Ideas for Supporting Physical Literacy in Children with Special Needs
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For children with disabilities, developing physical literacy may pose challenges, such as fear of injury, or difficulties with gross and fine motor skills. Active for Life offers ideas for children with disabilities to develop physical skills to assist in building their self-efficacy and self-esteem.
Working from the premise that children learn best through doing, Active for Life draws on experiential learning theory to offer suggestions for supporting children with disabilities to explore the physical world. “For children with disabilities, especially those who may have challenges with reading, writing, or attention, getting them away from screens, off the couch, and into the outdoors can be a perfect strategy for helping them to learn about the benefits of a physically active lifestyle.” For young children with disabilities, getting opportunities to familiarize with the outdoor environment can build a level of comfort for further engagement as they grow.
· Children who have orthopedic or musculoskeletal disorders may benefit from swimming lessons or water aerobics.
· Children with cognitive or developmental impairments might benefit from a daily nature hike, in which they not only learn about their physical environment but about how to manage the physical demands of such an activity.
The benefits of activity include:
· Increased awareness of the proficiency and power of their own bodies
· Increased sense of well-being
· Increased strength, stamina, and capabilities
The article stresses the value of group activities, which offer learning in social and communication skills, as well as physical and motor skills.
· Children with conditions ranging from Down syndrome to muscular dystrophy can combine fun with developing literacy through team sports and performing arts groups, ranging from baseball and soccer clubs to dance and cheerleading troupes.
· Children with autism, even those who are non-verbal, can thrive in team sports such as swim or track and field teams that combine group interaction with solo activity.
The Ability Toolkit is a resource for Parents of Children and Youth with a Disability, with a range of practical suggestions for interpreting and adapting the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Children and Youth: https://cdpp.ca/sites/default/files/Ability%20Toolkit-Final-ENG.pdf
Chicago Parent website offers simple ideas (originally appearing in Chicago Special Parent) for incorporating physical activity ideas into a day of physical play that can encourage the joy of movement for children who have physical limitations and are fun and inclusive for siblings as well: https://www.chicagoparent.com/parenting/special-needs/physical-activity-ideas-child-special-needs/
Morning: Create a hide-and-seek dressing game. Pin an exercise to several pieces of your children’s clothing, such as flap your arms like a bird 20 times, climb up and down the stairs two times or dance across the room for five minutes. Hide the clothing around the room and have your child find them, do the activities and get dressed in the process.
Morning stretching: Get out a sturdy rope or rolled up beach towel or sheet and have your children play tug of war. Draw a line with tape and put pillows around for kids to fall on. Start with traditional tugging, but then mix it up a bit and have them tug to the left, tug to the right, tug up high over their head and down low towards the ground.
Morning play activity: Make an inside obstacle course. Here are some fun examples: In one corner of the course have your child roll dice to determine how many seated or standing jumping jacks to complete, in another corner have them draw a playing card to determine how many times they have to touch their toes and in another have them roll like a log while singing, “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.” Other ideas: crawl through tunnels (you can use boxes), walk like a wheelbarrow (you hold their legs up off the ground, and they walk on their hands) and teach them to do the crab walk (legs and arms bent with hands and feet on the ground, tummy up towards the ceiling). Part of the course can include a large ball to bounce, roll, throw or spin around with.
Time to refuel: With your focus on being physical, use lunch to reinforce healthy nutrition. Plan a lunch with protein, fresh fruits, nuts (if your child can tolerate them) and don’t forget to sneak in those vegetables.
Afternoon play time: Start a pickup game. Bring some sports equipment like baseballs/bats/T-ball stand to the park and find other children to join in a winter baseball game. Start with the bases close together and gradually move them farther apart to encourage walking/running longer distances.
Late afternoon playtime: Get ready for an Olympic skating competition. Gather up some old shoe boxes and have children step into their “racing skates” and glide across the floor in a skating motion. Encourage them to swing their arms to get that full bilateral body motion.
Bedtime: When it is time to wind down, talk about the day and have your child set goals for the next physical day of play. Learn what they liked and disliked to hone in on activities that reward them physically and emotionally.