Noodle Bat Tee-Off

A batting game where the child swings a soft bat with two hands at a ball sitting still on a home-made tee.

  1. Make a tee: stand a tall plastic bottle (weighted with a little water or sand) or a sturdy cardboard tube on the ground so the top is at about your child’s waist height — put it on a box or stool if needed. Balance a light ball on top.
  2. Make a bat: half a pool noodle, a rolled-up newspaper wrapped in tape, or a cardboard wrapping-paper tube.
  3. Your child stands side-on to where the ball should go, feet apart, with the tee in front of their belly button.
  4. Hands together on the bat — for a right-hander, left hand at the bottom, right hand above it (reverse for a left-hander).
  5. Cue: “Eyes on the ball… swing flat like wiping a table… finish over your shoulder.”
  6. Hit five balls, then run to collect them all in a bucket.

Variation: put down a marker to hit past, add a “home run” lap around the garden after each hit, or hang a ball in a sock from a branch and hit it as it hangs still.

Requirements

  • Space: At least 6–8 meters of open space in front of the batter and a clear circle of 2 meters around them
  • Surface: Grass or any flat outdoor ground; a large room with a balloon or foam ball indoors
  • Materials: A tall plastic bottle or cardboard tube as a tee; half a pool noodle or rolled newspaper as a bat; 3–5 light balls (foam, plastic, or rolled socks); a bucket
  • Participants: 1 child; an adult to reset the tee
  • Supervision: Moderate — an adult controls where others stand and resets the ball

Rationale & Objective

Striking is named in this subdomain’s definition, and the two-hand strike of a stationary ball is one of the seven ball skills in the TGMD-3. Hitting from a tee removes the hardest part of batting — timing a moving ball — so the child can concentrate on the body pattern: a side-on stance, the correct hand positions, hip and shoulder rotation, a step toward the target, and a swing that carries through. That rotation of the trunk is the same engine that drives a mature throw, so batting and throwing practice reinforce each other. A short, light, fat bat makes contact much more likely; scaling equipment to the child’s size has been shown to improve both success and technique (Buszard et al., 2016). Planned practice of this kind matters — a meta-analysis found that structured motor-skill activities improved object-control skills, while free play alone did not (Logan et al., 2012).

Progress Indicators

  • Early: faces the ball front-on and chops downward as if using an axe; hands apart or crossed on the bat; often hits the tee or misses
  • Developing: stands side-on with reminders; swings more level; makes contact most of the time, though the ball dribbles off in any direction
  • Proficient: sets up side-on with hands correctly placed without reminders; swings level with visible body turn; the ball travels forward 3 meters or more
  • Advanced: steps toward the target as the swing begins; follows through over the shoulder; hits a smaller ball; begins to hit a ball tossed gently underhand from close range

Safety Notes

  • The main risk is the bat, not the ball — nobody stands within two big steps of the batter, and everyone else stays behind them or well to the side
  • Use only a soft bat (pool noodle, rolled newspaper, cardboard tube) and light balls; no wooden or metal bats and no hard balls at this age
  • Teach “bat down before you run” so the bat is dropped, not thrown, after a hit
  • The adult resets the tee only when the bat is resting on the ground
  • Check the hitting direction for windows, cars, and people, even with soft balls

Hints

  • Playfulness: announce each batter like a stadium commentator, let your child pick a walk-up song, and cheer every hit as a home run
  • Sustain interest: lay out “distance zones” with ropes or chalk (single, double, home run); try hitting a balloon, a beach ball, or a rolled sock off the tee to feel the difference
  • Common mistake: the tee is too high or too close, forcing an awkward chop. The ball should sit at waist height, a bat-length in front of the child’s middle
  • Limited space: indoors, hang a balloon on a string from a doorway at waist height and hit it with a noodle — it swings back for the next turn
  • Cross-domain: measure hits in footsteps and compare (measurement); count balls into the bucket (numeracy); take turns being batter and fielder (turn-taking, cooperation)
  • Progression: balloon on a string → large light ball on a tee → smaller ball on a tee → narrower bat → ball swinging gently on a string → ball tossed underhand from 2 meters

Sources

  • Ulrich, D.A. (2019), TGMD-3 — two-hand strike of a stationary ball performance criteria (grip, side-on stance, hip and shoulder rotation, step, contact)
  • Gallahue, D.L. & Ozmun, J.C. — Understanding Motor Development (developmental stages of striking)
  • Buszard, T. et al. (2016), “Scaling the equipment and play area in children’s sport to improve motor skill acquisition: a systematic review,” Sports Medicine
  • Logan, S.W., Robinson, L.E., Wilson, A.E. & Lucas, W.A. (2012), “Getting the fundamentals of movement: a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of motor skill interventions in children,” Child: Care, Health and Development
  • UK EYFS Development Matters — Reception: refine ball skills including throwing, catching, kicking, passing, batting, and aiming
  • SHAPE America (2020), Active Start: A Statement of Physical Activity Guidelines for Children From Birth to Age 5, 3rd ed.