Balance Ninjas: Moving on two feet

Occupational therapy

﻿Hi, I'm really looking forward to our lesson today. I hope you are too. Before we get started, this is just a little reminder. We're here to support any approaches you might already be using, and any work you might have already been said. We know that this lesson is going to be going out to so many different children and families. So if you're not sure about anything, or have any questions, then please do contact your usual therapy team. Hi. Now that you're really good at balancing on both your feet and being a really strong statue, let's try moving on both our feet. So why is it important that we practise balancing on while we're moving on our feet? Well, we spend most of the day on our feet. And walking is something that we do all the time without having to think too much about it. The better balance we have, the easier that will be. We have to do loads of activities and games, it requires us to be able to move around quite easily without falling over too often. We can practise our balance, which will help all sorts of games and activities that we need to do. Okay. So, I want you to find enough space where you can move about, about two to three metres. And then get several targets that you can jump to. These could be spots, they could be shoes, they could be socks, anything like that. And then, again, get some masking tape, or if you have a long ribbon, that would be great as well. Re-start once you have everything ready. Okay. Now we're going to jump with both our feet together. And quite often, kids struggle when they're younger to lift both feet up at the same times. And you might find that it goes left right, instead of left right at the same time. Okay. So set out your floor targets, so that you have somewhere where you can jump to. Stand on the first one. Feet and ankles together. And then jump along, aiming for the targets. And then the next one, and then the next one. If you can, try and do it without stopping in between. But if you can't, that's absolutely fine. Let's watch the video. So if I start there, our first starting thing is just jumping with our feet together. Pausing in between. Jump, ready? Jump. Soft landing. Soft landing. And, jump. Okay? This time, we're going to jump. Jump without stopping in between, okay? So. Here we go. Okay. That was jumping without stopping in between. To make that harder for yourself, we can change the distance. So instead of me now going from the blue beanbag to the yellow beanbag, I'm going to go from blue to blue. So I need to do a much bigger jump. Ready? Here we go. I've got my hands, you can see my hands are ready, by my knees, bending down, and whoop. Jump. My hands are ready, and, whoop. Jump. Okay? Now that, is a really good way to introduce ourselves to jumping over something. All right, so if I were to start there, and I want to jump over the beanbag, then I'm going to have to, lift my legs up. Lift my legs up, okay? Lift my legs up, and lift. What you can then do is get something slightly higher. I've got a lovely little Lego dragon. And, because it's higher, you're challenging yourself a bit more, okay? So, we don't want to squash the dragon. And whoop. And down, okay? Let's jump over the yellow line in front of us. And bend, and whoop, whoopsie. And, okay? And you're going to practise that several times. Okay. Pause the video, and you have a go at jumping with both feet. Next, we have tightrope walking. So with the tape that you have, the masking tape or the ribbon, set out a fairly long straight line, if you can. If you don't have enough space inside, it's absolutely fine to go outside. Okay? And let's watch the video to see all the different ways that you can walk on a tightrope. Remember, go as slowly as you need to. It's much better to be careful rather than fast. If you're feeling really brave, you can try and walk backwards. If this position and this walking makes you feel a little bit uncomfortable or unsafe, tell an adult. Let's watch the video. So there you can see, I'm placing my heels and my toes very close together. Don't step on your toes. I'm throwing some toys down for when we come back, or when I come back. Again, very slow very careful. Okay, and then you're going to turn around, and now we're going to try and pick up those objects. Look at where I'm placing my heel to my toe. And, keep yourself as steady as possible. Remember go slowly and carefully, rather than quickly. Okay? Right, pause the video to try tightrope walking. So there's loads of different ways that we can make jumping with two feet, or walking, easier or harder. So you can try making, putting your targets closer together or further apart. If you're going to jump over something, you can try making it higher, if you're feeling brave. If you're a bit worried, you can put cushions all around you if you think you might fall over. And also ask an adult to stand close by. Do the best you can do. Have lots of fun. Practise, practise, practise. Thanks for listening. As always, if you'd like to, please ask your parent or carer to share your jumping on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Tagging @OakNational and #LearnwithOak See you soon.

Balance Ninjas: Moving on two feet

Balance Ninjas: Moving on two feet

These resources will be removed by the end of the Spring Term 2026.

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