(FMS) - Manipulative Skills
Manipulative skills refer to motor skills involving an object. They are all about making certain movements to apply force in order to move objects. Things like throwing, catching, and kicking are common examples. Striking with a racquet, stick, or bat are other examples. Most of them involve a person learning to handle objects with precision with varying speed and control. These skills mainly involve physical activities with the use of hand and body coordination to execute a task.
Underhand throw/roll – this is skill is used in a variety of different sports or sports-related games. Baseball and softball players make underhand throws all the time. Any time you go bowling, you use an underhand roll. The mechanics of both are very similar, except that you need to bend lower when rolling a ball and the follow-through might be different.
Look-Fors:
Advanced skills – Does your weight transfer from the back to the front as you throw? Is it all done in one fluid motion?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA0VSE7m1T
Underhand throw/roll – this is skill is used in a variety of different sports or sports-related games. Baseball and softball players make underhand throws all the time. Any time you go bowling, you use an underhand roll. The mechanics of both are very similar, except that you need to bend lower when rolling a ball and the follow-through might be different.
Look-Fors:
- Eyes on the target and face your target
- Swing the throwing arm back
- Step forward with the opposite leg of your throwing arm
- Swing your arm forward and release it towards the target
- Maintain your follow-through towards the target
Advanced skills – Does your weight transfer from the back to the front as you throw? Is it all done in one fluid motion?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wA0VSE7m1T
Overhand throw – this is one of the more difficult skills to master effectively. A fluid motion and hip rotation are often the missing ingredients to successful mastery. The mechanics of throwing are also transferable to serving in tennis or spiking a volleyball. There are obvious similarities to the underhand throw, but overhand throwing is more complex.
Look-Fors:
https://fms.60minkidsclub.org/?page_id=270 – See video on “Throwing – Show Me”
Look-Fors:
- Eyes on the target
- Point non-throwing shoulder to the target (yes, you are turned sideways)
- Feet should be shoulder-width apart
- Shift your weight to your back foot while bringing your throwing arm down and back
- Step forward with the opposite leg of your throwing arm
- In one motion, shift your weight forward, twist your torso, and bring your arm forward over your shoulder, releasing the object towards the target
- Maintain your follow-through towards the target and down across the body
https://fms.60minkidsclub.org/?page_id=270 – See video on “Throwing – Show Me”
Catching - is another essential skill used in many different sports. It is associated with throwing but very different. Students have to adjust their technique based on the size of the object being caught and often based on the speed and trajectory. We catch slightly differently if the object is high than when it is low. If you cannot catch efficiently, many team sports are difficult.
Look-Fors:
https://www.scoilnet.ie/pdst/physlit/fms-activities/catching/
Look-Fors:
- Eyes focused on the object being received
- Step forward to meet the object
- Hands reach out to meet the object and are prepared to catch
- Absorb the object with the hands only
- Keep a wide, stable base when possible to improve control
https://www.scoilnet.ie/pdst/physlit/fms-activities/catching/
Striking
This is one of the more complex athletic skills that students can learn. Striking can be done one-handed, as in most racquet sports, or two handed. Two-handed striking has two main varieties – hands together, as in baseball, cricket and golf, or hands apart as in hockey.
https://kiddo.edu.au/skills/two-handed-striking
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkij0KEcGbc
Look-Fors: (Two handed)
This is one of the more complex athletic skills that students can learn. Striking can be done one-handed, as in most racquet sports, or two handed. Two-handed striking has two main varieties – hands together, as in baseball, cricket and golf, or hands apart as in hockey.
https://kiddo.edu.au/skills/two-handed-striking
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nkij0KEcGbc
Look-Fors: (Two handed)
- Stand sideways to object
- Eyes focused on object
- Step towards the object with the front foot
- Hips then shoulders rotate into the strike
- Contact made even with the front foot
- Follow through around the body
Look-Fors: (One handed)
- Grip the racquet
- Eyes focused on object
- Start in ready stance with knees slightly bent
- Turn sideways as object approaches and bring racquet back
- Step towards the object with the front foot, and swing racquet forward with arms extended
- Transfer body weight from the front to the back with trunk rotation
- Follow through around the body with the racquet pointed to where you wanted object to go