Background information

Notes on child development

Play is crucial to the development of children’s gross and fine motor skills. Through play, children practice and perfect control and coordination of large body movements, as well as small movements of hands and fingers. Gross motor skills involve control of the arms, legs, head, and trunk. Fine motor skills involve the careful control of small muscles in the hands, feet, fingers, and toes. Controlling the muscles of the tongue and lips in order to speak or sing is also a fine motor skill. Find out more here.

Everyday moments can be fun learning opportunities for children. Pretending, creating and helping allows children to discover new things. Play helps children learn about themselves and where they fit in the world. Evidence shows that play can support learning across physical, social, emotional and intellectual areas of development. Find out more here.

Educator notes

This activity works best on a basketball court but also works on a playground. Or why not both! You can go on a quick walking tour of your area. Whenever you spot something fun to move on, get on it! For example, why walk on the footpath when you could balance on a garden bed plank?

Activity outline

Step 1.

Ask children to line up behind you. Tell them they have to do EXACTLY what the person in front of them does.

That means if they walk with their hands in the air, everyone has to.

Step 2.

Start by walking normally down a line on the basketball court. Check behind you to make sure everyone is following at a good pace.

Step 3.

When you come to an intersection, start moving down a different line by walking sideways.

Step 4.

At the next intersection, walk by placing one foot carefully in front of the other on the line.

You might have to give verbal instructions along with your physical demonstration so that children know exactly what they have to do.

Step 5.

As you continue, here are some more things to try:

jumping from side to side of the line, like a zipper or zig-zag skier
squatting down and waddling along the line like a duck
getting short, then tall, then short etc., as you walk.
hopping on one leg
stop, do a twirl, and then keep walking
skip.

Step 6.

Once children have got the idea, take yourself out of the line and appoint the first child in line as the leader. They can take the line wherever they want, doing whatever they want.

Rotate the lead through all of the children.

Step 7.

Of course, you don’t have to do this activity on a basketball court. You could do it in any open area, or even inside.

The different movements could depend on what’s at hand. For example, you might pick up a book, look at it, then put it down. Each person in the line behind you has to repeat the exact movement.

Step 8.

It’s also fun to incorporate a playground into your path. What exciting ways can you find to loop around the playground, going up the ladders, down the slides, and across the monkey bars?

Evaluation

Complete analysis of learning, listing evidence about:

Belonging	Finding something of interest
Communication	Expressing an idea or feeling
Exploration	Engaging with challenge and persisting when difficulty arises
Wellbeing	Being involved

Follow the Leader - Physical Movement Game

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