMITS: Choose from one of four recommended courses or design your own!
- HELP OTHERS PLAY: Antsy Pants donates a portion of every item sold to the national organization KaBoom! construct playgrounds for children living in poverty in the United States
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Hula Hoop Hopscotch is the eighth game in the Hula Hoop Hopscotch series.
You can create a number of jumping obstacles for your backyard course with a pair of hula hoops. Jumping patterns and possibilities are limitless. You may choose from a variety of hula hoop designs or have your youngster come up with their own!
- Hopscotch is a classic game in which two hoops are followed by one, two, and one. In the two hoops, leap with your feet apart first, then in the single hoop, jump with your feet together. Rep until the hoop course is completed.
- Bunny Hop: Set up single hoops in a row. Like a rabbit, jump down the line of hoops with your feet together until the finish. Hoping to the finish on one foot is a variant.
- Place a hoop on the right, then one step in front on the left for a tire run. Hop in the hoops with your right and left feet alternately until you reach the finish.
Trampoline #9
Why not add a trampoline into your obstacle course if you have one or are thinking about purchasing one? You may have the kids jump ten times or do a trampoline trick. Other suggestions include:
- Seats are being dropped by ten.
- Grab a flag by jumping high enough.
- Full spin and a jump
Are you looking for a wonderful trampoline to add to your backyard? To find out which trampoline is the greatest, read our post.
Obstacles to Crawl
By altering the height of the activities, crawling obstacles provide a challenge to the individual. Squirm your way through by getting low. These abilities may cause the sprinters in your audience to slow down!
Army Mud Crawl is number ten.
With wooden pegs, mark out a rectangle on your course. Place 3-4 pegs approximately a foot or two above the ground on each long side. Then, diagonally stretch thread or rope across the area. The competitor must army crawl from one end to the other without touching the threads in order to complete this challenge.
Tunnel No. 11
Instead of the army mud crawl, you may take your kids through a tunnel. Purchase a toddler tunnel like the one seen below. Put it in the class. From one end to the other, the kids crawl.
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Pool Noodle Tunnel No. 12
Pool noodles have a lot of uses. If you made pool noodle hurdles, don’t forget to utilize them as a tunnel! Line up the pool noodle rainbows to make a tunnel. Now have the players crawl as quickly as they can through the maze. Make various designs by arranging them in a straight line, a “S” pattern, or even a circle!
Hula Hoop Ring (#13)
Add a crawling aspect to your kids’ obstacle course using hula hoops. Using a rope, dangle the hula hoop from a tree. The hula hoop should be about a foot or two from the ground. The kids will have to crawl through the hoop’s center. The height of the hoop will be determined by the size of the children that will be participating. Set it high enough to be a challenge, but not so high that they won’t be able to step over it!
Climb
Monkey Bars, number 14
If you have a swing set with monkey bars, you may use them to develop strength for the obstacle course. Set the direction in which the monkey bars must be finished. To prevent any misunderstandings, find out whether skipping bars is permitted.
15. Climb a Rope
Climbing ropes is a strength-building activity that never goes out of popularity. Hang a rope from a tree or any other suitable spot. At the top of the rope, draw a goal line. The climber may descend once they have successfully reached this position.
16. Jump Against the Wall
Another typical course seen in Ninja Warrior or adult obstacle courses is the wall leap or warped wall. The wall does not need to be particularly high for a kids’ course to offer the sensation of a wall jump. This may be as basic as climbing over a hay bale or a small retaining wall. You may also construct a 3-foot wood wall. A wall jump is likely to be a crowd favorite!
Children’s Water Play Obstacles
During the hot summer months, are you planning to set up an obstacle course? Why not include some water components in your game? These obstacles will test the athlete while allowing them to cool down with water splashes. For these water play ideas, gather water balloons, kiddie pools, sprinklers, sponges, and buckets.
Strike with a Water Balloon
Several water balloons are strung together. Have the obstacle course participants crush a water balloon with a wiffle bat. They won’t be able to continue forward until the balloon has exploded!
Sponge Bucket (number 18)
Fill one end of the bucket with water and a huge sponge, and the other end with an empty smaller bucket. The saturated sponge must be carried to the empty bucket on the opposite end. They then squeeze as much water as they possibly can into the empty bucket. They must continue until the second bucket reaches a particular level of filling.
Slip ‘N Slide (19.)
The best barrier to have at the finish line is a slip ‘n slide. Make sure the obstacle course participants have enough area to sprint and slide to the finish line! These racing slip ‘n slides are a great addition if you have numerous players racing at the same time!
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20. Catching a water balloon
For a team obstacle course, the water balloon catch is ideal. A full water balloon is tossed by one of the partners. To go to the next hurdle, the second partner must successfully collect an un-popped water balloon. The team must continue to attempt until they succeed. Kids may use their shirts to catch the water balloons, or you can offer catch nets.
