Grid Lock

Game Category: Target Games

Type of Activity: Large Group Play

What’s It All About?

Sports such as boccia and wheelchair curling can be categorized as target games. In these sports, participants send an object toward a target in different ways. For example, participants may be standing or seated and may use an implement to send the object. In this activity, participants work in groups to explore a variety of ways to send objects into a grid.

Did You Know?

• In Wheelchair Curling, there is no sweeping. This means each throw must be extremely precise. The player's wheelchair must be stationary during the throw and stones can be thrown by hand or given a push with a cue toward the house.¹
• Boccia is a sport that can be played by participants with and without disabilities. Players can throw, bowl, kick, or use a chute to propel the ball onto the court.²

Equipment

• 2 implements for tagging per group (e.g., pool noodle, hockey stick)
• 4 pylons per group to mark the designated sending lines (about 2 feet away from the 3 x 3 grid)
• 9 objects to send per group (e.g., beanbags, flying discs, rubber chickens, stuffed animals)
• Hoops, foam squares, buckets, or tape for targets
• Pylons or floor tape for the 3 x 3 grid boundaries

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.
• Have each group create a 3 x 3 grid using hoops, foam squares, buckets, or floor tape to mark the boundaries of their designated playing area.
• Around the outside of the 3 x 3 grid, create 4 sending lines about 2 feet away with pylons or floor tape to mark from where participants send the objects. There are now sending lines on each side of the grid.
• Groups begin by lining up behind their chosen starting line.
• Provide each group with 9 objects to send.

Learn to Play

• The objective of the activity is for participants to take turns filling their group’s grid with the correct number of items called.
• On the signal to begin, call out a number between 1 and 9. This is the number of objects each group must land in the grid.
• When the number is called, each participant in the group takes a turn sending an object into the 3 x 3 grid from one of the sending lines.
• For example, if the number 5 is called, participants in each group take turns sending an object until 5 objects land successfully in the grid.
• Only 1 object is allowed in each square of the grid.

Action to Play

• As a whole group, create a list of ways participants can send an object into the grid. For example: 
  • Stand on 1 foot and send the object with 1 hand using an underhand throw.
  • From a seated position, use an implement (e.g. pool noodle, hockey stick with blade on the ground) to roll or slide the object.
  • Explore playing in a seated position or kneeling on 1 or 2 knees while using 1 hand to roll or slide the object.
  • Use available equipment to create a structure to roll or send the object into the grid (e.g., create a ramp using foam mats).
  • One participant turns their back to the grid and another participant provides verbal instructions to direct where and how to send the object toward the target.
  • Use 2 sets of colour-coded objects and create teams to explore which team can send the object into the grid with the greatest amount of accuracy.
• Invite participants to explore the different ways to send an object successfully as a group.
• Invite participants to explore how to adjust the boundaries, targets, and rules of the activity to make it easier or more challenging, while being attentive to their safety and the safety of other participants.

Power All to Play

• Invite participants to explore the Action to Play co-created list of different ways to send an object while playing a new activity.
• The objective of this activity is to get 3 objects in a row in the 3 x 3 grid. For example:  
  • 3 objects in a vertical line
  • 3 objects in a horizontal line
  • 3 objects in a diagonal line
• On the signal to begin, participants take turns moving toward their grid and sending an object from one of the four designated sending lines into their grid.
• Provide groups with the option to compete against each other or compete against a designated time determined by the facilitator.

Play & Ponder

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

• Describe how you position your body (e.g., feet, legs, torso, arms, head, eyes) and how it moves in different ways (e.g., turns, rotates, leans, extends) to send the object toward the target.
• How can you adjust the activity (e.g. boundaries, objects, ways to send the object) to make it more challenging?
• How can you adjust the activity (e.g. boundaries, objects, ways to send the object) so that you are more successful?
• When playing with your group, describe what positive communication looks, sounds, and feels like.
• When playing with your group, what strategies can you use together to increase your group’s chances of success in the target game?
• Describe other sports, games, and activities that use the same skills, concepts, and strategies like this target game.
  

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  ¹Adapted from: Canadian Paralympic Committee (2023). Wheelchair Curling. Extracted from: https://paralympic.ca/paralympic-sports/wheelchair-curling

  ²Adapted from: Parasport Ontario (2023). Boccia. Extracted from: https://parasportontario.ca/sports/boccia