Why is jumping important? The 2018 Active Healthy Kids Australia Report Card recently highlighted declines in the jumping ability of Australian children and young people which indicate that ‘it’s time for a jump start’ for muscular fitness. When we think about the...
Professor Leon Straker discusses the impact of electronic gaming on the health of young children.
Like all learning - the development of fine motoro scissor skills is a process which occurs incrementally. Just as you would not expect to give a young child a pencil and expect them to begin writing fluently - the functional use of scissors is the same. The child...
What does it mean to cross the midline? Think of an imaginary line extending from the top of your head down the centre of your body. This is the midline – which theoretically separates the left and right side of the body.To be able to cross the midline is a...
Learning the fundamental motor skill of kicking begins in the early years but does not usually mature until the age of 6-7 years. Kicking skills will continue to be refined over the years with practice and coaching.The enjoyment toddlers experience with learning to...
To be human is to experience emotions. Sometimes these emotions are positive such as feeling happy, excited, elated or joyous and sometimes the emotions are negative such as feeling sad, lonely or jealous. For most of us, we experience a whole spectrum of emotions...
The Hop is a Fundamental Movement Skill Before learning to hop on one leg, young children will need to have developed some degree of dynamic balance and have the ability to jump with both feet clearing the ground. Hopping is a more advanced skill and usually develops...
Do you have one of these lurking in a cupboard somewhere? No, it's not a relic from Grandma's kitchen pantry, but it is Grandma's... Button Tin I have such fond memories of pouring over this tin as a young child. If you don't have one, ask your Mum, Grandma, Aunty or...
What is a motor skill? I can tell you that is doesn’t have anything to do with cars – but it does involve an engine…the most miraculous engine…the human body! A motor skill is simply an action of specific muscles to perform an intentional movement. In order to be able...