Whole Earth Curriculum WEC
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Lesson 10 — Balance, Agility, Coordination

Learners apply three movement skills — balance, agility, and coordination — at three stations, each with a standing and a seated version, then build a short routine that uses all three. Every body moves the skills its own way, and every version counts fully. The lesson closes the unit with a celebration of bodies at work and at rest.

D03 P2: Physical & Somatic Awareness D03.S2 55 minutes Draft
Objectives

Objectives

  • D03.S2.04.02 Apply movement skills such as balance, agility, and coordination to a variety of activities, including adapted or seated versions.

Essential question

How do I use balance, agility, and coordination to move — and how can every body move them its own way?

Key vocabulary
balanceagilitycoordinationadaptseatedroutine
Materials

Standard materials

  • A movement station card set · 1 set Three stations — balance, agility, coordination — each with a standing and a seated version
  • A clear space to move · 1 per group Room for balance, weaving, and tossing, with a seated option at each station
  • Soft objects to toss and balance · 1 per pair A rolled cloth or small soft ball for coordination and balance

Low-tech / no-cost

  • Your own body and a wall or chair for support Balance on one foot near a wall, weave between stones, and toss a rolled cloth — no special equipment needed
  • A line drawn on the ground Walk the line for balance, step over and around marks for agility, and toss a stone hand to hand for coordination

Enriched / lab & device

  • A balance beam or line of tape · 1 per group A low beam or a taped line for balance work
  • A video of adapted movement · 1 A clip such as seated yoga or wheelchair dance to see balance, agility, and coordination in adapted forms
Works in different contexts
  • large-group Run the three stations in rotation, with one station demonstrated at a time before learners move through in small groups
  • self-directed A learner works through the three stations alone, trying the standing or seated version of each, and builds a short routine
  • outdoor-only Balance on a log or line, weave between trees or stones, and toss a rolled cloth or stone — the outdoors is the equipment
  • multi-age Older learners demonstrate each station while younger learners try it, then they build a routine together
Three panels in a row. The first shows a child balancing on one foot on a line, labeled "balance." The second shows a child weaving between three cones, labeled "agility." The third shows a seated child tossing a soft ball hand to hand, labeled "coordination" — with standing and seated versions shown
Three panels in a row. The first shows a child balancing on one foot on a line, labeled "balance." The second shows a child weaving between three cones, labeled "agility." The third shows a seated child tossing a soft ball hand to hand, labeled "coordination" — with standing and seated versions shown

Lesson 10 — Balance, Agility, Coordination

Summary

Learners apply three movement skills — balance, agility, and coordination — at three stations, each with a standing and a seated version, then build a short routine that uses all three. Every body moves the skills its own way, and every version counts fully. The lesson closes the unit with a celebration of bodies at work and at rest.

Objectives

  • Apply movement skills such as balance, agility, and coordination to a variety of activities, including adapted or seated versions. (D03.S2.04.02)

Connection

When you walk a narrow log over a stream, you use balance. When you dart between people at a busy market without bumping anyone, you use agility. When you toss and catch a ball while running, you use coordination. These three skills show up in every sport and dance on Earth — a surfer balancing on a wave, a footballer weaving past players, a drummer coordinating both hands. And every one of them can be done standing, seated, or with wheels.

Materials

  • A movement station card set (balance, agility, coordination — standing and seated)
  • A clear space to move
  • Soft objects to toss and balance

Preparation

  • Set up three stations: balance, agility, coordination — each with a standing and a seated version.
  • Clear the space and gather soft objects.
  • Plan the rotation so each learner visits all three stations.

Facilitator note

This lesson is written to the learner (“you”). Model each skill at its station before learners try — worked example, then guided practice — and always offer the seated or supported version as an equal choice, not a “lesser” one. Balance can be done on one foot or seated with arms out; agility can be weaving on foot or wheeling or sliding around marks; coordination can be tossing hand to hand standing or seated. Honor every version fully. Keep it a celebration, never a competition. This lesson closes the unit and pulls together the whole arc — reading the body’s signals (Lessons 1–5), honoring diverse bodies (6–7), and playing fairly (8–9) — into joyful, inclusive movement.

Procedure

  1. Gather (5 min). You have read your body at work and rest, welcomed every body, and played fairly. Today you move with three skills: balance, agility, and coordination. Which of these have you used today already?
  2. Meet the three skills (10 min). Watch each one modeled. Balance — stay steady on a line or one foot (or seated, arms out like wings). Agility — change direction quickly, weaving around marks (or wheeling/sliding around them). ** Coordination** — toss a soft object from hand to hand, or toss and catch (standing or seated).
  3. Visit the stations (20 min). Rotate through all three stations. At each one, try the version that fits your body — standing, seated, or with support. Do each skill slowly at first, then a little faster.
  4. Build a routine (10 min). Put the three skills together in a short routine: a balance, an agility weave, a coordination toss. Practice it twice.
  5. Show and celebrate (10 min). Show your routine to a partner or the group. Watch your friends and cheer every version — standing, seated, or with wheels. Say it together: “every body can move, and every body belongs.”

Differentiation

  • Support: Try one station at a time with a partner’s hand or a wall for support; accept a two-skill routine instead of three.
  • Extension: Ask learners to link the three skills into a longer, smoother routine and add a fourth skill of their own.

Assessment

  • Formative (performance/observation/self): Can the learner perform balance, agility, and coordination each in a version that fits their body, and combine them into a short routine?

Resources

Home connection

Teach your balance-agility-coordination routine to someone at home, and try each skill both standing and seated together. Which version felt best for each of you?