| Get
moving even in the winter: It does young bodies (and brains) good!
Though the weather
outside can be downright frightful, it doesn’t have to be a
deterrent to staying active with your child. There are plenty of
fun activities families can do together during these chilly months
that not only build strong bodies but help develop important motor
skills that will ultimately lead to strong minds.
Karyn Amico-Dziezynski, an
occupational therapist, says that physical activity strengthens
the very muscles children use when learning to read and write.
"The more opportunities children have to practice a variety
of physical skills from a very young age, the better prepared they
will be to learn in school," she says.
Following are some fun activities
that build physical and motor skills. Children should be
encouraged to try new things but should never be forced beyond
their abilities. Use your child’s age, developmental level and
temperament to determine which of these activities seem
appropriate. If you are uncertain, talk with your pediatrician.
Trunk and shoulder strength —
needed to sit for lengths of time and stabilize the arms for
writing
-
Use the playground as weather
permits.
-
Do the wheelbarrow walk—i.e.
hold children by the ankles and let them walk with their hands
and arms — or for very young children, hold them at the middle
or by the thighs until their upper body strength develops to
support their entire body.
-
Roll and push snowballs for
snowmen.
Hand and finger strength — needed
to write, hold pencils, cut, pinch and pick up small objects
-
Knead bread dough.
-
Decorate cookies with sprinkles.
-
Squeeze a pastry tube.
-
Play with modeling clay.
-
Squeeze colored glue from bottles
onto paper to make pictures.
-
Pack snowballs.
-
Squirt a spray bottle filled with
colored water onto the snow.
Perceptual skills — these include
the ability to recognize shapes and colors, to find one object in
the midst of others and to match (i.e., to understand that one
object is the same as another)
-
Play with nesting blocks.
-
Match pairs of socks when mom or
dad is folding laundry.
-
Make a scavenger hunt out of
finding all of the circles, squares, triangles or other shapes
throughout the house.
-
Play with building blocks.
-
Eye coordination — needed to
read books and chalkboards.
-
Play ball games that involve
rolling or catching.
-
Have the child follow the beam of
a flash light as it is shined around a dark room.
Fine motor coordination — needed
to button, zip, manipulate objects and refine writing skills
-
Give children plenty of
opportunities to dress and undress themselves, including
zippering, buttoning and fastening.
-
Make collages out of edible
objects such as raisins and O-shaped cereal (good for children
who are apt to put things in their mouths) or dried beans or
popcorn kernels for older children.
-
Engage in fingerplaying such as
the Itsy Bitsy Spider and Where is Thumbkin?
-
Use the dial on a play phone.
-
Push buttons on electronic toys.
-
Use lacing board and cubes.
-
Pick up cotton balls.
Becoming comfortable with movement
-
Roll (This is great fun in newly
fallen snow).
-
Make snow angels.
-
Use an indoor obstacle course to
get from one place to another (e.g., let’s follow the leader
to get to our snack in the dining room by climbing over this
pile of pillows, around the rocking chair, under the coffee
table and down the hall).
-
Draw designs with finger on
plates covered with foods that can go in the mouth such as
whipped cream, pudding, yogurt or (for older children) on cookie
trays covered with dried rice or cornmeal.
Back to
previous page
|
