Your Therapy Source Magazine for Pediatric Therapists May 2016 | страница 8

6 Ways to Help Children Grade Their Movements
There are many reasons why a child may have
difficulties with grading the amount of force to use
when performing motor skills. Some children may
crash, bang, push too hard or land too hard when
performing actions such as playing tag, running in
a gym or jumping. Other children may not push or
pull hard enough. As therapists, we tend to focus
on various sensory suggestions or muscle grading
activities to help children with force attenuation.
Here are 6 suggestions to help children grade their
force production:
1. Proprioceptive activities – allow for free play activities
that include heavy lifting, pushing, pulling and jumping
to encourage the muscles to feel all the different forces
and responses required in various situations. When you perform a motor skill the joints and
muscles send messages to the brain. When you change that motor skill even slightly ie bend
your knee a little bit more, reach your arm a little further, that sends a slightly different message.
2. Teach a child to proper amount of pressure or force production. Give them examples of
what is appropriate and what is not. For example, perhaps demonstrate a proper amount of
pressure to give when hugging someone. Can the child give you a hug back with the correct
pressure. if not, give them some verbal feedback – ie too soft, too hard or just right. Try this for
other activities – touching a person when playing tag, writing with a pencil, running and stopping
on command, etc. Work on body awareness activities to help the child learn where they are in
space relative to themselves and others.
3. Provide verbal cues to help children understand the amount of force to produce. For
example when teaching a child to respond with less force try “pretend you are a bubble and you
don’t want to pop”. When you are landing from a jump try “landing like a snowflake slowly falling
to the ground” or “land like a feather”.
4. Practice, practice, practice. Once you have taught them some new skills with regards to
force production practice the skills in different environments. Practice outside in large open
spaces. Practice indoors in small spaces. Practice in loud settings and quiet settings. Practice
moving fast and moving slow.
5. Motor planning activities. Now start using those skills in higher level motor sequences. Set
up obstacle courses where children have to control their bodies and avoid stationary and moving
obstacles. Practice following verbal commands to move in different directions at different
speeds.
6. Postural control activities. Children need a stable