Learning to Climb Stairs
Climbing Stairs is a really important motor skill for kids to develop. This skill is used in every day life. Go up and down flights of stairs, go and down curbs, going to the stairs to the slide on the playground, and getting on and off a school So , today we are going to talk about how stair climbing develops and how to support kids as they learn this skill.
Learn To Jump
Jumping is an important gross motor skill that kids develop between the ages of 2-3. Jumping comes in many shapes and sizes with varying levels of difficulty ranging from a simple vertical jump to the more complex jumping forward, jumping over, and jumping down. Most kids are able to jump getting both feet off of the ground boy age 2. Now the amount of clearance from the ground isn’t super important in the beginning, what you are looking for is your child’s ability to bend their knees and propel upward.
Session Plans
Session Plans is an All Inclusive resource for School Based Physical Therapists looking for less stress and more fun.
This curriculum includes activities modified for ages 3-21 and all mobility levels.
Gross Motor Games with Painter’s Tape
If you have been here before, you know that I LOVE Painter’s Tape! Here are 2 of the reasons that I love it:
Painter’s tape is a really inexpensive tool that can be used for hundreds of different games. You can pick up painter’s tape at most Big Box stores and even the Dollar Tree.
Painter’s Tape is designed to be safe on surfaces and not cause any damage.
Jumping
Jumping is one of my favorite gross motor skills. There are so many different versions of this one skill that kids can practice and incorporate into play which makes it really versatile and fun. Jumping also challenges both our muscle strength and our cardiovascular endurance making it a great way to exercise. Before we dive deeper into the different forms of jumping let’s review some of the terms I just mentioned so we can better understand the benefits of jumping.
Gross Motor Skills: Skills that use large muscles in the torso, arms, and legs. These skills are often whole body movements that require balance and coordination. Examples include sitting, crawling, walking, running, playing with a ball, and jumping.
Muscle Strength: The amount of force a muscle can create.
Cardiovascular Endurance: The body’s ability to supply oxygen to the muscles during sustained physical activity.