Take a trip to a tropical paradise with Turtles, Snakes, and Islands! Groups of all sizes can explore different locomotor skills, such as skipping, hopping, jumping, and balancing. 

Set up

Scatter a variety of equipment across a large playing area. Just use whatever you have available, the list below is just suggestions. Designate a 'boat' this might be a tree or a cubby house or a sandpit, whatever you have in your environment. Allocate each type of obstacle a name, such as;

  • Hula hoops = islands
  • Balancing beams/skipping ropes/pool noodles = sea snakes
  • Agility poles = palm trees
  • Agility Ladder = 'walk the plank' / cross the bridge
  • Stepping stones or cones = turtles
How to play
Step 1:
  • Children start in the boat, and are told "It's time to explore!". Build the story - the children are explorers sailing the seven seas, and they decide to jump off the ship and explore the ocean! 
  • The educator calls out different locomotor skills, such as running, skipping, hopping, jumping, or galloping, for children to do as they 'explore' the area. Point out things you might see in the ocean - boats, fish, seaweed, pirates, etc. You can try stopping and digging on an island, what treasure do you find?
Step 2:
  • The educator calls an instruction. Some suggestions are:
    •  Jump on and off 3 islands
    • Leap over 2 turtles and 2 snakes
    • Try and jump over an island
    • Balance along a sea snake
    • Jump over 3 turtles
    • Crawl like a crap around the islands
    • Walk the plank
    • Balance like a flamingo on an island
    • Swim around like a dolphin diving over waves
    • Dig for treasure

In between instructions change the method of locomotion, try different sea animals, swim like a fish or fly like a seagull or crawl like a crab.

Step 3:
  • The educator calls out: "The pirates are coming!" and the children need to run back to the 'boat' or hide under a 'palm tree' while being chased by the educator. Any children that are caught by the 'pirate' must walk the plank!
Variations
Make it easier
  • Play in a small area
  • Choose only a few simple instructions to begin with
  • Start with just islands, turtles and snakes - introduce 'walk the plank' and the 'pirates are coming later'
Make it harder
  • Play in a larger area and have the ship further away
  • Combine different forms of locomotion e.g., run around an island and hop over a snake
  • Add more difficult obstacles
Activity information
Age: Three year olds, Kindergarten, Pre-Primary, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3
Participants: 1 +
Equipment: Cones, Hoops, Pool noodles (optional), Agility ladders (optional), Agility poles (optional), Balance pods (optional)
Duration: 10 minutes
Skill focus
Explore these skills for teaching tips
Skill teaching

Part way through the activity or before you start, have the children stand on an island and practice jumping off, onto, and over it. Remind children of the jumping teaching cues:

  1. Land like you are riding a motorbike – arms forward, ankles, knees, and hips bent, feet apart
  2. Start with your arms stretched behind you like a superhero
  3. Swing & Spring
  4. Reach for a star and bring it down again (for vertical jumps)
Activity summary
Physical literacy tips
  • Let children choose commands
  • Let children choose what type of locomotion to do e.g., run like a cheetah, fly like a butterfly, swim like a dolphin
  • Build the story! Tie in treasure maps, or looking for treasure with the pirate storyline
  • Be creative with your choice of obstacles - use any equipment you have handy