Gross Motor Activities

Regular gross motor activities should be an essential part of every child’s life. 

Through play, through games, and through sport, children can develop their gross motor skills to lay a foundation for school skills such as handwriting, concentrating, following instructions, sport skills and team work.

• Core and shoulder girdle exercises
  
• Activities for coordination skills
  
• More gross motor exercises 
• Information and tips for gross motor development
• Gross motor resources
• How should I schedule gross motor activities?
  

The advice and learning activities on this website are NOT a replacement for evaluation and treatment by an occupational therapist. If you suspect your child has gross motor delays, please seek a professional opinion and read my disclaimer before proceeding.

Core and Shoulder Girdle Exercises

Your child’s core muscles are vital to good performance in the classroom. Without a stable core, he/she will struggle to sit still at a desk and to carry out fine motor tasks.Your child also needs stability at the shoulder girdle to help fine motor skills to develop well.

These pages on my site will help you find photographed gross motor activities to work on those areas. You can also read more about why these muscles are so important in a child's development!

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 Coordination Activities

Children need to develop coordination skills in order to carry out everyday tasks like tying shoelaces, eating with a knife and fork, cutting with scissors, handwriting, playing ball games... and many more!

These pages on my site will give you helpful information, useful tips, and lots of fun photographed coordination activities you can do with your child at home.

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More Gross Motor Exercises

These gross motor exercises incorporate ideas from various gross motor pages on my site. Some of the exercises are ideal to do with a small group of children as well as individually.

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Info and Tips on Gross Motor Skills Development

Why are gross motor skills important? Why do some kids struggle with gross motor skills? What can affect my child's gross motor development?

The articles below contain some answers to these questions and many more!

Enjoy browsing - I hope you find them useful!

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Gross Motor Resources

What resources do you need for gross motor games and activities? Many of the activities I suggest use surprisingly little equipment, which is great for saving money!

Balls, ropes, access to a play park - these are all readily available resources. Second hand shops often stock bats, small trampolines and other gross motor items, so it is worth checking them out.

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Scheduling Gross Motor Activities

So, you want to start doing more gross motor activities with your child - so when, where and how often???

There is no hard and fast rule about how often to do these activities. It depends on your child's abilities and also on your family's lifestyle. Take a look at your family’s daily and weekly routine.

Each family is different and you need to decide what works best for you. I believe you will see the most progress if you can incorporate 10 to 20 minutes of fun activities 3 times a week, but see what works for you.

• Daily routine: is there a time of day when it is generally possible for you to focus on your child for 10 minutes? After breakfast if you homeschool? After a rest time in the afternoon? Between bath and bed? Can you make a 10-minute break in the homework routine in the afternoon? Are there any activities you can make a regular part of family outings, family life?
• Weekly Routine: Which afternoon are you usually home without extra-mural activities? Or can you head for the playpark while you wait for your other child to finish extra-murals? What about Saturdays before chores?

Remember that incorporating gross motor exercises into your family’s life has wonderful long-term benefits!

Look at other ways of improving your child’s general fitness levels with gross motor activities such as swimming, playing catch, cycling and walking on the beach.

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