The Power of Parenting

Thursday, 05 November 2020

Gross Motor Development

Gross Motor Development allows a child to gain balance and bring large muscles under control in order to master physical activities such as sitting, crawling, walking, running, climbing, jumping and generally enjoy all that his body allows him to do.
Typical Skills
  • Rides a tricycle without bumping into things
  • Bounces, throws and catches a large ball
  • Starts, stops and changes direction smoothly when running
  • Climbs playground equipment without any difficulty
  • Jumps forwards and backwards for short distances
Emerging Skills
  • Walks up and down stairs, alternating feet without support
  • Jumps down from half metre high
  • Skips for a distance
  • Kicks a soccer ball
  • Hops on one foot

Comfort
If you do this:
Your preschooler will

 
  • Support your child’s exploration and curiosity about her physical environment
  • Supervise play and safety, i.e., helmets for bike riding, care when throwing balls to others, etc.
  • Use her motor skills to discover new concepts of physical characteristics of things
  • Enjoy mastering skills without worry of injury
Play
If you do this:
Your preschooler will

 
  • Take your child on a “bike hike” around the park or neighbourhood
  • Arrange for playmates to come over to play outdoor games, e.g., hide and seek, tag
  • Enjoy exploring his area and learning about places and people
  • Practice motor coordination skills while learning games with rules
Teach
If you do this:
Your preschooler will

 
  • Teach safety rules for walking or riding on streets, e.g., always stop at the curb before crossing the street; never ride on the road, etc.
  • Teach your child that when playing certain games, someone wins and someone loses; help your child understand how to win and lose graciously
  • Slowly learn how to manage safety; full mental capacity for these rules is absent before age 10
  • Learn how to cope with disappointments as well as successes