Physical activity is important for all children, including
those children with special needs. Even
in a classroom with children who do not use wheelchairs, those who do have
wheelchairs can still participate in modified activities.
Ball-tossing activities work the upper body and hand-eye coordination, and they
are great activities for kids that also work on social and team-building
skills. Many children in wheelchairs
need to work on their upper body strength; another great idea is to put poly
spots on the ground and ask children to hop or run to each spot, and children
in wheelchairs can push their chairs to each spot. Weightlifting exercises can also improve the
upper body muscle coordination and strength.
Dancing can be an aerobic and social exercise.
You can teach coordinated dance steps such as moving forward, backwards,
and from side to side. You can also do “sitting
down” dances that might also involve a lot of upper body movements. You can even try musical games such as
musical chairs; place cards on the ground and move around to the music. When the music stops, kids must move the
chair over a card; each round, take a card away just as you would take a chair
Races: Set up an
obstacle course or a relay race for your children in wheelchairs. These race activities for kids give them a
cardio workout and promote team awareness and sport. Obstacle courses might involve moving the
chair around cones, or it can involve a task such as tossing a basketball into
Parachutes provide a means for fun activities for kids. Moving the parachute up and down,
coordinating the movement, or tossing balls onto a parachute and watching them
bounce as the kids move it are motivating and exciting activities for kids.
Cool Down: It’s
important to cool down after physical activities for kids, and doing arm
stretches would be a great idea for a cooling activity for kids in
wheelchairs. You could also put on some
background music and practice tracking with bubbles and let kids follow the
bubbles or try to catch them with their fingers. Also allow children to try to blow bubbles, which
also helps with respiratory function and breathing control.