Episode 14
This episode is brought to you by M. Mendes who uses the Developmental, Individual differences, Relationship-based (DIR®) approach with children and holds a Certificate of Proficiency in DIRFloortime® from The International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL).
You can also subscribe on your preferred podcast app by searching, “We chose play from Affect Autism”
In the past few posts, we have talked about the essentials of the DIR® model. We have reviewed the concept of co-regulation and explored a video of a Floortime session. We have touched upon the importance of determining where your child is developmentally and we have discussed how important it is to work on the early functional emotional developmental capacities (FEDCs), or social-emotional development.
Now let’s go back to explore another very important component: motor planning and sequencing. When our children wander aimlessly seemingly not knowing what to do next, or having play that doesn’t seem purposeful to us (such as knocking things over, throwing everything, etc.) it could be an indication that they have challenges with motor planning and sequencing.
Motor planning is tricky and involves three parts:
-
- Ideation
- Planning
- Execution
Ideation means having an idea of what to do. This can be with an object, with your body, with another person, etc. This may include recalling past (similar) experiences to understand what is presently happening.
Planning involves creating a course of action regarding how to do it.
Execution is how you physically carry out the cognitive plan. This part also involves the environment and sensory input.
Let’s think about motor planning at its earliest stages. A baby hears their mother talking across the room.
The baby first registers the noise and finds it appealing. The baby then has to organize its body to turn towards the sound of the mother.
Next the baby has to physically turn their body, which involves coordinated movement in order to turn efficiently. Lastly, the baby has to scan the room to locate their mother.
If you think about this in terms of a toddler – perhaps they hear a very loud, undesirable noise such as a siren. They have to register the loud noise and recognize that they do not like it.
Next, they must plan to cover their ears and run out of the room.
Last, they have to physically take their hands to cover their ears and move efficiently and coordinated to exit the loud room.
So what do we do to target motor planning?
Crossing the Midline
One area to strengthen is the ability to cross the midline. Crossing the midline refers to the ability of one side of the body to cross over into the other side of the body (i.e., using your right hand to reach over and pick something up off the floor on your left side).
If your child is not able to effectively cross the midline, you may see challenges with scanning a room, reading a story and handwriting.
ACTIVITIES: You can practice drawing rainbows, play hot potato, draw lazy eights and play Twister.
Bilateral Coordination
Another area to target is bilateral coordination. Bilateral coordination refers to the ability to use both sides of the body at the same time in a controlled and organized manner.
Can the child stabilize a piece of paper with one hand while cutting it using scissors with the other hand? Can they use both hands together to throw a ball? Can they pull up their pants using both hands?
If your child has difficulty with bilateral coordination, you may see challenges with gross motor tasks such as walking, climbing and running and challenges with fine motor tasks such as dressing, eating and writing.
ACTIVITIES: You can play zoom ball, tear strips of paper, roll playdoh with a rolling pin, catch and throw a ball, ride a bicycle and complete obstacle courses.
Rhythm and Timing
A third area to strengthen is rhythm and timing. This refers to any type of activity requiring children to coordinate sound and vibration of movement.
ACTIVITIES: You can practice dancing together, clap patterns, jump rope, marching to a beat and singing.
Coincidentally, rhythm and timing is also very important for a child’s ability to engage and relate with others – in conversation, you are always doing a “dance” as a two–way interaction involves a pattern of back and forth exchanges, either verbal or non verbal.
Integrated Sensory Input
Lastly, and very importantly – we need integrated sensory input. In order to have effective motor planning, we need to ensure that our sensory systems are working together.
Think about the above example of the baby and mother’s voice. If the child had an under-responsive auditory system, maybe they would not have heard their mother in the first place, which means the sequence of actions after may never occur. If the child’s vestibular system was overresponsive, perhaps they would have difficulty moving their head in various positions to locate their mother because it would be too overwhelming for their sensory system.
ACTIVITIES: To strengthen this, you can engage in activities that target many senses at once such as gymnastics, swimming or yoga.
Disclaimer: Please note that M. Mendes is not an occupational therapist and that information on this website is for illustrative purposes only. Please consult with a professional sensory integration occupational therapist for an assessment of your child’s skills and challenges.
Now that you have a better understanding of the significance that motor planning and sequencing play in a child’s development, you can plan to do some of the activities described above with your child and bring this knowledge to their team at school.
Next time, we will resume with our stumbling blocks in Floortime series, focusing on Functional Emotional Developmental Capacity (FEDC) 2: Fostering engaging and relating.
Until next time, here’s to choosing play and experiencing joy every day!
