Encouraging Gross Motor Development

From when our daughter was just a newborn, it was evident to me that she had "differences", and was going to need some (lots of) intervention to help her be the best version of herself.

During the most intense period of her early life, Sophie was seeing 19 medical specialists, and attending speech therapy, occupational therapy and physiotherapy sessions.  We were physically drained, and financially stressed.  Something had to give.  We had to make some tough decisions around where to direct our time, energy and money.

We were lucky in that Sophie's gross motor delays were not as pronounced as some of her other issues.  So we made the decision to drop physiotherapy, and replace it with “at home” and family activities to help develop her motor skills.

Don't misunderstand me.  I'm not saying that professional physiotherapy sessions are not immensely valuable, and for some children they are absolutely essential.  But we had to make choices.  And we were lucky that, while Sophie has low tone (also known as hypotonia), she was not so physically delayed as to need continued intense professional physiotherapy sessions.  But she did need intervention.  So we researched, and researched, and started to develop some ideas about how to help her at home.

I'm not a therapist.  I'm not suggesting that what helped our daughter will necessarily be appropriate for other children.  But I’d like to share some of the things we did with Sophie to help develop her body awareness and physical skills.  For some of you these ideas may be impractical, unsuitable, or plain impossible.  For others, perhaps these suggestions may give you a few more ideas to play with.  But PLEASE - check with your doctor or physio to see if these activities are suitable for your child before attempting them at home.

• Sophie was uncomfortable with touch, so we attempted to get her more comfortable through massage from when she was just a few months old.  We took it slowly.  Just a small belly rub during nappy changes.  Or rubbing her arms or legs when she would allow it.  Some lights stroking, some heavier stroking.  We also started to do joint compressions at bedtime.   These activities to increase her comfort with touch, help build neuro-connections and increase her tolerance of different sensory experiences.


• We incorporated "crossover" exercises into her daily routine.  Each time we changed her nappy, we would take her left arm and touch it to her right foot, then take her right arm and touch it to her left foot.  Repeat, repeat, repeat.  This was to help her with “crossing the midline”, which is important in bilateral coordination.


• At least four or five time a day we would take her little arms and gently try to pull her up to sitting, supporting her head as necessary.  We did this to help build her abdominal and neck strength.


• We took her to Gymboree. We enrolled her in a session with kids slightly younger than her, so her physical delays wouldn’t be so evident, and she wouldn’t be frustrated by her inability to “keep up”.


• We took her to playgrounds.  All the time.  At first she needed much more supervision than the other kids of her age.  We had to be directly within arms-reach, or hands on.  Over time, her confidence and abilities grew.


• We went camping. Often.  Camping was especially great once Sophie started to be able to walk, as the different textures and gradients of the environment challenged her skills in balance and proprioception.  Hills, grassy places, sandy spots, rocks, pebbles, tree roots and twigs.  Puddles . Creeks and water holes.  
  
  We noticed a definite "leap"  in her physical abilities each and every time we took her camping.  So we took her, even when packing the car seemed impossible.  Even when the mere prospect of leaving the house filled me with dread. We had always loved camping, but the exhaustion of sleep deprivation certainly didn't make it an appealing idea in the first couple of years.  Luckily the rewards always outweighed the effort, and I have no doubt that all of Sophie's camping experiences have not only improved her motor skills, but also helped her with her sensory issues and socialisation.




• My husband did a lot of work around proprioceptive awareness from when Sophie was only a couple of months old, including rocking her from side to side, lifting her high into the air and lowering her down to the ground, spinning her and rocking her.



• My husband carried Sophie in a backpack before she could hold herself up, tucking her in tightly with towels.



• Before Sophie was strong enough to hold herself up, we tucked her into her highchair with bath towels, so she could experience eating while sitting.



• Once she was able to sit, we bought her a tiger Zooba, which we have always called her "bouncy tiger" . Sophie sat on that at a children's low table for all meals (and still does).  The Zooba required her to continually shift balance and helped to develop her core strength.*



• Once Sophie could stand with support we bought her a mini trampoline with a handle,  and she was only allowed to watch TV if standing on the trampoline.  Even before she could bounce, the gentle movement of the sprung base required her to continually readjust her balance.

