Grade by Grade
A–B. Active Living and Movement Competence · Active Living and Movement: Move Well, Train Smart, Stay Safe

Send, Receive, React: Combining Movement and Object Skills

B1.2 1.3About 65 minutes
Learning goals
  • I can combine locomotor skills (like running and jumping) with manipulation skills (like throwing, catching and sliding).
  • I can adjust my skills in response to external stimuli, like a defender, a teammate's movement or a target.
  • I can use the read-choose-execute process to decide how to send an object.
  • I can communicate with teammates to coordinate play.

Words to know

manipulation skill
A skill that controls an object: sending (throw, kick, strike, slide), receiving (catch, trap) or retaining (dribble, carry, shield).
pivot
Keeping one foot planted while stepping and turning with the other, to change throwing angle without travelling.
mark (marker)
In ultimate, the defender guarding the thrower.
weight (curling)
How hard a stone is delivered, which decides how far it travels.
takeout
In curling, a shot that hits an opponent's stone out of play.
sledge hockey (para ice hockey)
Hockey played sitting on a sledge with two blades, using two short sticks: picks on one end to move, a blade on the other to handle the puck.

Remember from Grade 8

In Grade 8 you sent and received under pressure: passing into space ahead of a moving teammate, taking your first touch away from pressure, and keeping possession by shielding and scanning. In Grade 9, B1.2 asks you to combine locomotor and manipulation skills in many different activities and to adjust them to what's happening around you.

Hook: same skill, different answers

A pass is never just a pass. Where's the defender? Is my teammate moving or still? Is the ice fast or slow today? The same skill (sending an object) needs a different answer every time. Great players aren't just skilled; they read the situation and choose the right version of the skill.

Read, choose, execute

  1. Read the stimuli: defender position, teammates' movement, the target, the surface, the object's speed.
  2. Choose the skill and how to do it: which side, how hard, which type of pass.
  3. Execute it with good technique, often while moving.

The curriculum gives three examples:

  • Curling: judging the weight of the throw (how hard to deliver the stone) to knock an opponent's stone out of play.
  • Ultimate: shifting body position, such as pivoting, to keep possession of the disc while avoiding defenders.
  • Sledge hockey: seeing where the defender is and choosing a left or right, forehand or backhand pass or shot.
view from aboveTDR1R2lane blockedpivot and throwto the open sidepivot foot stays plantedR2 cuts intoopen space
Ultimate: the marker (D) blocks the lane to R1, so the thrower (T) keeps the pivot foot planted, steps to the open side, and throws to R2, who has cut into open space.

Combining locomotor and manipulation skills

  • Run + catch: watch the object into your hands, then keep running. Catch with soft hands that "give" to absorb force.
  • Shuffle + pass: in basketball or handball, move to an open angle, then pass before the defender recovers.
  • Jump + catch: in ultimate, time your jump to catch the disc at its highest point.
  • Slide + release: in curling, the delivery is a long slide out of the hack, releasing the stone smoothly with the right weight and turn.
  • Wheel + shoot: in wheelchair basketball or sledge hockey, the athlete combines pushing (locomotion) with handling the ball or puck.

The hardest part is keeping technique smooth when you add movement and a defender. That's why practice moves from no pressure to game-like pressure.

the house (target)opponent'sstoneyour stonetakeout: more weight (speed)knocked outdraw: less weight, stops in the house
Curling: reading the house decides the weight. A takeout needs more speed to knock the opponent's stone out; a draw uses less weight so the stone stops in the house.
Worked example

Let's read a sledge-hockey play

Maya carries the puck up the left side in sledge hockey. A defender is closing in from her right (toward the middle of the ice). Her teammate Jon is open on the far right. What should she read, choose and do?

  1. Read: the defender is between her and Jon, coming from her right. The space behind the defender, along the boards, is open.
  2. Choose: a direct pass to Jon would go through the defender. Options: a quick backhand pass to a closer teammate behind her, or protect the puck along the boards and wait for Jon to get to a new lane.
  3. Communicate: Jon calls "Middle!" and skates into the gap in the middle of the ice, opening a new passing lane.
  4. Execute: Maya uses her picks to push forward, then uses the stick in her left hand to send a forehand pass across to her right, into the space ahead of Jon. (Sledge hockey players carry a stick in each hand, so they can pass or shoot forehand to either side.)

