Coordination and Balance Exercises

Objective: The following exercises are used to improve the patient’s balance and coordination. The patient’s balancing skills will be put to use by challenging their abilities to move away from their center while being given another task to complete. This task includes the use of eye-hand coordination to improve the controlled movements of the body.
Age Group: 9-16 years old

Walk and Catch:
Easy: Slowly walk along a straight line, without stepping off of the line, while throwing up in the air and catching a medium-size ball. Repeated back and forth on line.
Intermediate: A faster paced walk along a straight line, not stepping off the line, while the medium-size ball is still being thrown up in the air and being caught. Repeated back and forth on line.
Advanced: A speed walk along a straight line, not stepping off the line, while a smaller ball is being thrown up into the air and is caught. Repeated back and forth on line.

How will a patient be evaluated? As the complexity of the exercise increases, it will be determined if the patient has improved by seeing if they are able to handle both walking in a straight line as well as catching the ball without dropping it or stumbling over themselves. A patient cannot go onto the next level if they do not master the one beforehand.

Basketball:
Easy: Stand in place as you dribble a basketball, switch back and forth between left and right hands.
Intermediate: Walk back