From birth, movement is essential for every baby. That is to say, on the first day of life, the little one already moves its little arms, legs, etc. From then on, a race for psychomotor development begins and will continue until adulthood, after approximately 18 years of age. Therefore, for these phases to be carried out properly, it is advisable to use some resources to work the child's physical coordination appropriate to his age.
Although children will develop naturally, it is not a bad thing to help them through play and physical activity so that they can jump, touch, grab things and, from their earliest childhood, develop the pleasure of discovering, being curious and having fun in the most natural and fun way possible.
Motor coordination of the child
Also called physical or motor coordination, it is understood as the ability of an individual to perform correct and efficient movements. All this is possible due to the proper communication between limbs and brain. This involves factors such as applied force, orientation, synchronization and balance.
Therefore, it is convenient to favor the correct physical coordination that, in a gradual way, the child develops throughout his first stages of growth. Adequate stimulation will allow him to polish his movements, even the most complex ones.
Little by little, the child will demonstrate that he/she is gaining skills in two types of motor skills:
- Fine motor skills: demonstrates competence in manual skills such as writing, pinching, drawing, etc.
- Gross motor skills: this is the one that develops locomotor competence, such as running, getting up, acting with agility, etc.
How to work on children's physical coordination through resources and activities.
We have a large number of activities, games and resources that help children to adequately stimulate their fine and gross motor skills. Let's take a look at some of the most interesting ones.
Up to 1 year of age
We have various resources for the little ones in the house. For example, simple games on the floor, using balls that make noise when squeezed, the classic crawling, throwing toys that they have to catch or throw, allowing them to pick up different objects from the floor when they can move around on their own, etc.
Up to 5 years of age
This is a very important phase, since the child jumps, walks, runs, and basically does everything, although he has not yet perfected his motor skills to the maximum. Therefore, it is advisable to play games such as hopscotch, which helps them to maintain their balance and improve coordination.
In this phase of growth, we can also bet on dancing, on drawing less and less abstract and more figurative, on the use of plasticine, sand, punches, on running races that stimulate the strength of their legs, etc.
From 5 years old to 10 years old
The last part of early childhood education, between the ages of 5 and 6, involves the use of resources and games that can also be useful later on, at least until the children reach the age of 10.
Here we find ideal activities to stimulate gross and fine coordination taking advantage of tug-of-war rope games to improve balance, dancing, which helps a lot to maintain the routine and even motivates competitively, sports with or without ball, calligraphy to develop fluidity of movements with the fingers, etc.
Take note of these 3 resources to work on your child's physical coordination according to his age and remember that at Logos Nursery School we have the knowledge and the means to ensure that your little ones develop in an optimal way and according to their specific needs.