She reads the defender's position, chooses a pass that avoids the defender (with Jon's call helping open a lane), and executes while moving.

Hands-on activity

Read-and-react stations

You need: a soft ball or flying disc, a full plastic water bottle (or a bean bag), painter's tape or chalk, 4 markers, a partner (a third person is a bonus), running shoes, and a park or open room. Indoors use only a soft ball.

Warm-up (5 min): jog, side shuffles, arm circles, then easy partner tosses.

  1. Moving catches (8 min): your partner throws to the space ahead of you as you jog across. Catch with soft hands and keep jogging. Then switch.
  2. Pivot passing (8 min): a third person (or a parent) acts as the marker. With one foot planted, pivot to find an open side and pass to your partner, who moves left or right. The marker counts to 8 out loud (a short version of ultimate's stall count) for you to throw in time.
  3. Floor curling (8 min): on a smooth floor or driveway, mark a target with 3 circles of tape or chalk. Slide the water bottle (lying on its side) from 4 m away. Round 1: stop it in the centre (draw). Round 2: place a second bottle in the circles and try to knock it out (takeout). Notice how much more weight the takeout needs.
  4. Debrief: which station needed the most reading of stimuli? What did your partner say that helped?

Safety: Soft objects only near people's heads. Clear the floor of rugs and furniture; slide, don't throw, in floor curling. Stay well away from roads when chasing passes.

Just for fun

Funny but true: in curling, players shout "Hurry hard!" at a moving granite stone, and their teammates take it as clear, helpful communication. Try that in a library.

Your turn

1

Give three manipulation skills: one for sending, one for receiving and one for retaining.

2

What are the three steps of read, choose, execute?

3

In curling, what does "weight" mean?

4

Why does an ultimate player pivot?

5

In sledge hockey, what is the stick's pick end for?

6

Why should catches be made with "soft hands"?

More practice: warm-up

1

Is running a locomotor or manipulation skill?

2

Is a chest pass a locomotor or manipulation skill?

3

What is a takeout in curling?

4

Name one external stimulus in a passing game.

5

Which needs more weight in curling: a draw or a takeout?

More practice: on your own

1

Explain why passing to the space ahead of a running teammate works better than passing to where they are now.

2

In basketball, a defender has their arms up high. What pass might you choose, and why?

3

Describe how a wheelchair basketball player combines locomotor and manipulation skills.

4

Your partner keeps dropping catches while running. Suggest two cues.

5

Why does practice move from no pressure to game-like pressure?

Challenge

1

Design a 2-versus-1 drill that forces the player with the ball to read the defender and choose a side. Explain the rules and the skill focus.

2

In a floor-curling experiment, a bottle slid with a medium push travels 3 m on carpet and 6 m on tile. Explain what external stimulus this represents and how a curler adjusts.

3

Explain how communication (living skill 1.3) helps a team use the read-choose-execute process.

Check your understanding

Quiz

1.

Which is a combination of a locomotor skill and a manipulation skill?

2.

In ultimate, the pivot foot:

3.

A curling takeout needs:

4.

In sledge hockey, a defender blocks your right side. A good choice is to:

5.

The first step in read, choose, execute is to:

6.

Catching with "soft hands" works because it:

For parents and teachers

Big idea: Expectation B1.2 asks students to combine locomotor and manipulation skills while responding to external stimuli: for example, judging the weight to knock a stone out in curling, pivoting to keep the disc from defenders in ultimate, or choosing a left or right, forehand or backhand pass or shot in sledge hockey. Living skill 1.3 (communication) supports coordinated play.

How to help at home:

  • Play catch while moving, leading your teen with throws.
  • Act as the defender or marker in the pivot station.
  • Try the floor-curling game together on a smooth floor.

Common difficulties:

  • Deciding too late. Encourage looking up and scanning before the ball arrives.
  • Hard hands on catches. Practise "giving" with the hands.

Safety: Use soft balls indoors and clear the floor for sliding games. Keep chasing games away from roads.