Obstacle Course Ideas

Obstacle races are perfect activities to organize at birthday parties, kid's summer camps or just children's day out. These physical activities not only keep the children occupied, but also provide them with ample amount of exercise. Today, children are addicted to video games and television, thus these obstacle races are great ways to keep the children busy and active. Physical activities help improve the child's gross motor skills, co-ordination, balance and overall child development. Generally, obstacle races are set up outdoors; however, when the weather is bad, they emerge as intriguing indoor obstacle courses. Let's take a look at some obstacle course ideas.

Outdoor Obstacle Course Games
While setting up an obstacle course, one needs to keep in mind the different activities such as hopping, jumping, crawling, walking, climbing, etc., that can be incorporated into the course activities. Some 6-8 stations are good enough to have a decent obstacle course. There are various obstacle course ideas that one can choose from, to keep the children entertained in one's backyard.

Newspaper Walk
Newspaper is something that is commonly available at home. Just get hold of as many newspapers as one can and set it aside for this fun activity. Provide the children with two sheets each and ask them to place one sheet before them and walk from one marked line to another. They need to place one sheet before them and step on it, then place the next sheet in front of them and step on it, and then turn around to lift the previous sheet for the next step.

Ladder run
For this station, one needs a wooden ladder that has been sanded to prevent splinters from piercing their tiny legs. The ladder should also be painted a bright color. Lay the ladder flat on the ground and ask the children to run through its rungs, as quickly as they can.

Tub Hop
At this station, one needs some 6-8 small tubs of equal size. Place the first tub on the ground, and position the next tub slightly ahead of the first tub in a diagonal direction, so that the kids can hop from one tub to another. Likewise place all the 6-8 tubs. Ask the kids to hop and place only one foot in the tub at a time. If messiness is not an issue ,then one can place some water in the tubs to make the feat a little sloppy.

Hoop Scoop
For this station, one needs 8-10 simple plastic hoops. Place the hoops in a straight line and ask the kids to step into the first loop. Instruct the child that he or she needs to step into the loop, lift the loop overhead and then drop it behind as he or she moves ahead.

Table Crawl
This station activity involves balloons, a table and a hand pump. Using a hand pump, blow enough balloons to cover an entire table. The table should be completely masked by the bouncing balloons that have been stringed together. For a 3-by-6 foot table, around 100 balloons are required. Use yarn and tape to keep the balloons firmly in place on top of the table, underside and across the four legs. Use foam padding to wrap the legs of the table. Ask the kids to crawl into the sea of balloons (under the table) and come out from the other side.

Golf Jump Collection
Provide each child with a small fabric bag (with cloth handles). Place golf balls across the backyard at equidistant spots in a line, or in a zig-zag pattern. The kids are to squat at the starting line and then jump like a frog towards the golf balls. When they reach the golf ball, they can stand and put the ball into their fabric bag that is hanging onto their wrists. The more the number of golf balls that one can collect, the better.

Assembling Race
For this activity, one needs a bicycle with a basket. Mark a route for this activity and place various goodies or objects at different spots on the course. The child is supposed to cycle and collect as many items as he can and place them in the basket. The rule that needs to be remembered is that the child should not leave the bicycle at any time. In order to pick up the item, the child has to cycle towards the side of the object and then bend and pick it up. One can increase the difficulty level, by altering the cycling path.

Using the above-mentioned obstacle course ideas as a guideline, one can come up with many more obstacle course games. The difficulty level of obstacle course for kids can differ depending on the age group, number of children and abilities. After deciding on the number of stations appropriate for the number of children participating, one should ensure that the activities are simpler at the initial stations, with the level of difficulty increasing with every station. If the number of children participating are large, one can sort them into groups. The time to accomplish the feat for each group can be noted with the help of a stop watch. The winning children or teams can be awarded certificates or prizes to add to the excitement.