Motor and Orthopedic Impairments – Volunteer Lesson Plan (4th Grade)
Need: 3-6 volunteers/class – 45 minute sessions
OBJECTIVE

To allow students to experience through simulation activities the frustrations of motor
impairment, and to discover the value of adaptive aids and appliances.
MATERIALS NEEDED
Belts or men’s ties for use with walker
2 Walkers (contact Karen Brossart at 236-1383 to borrow from Brossart Pharmacy)
Masking tape
Box of Cheerios
Paper plates
Utensil holder cuff (may need new one)
Bent spoon
Socks
Men’s shirts
Adapted squeeze scissors
Buttoning aids
ACTIVITIES
Divide the class in to 3 equally sized groups. With 1-2 volunteers per group, rotate the class through the
3 groups, allowing 15 minutes per activity.
Group 1 Large Motor Disabilities (Those affecting gross motor activities)
This group should move out into the hallway or other area with enough space. It is ideal to have 2
volunteers – one to assist with walkers and the other to work with the rest of the children.
Children take turns trying to use a walker. Explain that many children with walkers use a walker that
encircles them from the back. There are two types of walkers and we will be trying the type that wraps
around the front. Both types of walkers offer more support than crutches. Buckle the belt (or use a tie)
around their knees so their knees are close together. Instruct them to walk by leaning on the walker
with their arms. They may not “hop” along.
They must shift their weight from one foot to the other as they take steps. Explain that a person with a
disability would not hop or jump along with the walker. The walker could tip forward. A walker is often
used for a person with cerebral palsy. They might have a tightness in the muscles of their legs that
tends to pull their knees together. Their knees are often slightly bent as it is difficult for them to bear
their full weight on their legs. Take the time to fully explain this activity, or it can just turn into a fun
race like a three legged race or sack race at a picnic or field day. Give them a few books to hold under
their arms, and ask them to try to open a door. Remind them that they must lean on the walker for
support. Ask them to think about how tired they would feel if they couldn’t move fast enough and
people wouldn’t wait for them. Students may want to discuss crutches. Explain that the problems are
similar. A walker is better for a person who needs more support than crutches can offer. While two
children a time are using the walkers, bring a chair out and put it next to a drinking fountain. Ask
someone to sit in it and imagine that it is a wheelchair. What are some of the problems if you want a
drink? What other problems would occur at school if you were in a wheelchair? (Cues: steps, narrow
doorways, rest room)
Group 2 Fine Motor Problems – (those affecting muscles in the hands)
Discuss the causes of fine motor problems. These could be cerebral palsy, arthritis, deformity of hands,
damage to spinal cord. Tape the thumb to the first finger, on the non-dominant hand of each child.
(Tape left hand of right handed children and allow them to use the taped hand.) Put dry cereal on paper
plate, and ask children to try eating. Instruct them to be careful not to drop any. Show the students the
utensil holder cuff. Show them how it slips over their four fingers. Demonstrate on the hand that is not
taped. The cuff holds a spoon securely and makes eating possible for a person who can’t grasp a spoon.
Show the students the bent spoons. Demonstrate that this type of spoon is helpful for a person with
poor coordination. The point of the spoon must go in your mouth first to eat efficiently. Some people
have a problem turning a spoon so it will go in their mouth this way. With a bent spoon, they only have
to grasp the handle and raise it to their mouth. It is a simple adaptation, but very helpful. Ask them to
try writing their name with taped hands. Discuss the problem involved with trying to write fast enough
to keep up in class. While their hand is still taped, put a sock on the other hand, and have each child try
buttoning, zipping, belt buckling, tying their shoes, or any dress skills. They can use the men’s shirts or
their own jackets, vests or belts. Talk about the frustrations involved if you are trying to hurry. How
would you feel if people wouldn’t stop and wait for you at recess if you were having a problem with your
jacket? Consider the amount of effort and energy required to just get dressed in the morning. With
hand still taped, ask children to try cutting with regular scissors. (These should be available right in the
classroom.) Allow children an opportunity to try the adaptive squeeze scissors. Explain that adaptive
supplies are sometimes available to help people who have a disability.
Show children the buttoning aids. Let them try to use these on the men’s shirts. The buttoning aids
work much the same as a needle threader. The tip is inserted through the top side of the button hole
and looped over the button. Pull the button back through the button hole. The buttoning aids have a
variety of handles. They are designed to allow people with various hand problems to grasp the handle
most efficiently. The aid with the suction cup handle may be stuck on the wall. It can be used by a
person who has no used of his arms. The person moves up to the aid and works with it in the same way.
Consider the degree of skill necessary to do this. Many people do not consider the skill necessary to do
everyday tasks that are impossible for a person with a disability to do in the routine manner. Children
are often surprised and very impressed with the talent that a person must develop to compensate for
his disability.
Sit down with the group for a few minutes and talk about the activities you have done. Give the children
an opportunity to discuss some of the problems that they could imagine happening to a person who has
a problem with fine motor control. Ask if they think of any suggestions for help. Could they think of any
creative equipment to help someone with a specific fine motor problem?
Group 3 Cooperative Learning – Brainstorming & Problem Solving
Divide the students in Group 3 into 2 mini groups. Choose a secretary from each group to take a few
brief notes so they will be able to report their solutions back to the group. Have each mini group spend
5 minutes talking about each situation.
Situation 1:
All students want to be as independent as possible. If a student in your class wears leg braces and uses
two crutches, it will be difficult for him to carry things. He may be able to carry a lunch box over his
wrist or on a longer strap around his neck. However, he may not always want to bring his lunch. If he
wants to buy his lunch, he is going to have to figure out a way to carry it through the cafeteria line.
Remember that every 4th grader wants to be as independent as possible. How could he do this? Can
you think of any adaptive devices that could be created? If students have ideas for adaptive devices, ask
them to draw a sketch to show to the other group when you share solutions. How much help would you
want from your friends if you were trying to do this? Remind students that they always want to be as
independent as possible and so do people with disabilities. A little help from your friends is always
acceptable but there may be times when others aren’t around to help.
Situation 2:
Since students were first “included” into typical classrooms, we have looked for ways to promote
understanding. Now that inclusion is becoming more common and children with disabilities are
spending more and more of their school day in a typical classroom, it becomes critical that students
assume more of the responsibility of solving problems that may occur. Children are always creative and
often are able to solve situations that occur with inclusion because they see it from a perspective that
adults often miss. If the problem involves children, the best place to look for solutions is with the
children themselves. Cooperative learning is a way for students to share ideas and problem solve as a
group. Each person gives input and then the group comes up with a common answer to the problem or
situation.
Bring the 2 mini groups back together again and ask a spokesperson from each group to share their
solutions. Allow the students to comment on each other’s ideas. Remind them that friendship can
really happen when we all work together.
Students like to feel that their ideas are important. Unless their comments are obviously meant to be
rude, accept them as possible solutions. Every suggestion does not have to be completely practical and
it may be the stepping stone to a solid solution after some refinement and discussion. Inclusion cannot
be successful unless everyone is a part of the class. The goal is for students to accept limitations in
others and to seek solutions so everyone has a chance to be a success at school. It is impossible to feel
successful if you are always left out. When kids start thinking creatively, they always have the best ideas
for their peers because they are really the ones who know how it feels to be a fourth grader.