Video, download and description of exercises
Files:
Bridge
Have the child lay on the back on the floor with knees bent and feet flat on the floor. You can put a small ball (overball) or pillow between the knees.
Now the child lifts the hips off the ground to the bridge position, so the torso and the thighs form a straight line.
Then slowly bring the hips down to the mat again
Note: You can make this exercise harder by holding the arms raised up to the ceiling and placing a small ball between the hands. While both arms are still raised, the child lift the hips up and hold a bridge.
Goal:
Improve coordination of movements
Strengthen the core
Ability to sequence both arms and legs equally
Improve stability and balance
Develop bilateral coordination and body awareness
The puppet
Have the child lay on his/her back with arms alongside their body and legs straightened out.
Then he/she turns the head slowly towards the right, while the right leg bents at the hip and knee, and the right arm bents at the elbow to allow the hand to rest near the face. The child tracks their right thumb with their eyes all the way until it the back of the hand is resting on the floor.
The child now returns slowly to their original position while continuing to observe the right thumb as long as it's visible.
This exercise is then repeated on the opposite side.
Note: you can divide this exercise into two parts. First, focus on the coordination of the movement. Both the arm and leg should be fully flexed and extended simultaneously. After mastering this movement, the eye movements can be added. Encourage the child to follow the hand all the way to improve the smoothness of eye movements, which is crucial for reading. Even when reading lines, it's critical to follow the words smoothly with the eyes to prevent missing any letters or words.
Goal:
Improve coordination of movement
Improve hand-eye coordination
Improve eye movement fluency
Inhibit Asymmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (if persistent)
No no!
The child stands with his hands as if he wants to stretch them out, but he bends them at the elbows and holds on to them
Now the child quickly turns his/her head to the right side and moves his hands quickly to the left at the same time
Slowly he/she returns to the original position and repeats on the other side, so that he/she quickly turns his head to the left and at the same time moves his hands to the right
Slowly return to its original position
Goal:
Improve coordination of movement
Inhibit Asymmetrical Tonic Neck Reflex (if persistent)
Marble game
Take some marbles. The child grasps the marbles one by one with their thumb and indexfinger and conceals them in their palm. Afterwards, they retrieve them one by one using the same fingers and place them in a compact container or marble run. Throughout the exercise, the child employs only one hand to manipulate the marbles.
Goal:
Improve fine motor skills
Find the Differences
Use the attachments. Try to find differences in one picture each day. When you find them, feel free to colour the picture.
Goal:
Improve visual perception
Improve concentration
Improve graphomotor skills
Did you find all the differences?
Next week we will start more exercises to improve the cooperation of the brain hemispheres. I look forward to seeing you!