Moving and Learning School Programmes
(For children aged 7+ years)
Movement is our first language, but many children miss out on vital developments within their first couple of years of life, which can have a huge impact on how they later learn, co-ordinate their body, and interact with their environment. The ‘Moving and Learning’ school programmes addresses this imbalance and provides a physical education in its truest sense, for long lasting changes.
A significant percentage of children in mainstream schools have been found to have immature motor skills and postural instability. Such neuro-motor immaturity is often rooted in the continued presence of a cluster of primitive reflexes (a group of motor reflexes found in new-born babies, e.g. the Startle Reflex). Research has shown that in many children there is a direct correlation between immature motor skills and educational achievement.
The programmes comprise a series of daily exercises, based on movements normally made by the developing child in the first year of life. These are designed to be carried out every school day under teacher supervision, with a whole class of children or smaller selected groups for 10-15 minutes a day, for between 3 and 4 school terms. Exercises will typically change every 4-6 weeks.
Unlike other movement programs, designed to improve fine and gross motor skills, this programme takes children back to their foundations, where balance training, hand-eye coordination, postural control, body awareness and visual perception are all developed. Improvements can therefore be seen in many areas, including reading, writing, processing speed, co-ordination, concentration, focus, ability to sit still, short term memory, confidence, communication, body awareness etc.
These exercises are suitable for all children over the age of 7, but especially those displaying challenges around learning, concentration and body co-ordination.
Children’s progress is measured before and after participation in the programme, using writing samples, reading grades, and testimonials from parents and/or teachers.
