PT Online and Home-Made Resources:
Building gross motor skill can be a FUN, INTERACTIVE part of your child’s day!
Combine with academic skill-reinforcement for added interest.
Choose a few activities each day, or if your child has special areas of need, focus on those skills
CORE STRENGTHENING for young students:
1)https://theinspiredtreehouse.com/creative-core-exercises-kids/
2) Don’t forget Situps (knees bent,feet flat on floor), Plank , Pushups to knees
3) Superman….lay on belly lift head, front of shoulders, arms and legs up from floor. Whew!
4) “Bug”... Lay on back reach arms and legs to ceiling, try to lift head
Make a “Grab Bag” with different exercises on papers or cards. Child picks exercise from the bag.
Use Dice to determine how many repetitions or how many seconds to hold the pose
(use 2 dice, reinforce addition skills!)
5) Wheelbarrow walk….make a habit , such as wheelbarrow down hallway to bathroom
6) Crabwalk---retrieve colors, puzzle pieces, letters written on paper or index cards, etc.
Upper LimbCoordination Exercises w/ tennis ball for OLDER PRIMARY students...youtube video
https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=nHRzXs6GCYy tAaNt5GQAw&q=PT+coordinaton+exercises+for+kids&oq=PT+coordinaton+exercises+for+kids&gs_l=psy-ab.3...1743.9227..12861...0.0..0.129.3211.21j12......0....1..gws-wiz.......0j0i131j0i70i251j0i10j0i22i30j0i22i10i30j0i13j0i13i30j0i8i13i30j33i22i10i29i30j33i10i160.fY9YBXukIHk&ved=0ahUKEwjOxM6w06boAhUMH80KHY1bBDIQ4dUDCAg&uact=5#kpvalbx=_qXRzXtqVHcKKtAa5hpKgBw31
EYE HAND COORDINATION for younger students:
A) Balloon Games: Kids Love this and is super simple, indoor friendly way to build visual tracking and eye hand coordination:
1.Simple balloon volley up-taps….use one hand, alternate left/right hand, head, knee, elbow
2.Balloon strike upward using simple paddle (hold paddle with thumb on top)
3.Balloon volley back and forth with partner
All are fun to do w/ music
B) Ball (playground size) Games:
Toss back and forth to partner, start close, step back w/ successful catch.
Prompt for visual readiness
Bounce and catch ball….combine with saying ABC’s, or skip count by 5’s, 2’s etc.
Try timing/planning bounce/clap/catch or toss to wall/bounce/catch
Beanbag or ball tossed into laundry basket ---stand from various distances/angles
as marked on floor w/ tape or paper plate
VISUAL TRACKING
A)Flashlight games are fun!
1.In darkened room “write” on walls/ceiling with light from flashlight
2.2- Person Flashlights: one person shines onto ceiling or wall, child uses his beam to “catch” it
3. Child uses flashlight to find objects on wall….you can write letters on papers or paper plates
and tape those on the wall for kids to “find” w/ light beam
B) Bubbles...who doesn’t love these? Blow, chase, pop w/ finger
C) Scarves…
1.”Juggling” with brightly colored scarves, or toss back and forth (try catching w/ palm facing down)
2. Scarf exercises/dances; Follow the leader doing arms circles, up/down “whips”, squiggles
A good one for crossing midline is to try horizontal figure eight with your scarf
BODY COORDINATION:
Bilateral Coordination Activities for Children
Here are 11 simple ideas to practice bilateral coordination skills in older children:
1. Marching to music and clapping hands at the same time.
2. Cross crawls – touch your right hand to your left knee and then the left hand to your right knee. Repeat touching the opposite feet.
3. Traditional jumping jacks
4. Cross Country Jumping Jacks – place right arm and right leg forward jump and switch left arm and left leg forward. Try opposite sides – place right arm and left leg forward jump and switch left arm and right leg forward.
5. March in place sitting down while drawing circles in the air with both hands
6. Try a task using both hands or both hands and feet at the same time – ie: dribbling a ball with both hands, kicking a ball and dribbling a ball.
7. Play hopscotch – the skill of jumping feet apart and together requires coordination of both sides of the body
8. Perform motor activities to the beat of a metronome
9. Jumping activities – jumping rope, jump up and clap hands, jump up and touch your heels behind your bottom, jumping activities through a floor ladder (can make a “floor ladder” on floor at home using masking tape), etc. Jump to targets placed various distances, zig-zag pattern etc. Jump over rope on the floor; if “easy”, make a hurdle a few inches high.
Jump down from small bench onto floor target….earn points or letters for a spelling word!
10. Animal walks that use both sides of the body – ie: crab walk, bear walk and crawling. There are fun songs online, such as Animal Action song to do this with.
11. Pointer--On hands and knees. Lift and reach forward with opposite side arm and leg, then switch.
BALANCE BUILDERS:
Tightrope Walk on rope laid on floor, laid straight, curvy, circles
B)Rope Circle Jump in/out. Build auditory attention by jumping when adult claps or gives a fun musical or cue word signal
C) Statue….one leg balance, “tree balance”, one hand one foot on floor balance, bridges
D) Freeze...freestyle dancing, when the music stops ,”freeze”...kids Love this!
ENDURANCE/AEROBIC FITNESS:
Many of you have Small Indoor Trampolines with safety Grab Bar. Set goals w/ timer, or for length of a song, or jump during commercials, etc. Supervise for safety.
OUTDOOR PLAY..including just running laps around house, rolling down hill/climbing up
Run in place….if confined indoors, (use timer, set goals) Whole family do together!
Dance! Kidzbop, Just Dance Kids, Refit are some fun ideas….Kids don’t have to match the moves perfectly, just keep moving!
Aerobic Step….If the music is lively, kids in PT love simple up/down steps onto a low bench or onto small mat stack,, combined w/ arm waves...the old YMCA song is a hit!