Mini-golf: can a wider gate help?

Teacher guide

Allow about 60 minutes, or split the build and test across two sessions. This is a proposed activity, not a classroom-tested timing or a curriculum alignment.

What you need

For each group: removable tape, a ruler or tape measure, one light soft ball, two low soft blocks or folded cardboard gateposts, a light blunt putting tool, and the learner sheet. A gentle hand push along the floor is another way to move the ball. Each tester keeps their chosen movement and assistance the same in both rounds.

Choose a clear, level surface suitable for tape. Keep waiting learners clear of the lane and putting arm. Use low, gentle strokes and one moving ball at a time. Stop play before retrieving a ball. An adult checks the materials and handles any cutting.

Set up the course · about 10 minutes

1. Mark a lane 120 cm long and 60 cm wide. Keep walking space around it.
2. Put the ball's start mark on the centre line, 10 cm from the near end.
3. Mark the gate's centre 60 cm from the near end. Set two posts either side of it with a 15 cm clear gap. Mark both post positions so you can reset a knock.
4. Mark a 30 cm × 30 cm clear target area on the centre line. Its near edge is 85 cm from the lane's near end; its far edge is at 115 cm. Measure inside the tape. Leave clear space beyond the lane.
5. Check that the ball fits through both planned gaps. Try the course before the group starts; adjust the layout if it is impractical, then record the agreed dimensions. Keep that layout for both rounds.

Run the test · about 30 minutes

A success: one stroke or push sends the ball through the gate and it stops wholly inside the target, without touching its tape. Going around the posts, leaving the lane or needing another stroke counts as a miss.

Choose two testers and give each two practice attempts. Each then takes five recorded attempts in each round, in the same order. Other learners measure, record and check the lane; swap roles after the comparison.

• Round A: use the 15 cm gate. Reset the ball on the start mark each time. Let it stop, record ✓ or ×, then retrieve it. Keep the posts still throughout the round.
• Change: widen the clear gap to 25 cm, moving each post 5 cm outwards. Keep its centre and distance along the lane fixed. Change nothing else.
• Round B: repeat the same ten attempts, with the same ball, tool, testers, order, surface and target. If another person or ball interrupts an attempt, reset and replay that attempt. An ordinary miss stays in the results.

Talk it through · about 10 minutes

Count each round's successes out of ten. Ask: What changed in the results? What did you see that might explain it? A wider gate may help the ball pass, but players still need to judge direction and strength. Practice and tiredness can also affect the second round. Ten attempts give this group something to discuss; they do not prove the gate will help everyone.

If the result is unchanged or worse, record that. Choose a next test from what happened. Learners can sketch a proposed change without rebuilding today. For more challenge, express each result as a fraction or percentage and show the two results on a simple bar chart.

Look for a labelled plan, measurements with units, a complete results table and an explanation that refers to what the group actually observed.