Did you know… many children with ADHD also have dyspraxia?
Did you know that you can help a child with dyspraxia by engaging them in many ‘fun’ activities.
Allow me to share with you some interesting research that supports the above statement…
According to a study published in 2012, children with dyspraxia (or Developmental Coordination Disorder) have “impairment or immaturity of the organisation of movement.”
The types of motor problems that these children display include delays in accomplishing motor milestones such as: walking and sitting, dropping things and poor performance in sports or in handwriting.
However, rehabilitation is possible by seeking professional help. Rehabilitation programs that include sensory integration therapy and motor performance, may improve activities of daily life in children with dyspraxia.
What can you do at home to help your child improve their gross motor skills?
You can get them to…
- Crawl around at home
- March around the house, forwards and backwards
- Play hopscotch
- Skip a rope
- Play with a hula hoop
- Play catch with different sized balls e.g. basketball, soccer ball, tennis ball
- Bounce a ball of different sizes e.g. basketball, tennis ball
- Kick a ball between goal posts, start them wide apart and reduce them as they improve
- Hit a ball with a bat, any bat e.g. table tennis, badminton, softball, baseball or cricket bat
- Juggle small beanie bags, starting with 2 at a time and progressing to 3 as they improve
- Shoot hoops, lower the basketball hoop to start with and increase the height as they improve
Yes, this is getting back to basics.
Encouraging your child to do these activities as opposed to sitting in front of a screen, will make a huge difference.