21. Sprinkler system
Simply add a sprinkler to a typical obstacle course to make it more interesting. Sprinklers may be added to any obstacle, such as a hula hoop hopscotch or a pool noodle tunnel. Now you’re set for a water-filled summer obstacle course.
Squirt gun (number 22)
Set up a target with a cheap water cannon from the dollar shop. One suggestion was to use a coffee filter as a target. The youngster must use the squirt gun to strike the target before moving on. You may even set numerous goals to be met before going on to the next activity.
Pool Splash (number 23)
Do you have access to a pool in your backyard? It is the ideal obstacle for your obstacle course, whether it be an above ground, kiddie, or subterranean pool. Consider a job that is suitable for the size of your pool. If your children are old enough, it may be swimming a lap in the pool, under parental supervision, of course! Alternatively, you may blow a pool sailboat from one end to the other. They may just need to leap into the pool and create a splash in a kiddie pool!
Obstacle Course For Kids Task Completion
Every obstacle course should feature a range of challenges. These brief passages are referred to as “fillers.” They often include slowing down and focusing on a skill. Tasks may be either physical or mental in nature. Here are some task ideas for dispersing and filling in the gaps in your obstacle course.
- Crab stroll
- Jumping frog
- Rope jumps
- Crawl like a bear
- Make a basket.
- Hurry to the finish line
- Stack the blocks (or anything else you have!)
- Horseshoe Point is a point in the shape of a horse
- Solve a conundrum
- Finish a math problem.
- Push a ball along a route using a pool noodle.
- Make a bubble
- Attempt to hit a target.
- Tossing the rings
Obstacle Course Tips for Success
Keep things simple when you are creating an obstacle course. This may mean starting out with items that you already have in your backyard and slowly adding to your course over time. Think about the objects you already have in your yard, can they be used as an obstacle? Logs can become Obstacles to Balance or cones to run around. Retaining walls can be used in place of a balance beam or as an obstacle to climb. If you have a swing set incorporate the various elements into the course. Add tasks such as moving a ball down a path with a stick or shooting a basket.
Choose goods that may be utilized in a number of ways when making purchases. Cones, hula hoops, and pool noodles are all adaptable. These objects may be utilized one way and then exchanged for a whole other challenge.
When your children’s enthusiasm in one course setting begins to wane, it’s time to switch things up! Enlist the children’s assistance in coming up with new hurdles and commands.
You may also change the way you play. One method is to keep track of how long each participant takes to weave past the obstacles. The person who completes the task in the shortest amount of time wins. Another option is to form groups. The course must be completed by each team member. When the whole team crosses the finish line, time stops. During team tournaments, you may also include partner tasks in the course. Tossing a ball back and forth or competing in a “wheelbarrow” race are examples of partner chores. Children learn collaboration and the importance of teamwork via team play.
How to Arrange Your Course
By including age-appropriate skills into your obstacle course sequencing, you can combine learning with fun. To learn the alphabet, for example, use the letters of the alphabet to denote the course sequence. The tasks must be completed in the exact alphabetical sequence by your kid. Numbers may be treated in the same way!
Other learning activities might be included into the barrier as well. A job in which the children must match the same colored items is one example. Another concept is to add autonomous task learning. This website has a list of autonomous talents broken down by age.
Consider what older children are learning in school and include it into the obstacle course as a task in between more physical difficulties. Make the obstacle course a fun method to learn arithmetic facts, spelling words, and even sight words reading! The options are unlimited, but these suggestions should help you get started!
Wrap up
Building a backyard obstacle course for kids is a terrific approach to aid your child’s development. Obstacle courses are enjoyable games that promote skill development in sequencing, balance, and strength.
Simple things may be used to create a variety of barriers. Make sure to incorporate obstacles that require you to balance, leap, crawl, or climb. In the summer, add a water element to your obstacle course for kids for even more excitement!
Obstacle courses are fun to do in the backyard. You may want to check out our list of rainy day activities if the weather is bad, since your kids won’t recall their phone games, Nintendo, or favorite TV program if it rains!
The “obstacle course ideas for kids” is a great way to keep your children entertained. It can be as simple as making a bed of hay and jumping on it, or as complex as building an obstacle course in the backyard.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you make a cool obstacle course?
A: Here are some ideas for you. You can make a game out of it, or do something like the Amazon challenge on YouTube where people try to get through an obstacle course as quickly as possible.
How do I set up an obstacle course for kids?
A: If youre using a treadmill, have your child stand on the belt and use their feet to push themselves forward.
How do I make a simple obstacle course?
A: First, make a path for each player. Then you need to create obstacles that players must pass through in order to avoid being hit by the other players laser beams. To do this, place cubes or boxes on either side of the course and then have them move toward one another until they collide with their respective walls
If youre having problems with your game, check out our guide here
Related Tags
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- outdoor obstacle course ideas
- outdoor obstacle course for kids
- indoor obstacle course ideas
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