Our body must send messages to our brain so the brain can efficiently control our sequence of movements. For example, the kinaesthetic system sends messages from muscles and joints, the vestibular system in the inner ear sends messages about balance. There are many ways in which our different body parts can be misaligned. If these appear to have an effect on a child’s physical function then it is crucial to intervene – holistic health disciplines such as kinesiology may be needed to assist this. Body movements, eye movements and articulation all depend on the brain receiving this information. In the first few weeks of foetal development early childhood reflexes emerge. These are involuntary movements, designed to help us through the birthing process. In the first few months of life they are very important to our survival. These automatic reflexes should be integrated within the first year of life. If they are not integrated they can block the development of efficient movement.
The below checklist is not by any means exhaustive, but we used this as a guide when assessing children’s needs at Learning Creations.
- Avoided crawling (a big one!)
- Pulled self along on bottom
- When crawling used only one side
- Late walking
- Clumsy
- Often knocks and spills things
- Uncoordinated
- Difficulty dressing self
- Cannot tie shoelaces
- Difficulty learning to ride a bike
- Poor posture
- Poor muscle tone
- Makes big postural shifts
- Slouches and cannot sit straight
- Always leaning to one side
- Jerky movements
- Putting arms out in the air to balance
- Any irregular pelvis, shoulder and head movements
- Difficulty lifting weights
- Dislikes touch
- Dislikes teeth/hair being brushed
- Dislikes hair/nails being cut
After observing hundreds of children, all individual and unique, I learned to also look out for the following sensory behaviours:
- Irritated by clothing tags, collars and cuffs. (Children with sensory processing disorders will often ask for tags to be cut off and feel uncomfortable in their clothes
- Distracted by different smells and lights – Some children (and adults!) can feel nauseous if light feels too bright or smells are overpowering. I worked with one lovely 11 year old who would (very politely) request me to not wear perfume as it made him feel dizzy. As you can imagine, concentrating in a busy classroom is nearly impossible if you have sensitivities to smells, sounds and lighting.
- Loves deep massage, tight hugs and heavy weighted blankets in bed (they are seeking sensory stimulation)
- Heavy handed with their pen or pencil, often rips paper when writing We used the movement exercises in assessments such as rope turning and cross walking to evaluate the efficiency of a child’s vestibular system and proprioception and their ability to cross the midline. To be ready to learn, children need a fully functioning vestibular system, as this is necessary for balance and coordination. Being able to do the exercises below accurately and slowly actually requires more work than completing them quickly. In all movement activities we would watch out for signs of difficulty, eg needing to put arms out in the air to balance, plus any irregular pelvis, shoulder and head movements and difficulty isolating movement to one arm or leg.