Thanks to the financial support of my parents, we were able to start Sophie with an excellent private Occupational Therapist when she was two years old. Robyn Simms worked (and continues to work) on fine motor skills and play skills with Sophie, but she also worked on her gross motor skills.  Thanks to Robyn our repertoire of "tools" with which to help Sophie grew.

• We started to sit Sophie on a Swiss Ball, holding her by the hips, and moving the ball from side to side.


• As she grew in confidence, we would lie her on her tummy over the Swiss ball, tipping it one way until her head nearly touched the floor, then pulling it back until her feet were nearly touching the floor.


• As her strength grew, we held her by the feet and put an object just out of reach, then rolled the ball forwards so she could reach out to grab the toy.


• When she was strong enough, we progressed on to holding her feet in the air while she supported herself on her arms, and moved forwards  "wheelbarrow" style.


• We used a scooterboard to develop her core strength. At first we had her sit upright on the board, and gently moved it around, to assist with developing her core strength and balance.  As she grew more confident we progressed to more difficult exercises – for example having her lie on her tummy, while we pulled the board around.  She is now able to lie on her tummy and use her arms to drag herself around on the board.


• We bought mini three wheel tricycles without pedals and of different heights, including a scuttlebug.  This required her to develop the strength in her thighs and core in order to propel them forwards.





• We bought three second hand slides of varying heights and angles, to help her with climbing and overcoming her fear of sliding.


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  We bought balls of all different shapes and sizes, and practiced rolling them to her, and getting her to roll them back, then progressed to throwing and, finally, kicking.  A "knobbly" ball was particularly good when we started off, as the protruding bits give more grip and more sensory feedback.


• We installed a sandpit in the backyard, a swing, a climbing cubby and a rocking toy.

Almost all of these items were bought second hand or gifted to us, so the costs were kept low, while our house looked like a gymnasium!  Toy libraries are also a good option for when funds are low.

At the age of just three Sophie started horse riding with Riding for the Disabled. Thankfully the costs for this were low, as the center is run by volunteers and subsidised by donations and some government funding.  She screamed her way through most of the first few sessions, but thanks to the gentle care of the volunteers she soon lost her fear and began to thoroughly enjoy her sessions. Hippotherapy (horse riding therapy) has helped tremendously with her poor posture, curved back, low tone and sense of proprioception (balance and awareness of body in space).  It has also significantly increased her confidence and willingness to try new things.


Developing her physical skills and confidence was (and continues to be) a team effort. Sophie stays with my parents for two days each week, and they diligently work with her.  We incorporate "physio exercises" into Sophie's day, each and every day, but under the guise of "play".

Sometimes Sophie is reluctant and fearful to try new physical challenges.  "All done now" was a phrase she used often. And sometimes tears flowed. But despite her trepidation, with gentle and continued encouragement she would always” give it a go” in the end.  She showed (and continues to show) so much courage and perseverance.  Those are qualities I admire in her so much, and qualities that I'm sure will stand her in good stead throughout her life.

In terms of Sophie's challenges, her gross motor development is currently the least of our concerns.  That's not to say she doesn't have delays, and that continued intervention is not required.  It's just that in the grand scheme of things, we know she will be "okay" in this regard.   She may not ever be the fastest swimmer, or the most graceful dancer, but she has good enough mobility that it no longer interferes with her capacity to join in on the playground.  She can enjoy the delights of trampolines, and slippery slides, climbing, and playing "can't catch me".  And really, that's what matters.

At five years old, Sophie is still more physically frail and clumsy than other kids her age.  But now when she falls, rather than tears or hysteria, she just laughs and gets straight back up again.  A wonderful lesson for me to take on board...when you fall..laugh and get back up...keep trying, and never give up!

I hope these ideas may give you some inspiration.

If you would like to read more about our journey, I'd be delighted if you took a look at my blog about Sophie.

* Please note, the Zooba  is not currently available in the United States, but the product has been licensed, and creators of the product are currently in negotiations with a distributor in the United States.  Zoobas are expected to be available soon in the United States.  For more information, you can contact the creators via the website link.  If you are reading this post and wish to purchase a Zooba, they are offering a 5% discount if you quote this reference...MOMGM1

In the US you can purchase a Rody Pony, that is very similar to the Zooba Tiger.