Course:KIN355/2020 Projects/Net/Wall Games

Defining the concept

Net and Wall sports are varied in their nature (Hopper, 2003). Many net and wall sports are formalized and played in competitive contexts, while at the same time being played in less formal manners all around the world. For example, Tennis is a hugely popular sport worldwide and creates millions of dollars in revenue every year based on elite level tournaments (Dorish, 2019) On the other hand, games like "Wall ball" or a game of pick-up Volleyball using a make-shift net, are played all the time on playgrounds and in parks across the world. Many games can also be adapted to suit the demands of different walls and nets, or even the lack of availability of a net/wall (Hopper, 2003). In both informal and formal contexts we see benefits from participation in these types of sports.

Benefits include cognitive improvements as well as physical skill development, including skills considered to be functionally necessary; the benefits have been shown to include children that are differently abled and who are in clinical populations, such as those with Type 1 Diabetes or children that are overweight/obese (Slutzky, Carly B. & Sandra D. Simpkins, 2009; Krombholz, H., 2013; S. Donaldson, J. Ronan, & R. Kevin., 2006; Valerio, G., Spagnuolo, M. I., Lombardi, F., Spadaro, R., Siano, M., & Franzese, A., 2007).

A full tennis court, you can see here some of the movements involved in the sport. Tennis is a net sport and is usually played individually or in pairs.

Net and Wall sports include:

Sport using external tools such as tennis, badminton, pickleball and table tennis, squash, racketball.
- As well as body oriented games like volleyball, footvolley, headis, roundnet or sepak takraw, where players hit the ball with the body, head or feet. (Wikipedia contributors, 2020).
Beach Volleyball court at dusk.
A friendly game of doubles ping pong
An athlete mid swing with a badminton racket!

These sports are obviously varied in their play styles and strategies, however they all involve tactical components, motor skill development, and speed/agility challenges that can be improved upon over time. Moreover to “realize play” the children should understand the game itself enough to “modify the complexity of the game” as they see fit in various situations (Hopper, 2003). This aspect of play is an inherent benefit of well facilitated play in that it teaches accountability as well as creativity and leadership.

Children play because it is fun; it is simply an enjoyable activity. The motivation to play and learn is intrinsic in children (Bredin, 2020). Thus the facilitation of specific games is beneficial but in a sense supplementary to other unstructured play. The purpose of facilitating Net and Wall sports is to increase practice time with fundamental motor skills (listed in the section below) and cognitive skills (eg. tactical awareness, strategy, etc.) (Hopper, 2003). There are many benefits to play; these benefits and more generally those associated with physical activity, are shown to hold true for various clinical populations as well as healthy children. (Slutzky et al. 2009; Krombholz, 2013; Donaldson et al., 2006; Valerio et al., 2007). Healthy play is an important part of childhood development and is associated with many developmental milestone markers throughout infancy and childhood. (Bredin, 2020)

Considering all of this; net and wall sports can play an important role in early childhood development as well as create short and long term cognitive and physical benefits for the participants.

Role in childhood development

Early sport participation in formal and informal contexts have a wide range of motor and cognitive benefits (Slutzky et al. 2009; Krombholz, 2013; Donaldson et al., 2006; Bredin, 2020). This has been shown to hold true in clinical populations as well, and the benefits of exercise and play don't end with childhood, physical exercise is now being prescribed as a preventative tool to keep people healthy for longer and avoid many kinds of diseases and ailments (Warburton, 2020).

“These [functional motor] skills are the foundation for being physically active and developing more complex motor skills” (Wick et al., 2017).

The benefits of physical activity are touted throughout life, not just during childhood, however it is especially important and effective to create good habits in younger humans (when someone starts early and continues to play sport in a team context they are more likely to have higher self esteem and a more rigid concept of self Additionally some evidence shows that sport participation depends on factors such as initial onset of activity as well as socioeconomic status (Slutzky et al. 2009; Cohen KE, Morgan PJ, Plotnikoff RC, Callister R, Lubans DR., 2014). Wall and Net sports include many skills that facilitate the acquisition of proficiency in fundamental movement skills (FMS) (Wick, K., Leeger-Aschmann, C. S., Monn, N. D., Radtke, T., Ott, L. V., Rebholz, C. E., Cruz, S., Gerber, N., Schmutz, E. A., Puder, J. J., Munsch, S., Kakebeeke, T. H., Jenni, O. G., Granacher, U., & Kriemler, S., 2017).

Developing Skills

In light of this it is important to encourage sport participation in youth to facilitate child development; and there is evidence to suggest that playing games can be beneficial in developing certain functional motor skills that may be of high value (Bredin, 2020).

A child swinging a tennis racket. This type of play could be important in learning cognitive and physical skills during rotation as well as object manipulation and coordination.

