Understanding Motor Skills in Children With Dyspraxia, ADHD, Autism, and Other Learning Disabilities: A Guide to Improving Coordination (JKP Essentials) by Lisa A. Kurtz

Author:Lisa A. Kurtz
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: 9781843108658
ISBN: 1843108658
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Published: 2007-10-14T21:00:00+00:00

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U N D E R S T A N D I N G M O T O R S K I L L S

both hands to propel; put one foot on the carpet and use the other leg

to propel).

• Practice jumping or hopping games such as hopscotch, leapfrog,

jumping jacks, cheerleading moves, or jumping to “patterns” on a

trampoline (e.g. right, right, left, left or right, left, clap, right, left, clap).

• Hold one crepe-paper streamer in each hand and practice various

bilateral patterns.

• Hold one piece of chalk in each hand. Standing at a blackboard, practice

drawing shapes, patterns, or letters using both hands at the same time

with the eyes closed. Encourage the child to try to make the right-hand

picture look the same as the left-hand picture.

• Lie on the floor and pretend to make “angels in the snow” with eyes

open and eyes closed. Vary the patterns—for example, moving the right

arm and left leg while the other limbs remain still.

Balance skills

Balance is another important component of motor skill in the developing child.

Balance skills are based upon input from several sensory modalities. Perhaps of

greatest importance is the vestibular sense, which provides input to the central

nervous system about gravitational pull, motion, and speed. Some children with

inadequate sensory processing of vestibular input may be overly sensitive, causing

them to get dizzy easily and to avoid activities that include strong movement expe-

riences. Children with this sort of problem often show a strong preference for

maintaining their head in a position of vertical alignment with the world, and avoid

such activities as hanging upside down on a monkey bar, performing somersaults,

or lying back on a piece of equipment that rocks or is otherwise unstable. Others

with vestibular difficulties are undersensitive to vestibular input, and may seek out

extra movement experiences in an effort to “fuel” their central nervous system

with meaningful information.

Balance is also highly dependent on proprioceptive feedback. Movement in

any part of the body should result in unconscious, automatic postural adjustments,

often subtle, in other parts of the body. For example, when a right-handed child

writes a sentence on a piece of paper, the hand moves along a path that causes the

body to shift weight and the head to turn slightly toward the right, thus allowing

smooth movement of the arm across the page. These subtle body adjustments are

sometimes referred to as postural background movements, and help the body to

move fluidly and as a whole unit. Visual feedback is also a factor in maintaining

P R O M O T I N G B A S I C M O T O R S K I L L S

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balance. As the body moves, so do the visual images that reach the central nervous

system, providing additional cues that the body needs to make adjustments in

response to the situation. You may have had the experience of watching a spinning

toy or carnival ride, and feeling dizzy as a result. This illustrates the close relation-

ship between the visual and vestibular systems. You may have also learned that

fixating on a stable visual target when attempting to balance on one foot may

improve your performance.

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