Indoor Active Games for Visually Impaired Children

This material is suitable for both children and adults.
Active games are essential for a child’s physical development. All children love to play various games because they get to demonstrate and test their courage, agility, speed, and strength. Children with visual impairments can participate in a wide range of quizzes and contests that don’t require special skills, agility, or abilities typical of sighted children. Active games provide an opportunity to feel energized and refreshed.

When organizing play activities, it is important to consider the child’s level of visual acuity and physical readiness. The instructor leading the activities should follow the principle of “Do no harm.” If a child does not feel like joining in the game, they should not be forced. Instead, they can sit and observe the others playing. Many children with visual impairments have poor coordination, limiting their physical and cognitive activity. Every game should be adapted to the child’s physical development and match the skills they possess.

We start the day with exercises. Morning exercise is the key to energy and a good mood. Simple, understandable exercises help “wake up” the body, improve agility, coordination, and muscle strength. The duration of the exercises is 10-15 minutes, and they are done to music. Music that the child enjoys can help create a positive mood for the day. Specially chosen exercises help gradually activate the child’s body.

Here are some group exercises for children, considering visual limitations. These exercises do not involve squats, running, deep bends, or push-ups. The exercises are safe and effective for children.

• Marching in place: Teach the child to breathe correctly—inhale through the nose, exhale through the mouth. Proper breathing makes morning exercises easier.
• Hand and finger exercises: The brain is very responsive to finger exercises. For example, clasp the hands together and stretch the fingers without unlocking them.
• Head tilts: Tilt the head on counts one, two, three, four.
• Head rotations: Make four circles in each direction, performing all movements smoothly.
• Side bends: Raise the right hand and stretch the entire body to the left, then switch hands and stretch to the right.
• Torso twists: With hands on the waist, twist the torso to the right and left.
• Forward bends: Reach toward the floor with your hands.
• Arm stretches: With arms bent at the chest, make quick arm thrusts forward.
• Shoulder exercises: Raise and lower the shoulders.
• Stretching: Standing on tiptoes, the child stretches upward and slowly lowers down.
• Ankle warm-up: Rotate the foot in circles.
• Marching in place: Lift the knees high while marching.

Every exercise routine should consist of three parts: warm-up, core exercises, and cool-down.

Game: Aqua Pong

A fun accuracy game for children and adults. Divide the participants into two teams. The teams can include sighted, visually impaired, and blind participants. If adults are present, they can assist the children. The teams stand on either side of a table (without a net). Plastic cups filled with water are placed at the edges of the table, arranged in five rows: 5 cups in the first row, 4 in the second, 3 in the third, 2 in the fourth, and 1 in the fifth. The goal is to throw a ping-pong ball into the cups. The team that knocks out the most cups wins. The ball must bounce off the table and land in a cup.

Game: Soft Blocks

Soft blocks are safe for all children due to their soft filling. Their bright colors, light weight, and simple shape attract children’s attention. It’s best to have sets of blocks in different colors and sizes. Using the blocks, children can learn to differentiate colors and compare objects by size. You can build a tower with alternating colors. Playing with blocks helps develop fine and gross motor skills, hand strength and agility, and spatial thinking.

Adults must remember that all equipment used during play should be safe.