Activities involved in Wall and Net sport

Jumping
Hopping
Arm swings
Agility
Hand- Eye Coordination
Object manipulation
Anticipation
Strategy
- Example: The 4 R's of Hopper's "Tactical Awareness"
Team Communication
Spacial awareness
Movement in multiple planes

These games are also associated strongly with various forms of Strategic thinking, especially in the team sport context. For example Tim Hopper from the University of Victoria lays out an easy to understand conceptual framework to see the importance of strategy and what he calls “Tactical Awareness”. He identifies “the 4 R’s of tactical awareness”, see his article here for a more in depth look (Hooper, 2003)[1]. In this sense Net and Wall games provide a space to think creatively within the parameters of the game; to respond with an action and to then recover from the experience and learn from it. In terms of childhood development this is important because the skills of critical thinking, motor coordination and effective decision making are all practiced.

The 4 R's of Tactical Awareness
- READ
- RESPOND
- REACT
- RECOVER

Along with the potential cognitive benefits of this play there are physical benefits associated with this specific type of play. Wall and Net sports are uniquely positioned to include personal (varied styles of game play and movement types) and environmental constraints (different styles of court or ball), and in many cases even task constraints (external equipment like a racket) as well. This indicates that these type of games and play carry the potential to be beneficial in that they facilitate practice dealing with all three Constraint types in Newell's model of constraints (adapted into infographic for by Dr. Bredin of the University of British Columbia in 2017) (Bredin, 2017). This could be important because the skills acquired within each constraint type could be carried over into future sport participation in those more specific constraint contexts.

Contemporary issues

Contemporary issues surrounding this topic mainly fall under sport participation; decline in willingness to play group sport, as well as to play in public at all have decreased due to the current state of the COVID-19 virus. Alternatively, certain net sports like (outdoor) tennis could be considered “COVID Safe” in that by the nature of the game you are distanced and rarely touch the same equipment. These considerations are very individual in nature and must continue to be informed by the latest scientific data.

Practical Applications

1. Wall Ball

Purpose:

Wall Ball is a game designed for players to learn the basics of throwing an object into a space so that the opponent cannot throw it back. It is a classic game that has been played by children at elementary schools for decades and a great example of physical and social play. Wall ball also helps to stimulate hand-eye coordination, lateral movement and motor skills such as throwing and catching and running and jumping. As it is a team game, players can learn strategies that enable them to score more points by making it more unpredictable for their opponents to rally back.

Target Age:

Wall ball is best suited for those that are between the ages of 8-13 (grades 3-7) which are those in the middle and late childhood stages (Bredin, 2020).

Apparatus/Equipment:

Any type of round ball that can be thrown (ie. tennis ball, soccer ball, dodgeball) and a large wall that the ball can be thrown against.

Environment/Set Up:

Wall ball is best suited to be played within a large play area such as a gymnasium or against a large building (ie. the outside wall of a gymnasium).

Instructions:

Divide players up into two teams. A player from one team will start by throwing the ball against the wall. Once the ball hits the wall, any player from the opposing team must try and catch the ball before it bounces on the ground twice. If that player successfully catches the ball before the second bounce, the player must throw it back against the wall for the other team to try and catch. Once the ball is caught by a player, that player is not allowed to take more than one step in an attempt to throw the ball as they must stay in the relative area from wherever the ball has been caught. When throwing the ball, the ball must not hit the ground before reaching the wall. Any errors to these rules or failure to catch the ball, a point is awarded to the other team. Teams can play up to eleven points but must win by two. Wall ball can be played with at the minimum, one player per team but is recommended to play with at least three players per team.

Modifications:

Traditionally, Wall Ball is played with a tennis ball. To make the game easier for catching purposes, teams can play with a larger ball such as a rubber dodgeball. To make the game easier, teams can allow more than one step once the ball is caught to be able to throw it back or, by allowing the ball to bounce on the ground more than twice before the opposing team can catch it. Teams can also play against a wall that is more rigid or not flat in an attempt to make the ball bounce off the wall in more unpredictable ways making it harder for the opposing team to react to catching the ball.

2. Keep It Up

Purpose:

Keep It Up is a game designed for players to work together and not let the ball touch the ground by hitting it upwards in the air. This game helps to work on an individual's motor skills such as jumping and running while also working hand-eye coordination and lateral movement. This is a good beginner level game that can help introduce players to volleyball in the future.

Target Age:

This game is suited best for those that are in middle to late childhood (Bredin, 2020) or those that are between the ages of 8-13 (grades 3-7).

Apparatus/Equipment:

Only 1 ball needed. Preferably one that is larger than tennis ball and is lightweight (ie. beach ball, dodgeball, volleyball).

Environment/Set Up:

Best played in a small-medium size area on any surface that isn’t slippery or hazardous (gym floor, grass field, beach)

Instructions:

Any amount of players (bare minimum two players) is sufficient. Players can spread out however much they want while one player hits the ball up into the air. Players must then work together to keep the ball from hitting the ground by using whatever body part to keep the ball in the air. For fun, players can count how many hits they get to keep track and use as motivation to get more.

Modifications:

Ways to make the game harder are to make a rule of only using one hand to keep the ball in the air (dominant or non-dominant hand), only heading, or only kicking. Ways to make the game easier are to make a rule where you’re allowed to let the ball hit the ground once before getting it back up in the air. Playing on the beach is also fun for players as they can use their body to dive for the ball without having to worry about serious injury.

Summary

Insert video vignette...as per Section 4 requirements.

References

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