Gross Motor Skills Development
“All children, except those with severe developmental disabilities, have the potential to develop and to learn a variety of fundamental and specialized movement patterns and skills.” -Malina & Bouchard, 1991
Gross motor skills consists of the abilities required to control the large muscles of the body for activities such as walking, running, jumping, catching, throwing and maintaining balance. These skills are crucial for performing everyday functions, participating in physical activities and serves as building blocks
for more complex skills such as in all types
of sports through various combinations of these skills. It involves the coordination of the arms, legs, and other large body parts. Gross motor skills develops from infancy
through childhood.
Key aspects of motor development consists of locomotor, manipulative (object control), and balance / stabilization skills:
~ Locomotor skills include skills such as running, jumping, jumping, and galloping.
~ Object control involves movements that receive or move a force such as hitting, dribbling, kicking, throwing, catching, and bouncing. These skills involve hand-eye and foot-eye coordination and are very strongly influenced by visual perception.
~ Stabilization refers to the ability to respond to a change in the relationship of the body to all its parts that disturbs the body’s balance. It is also the ability to be able to make quick and accurate movement adjustments to correct these disturbances to the body’s equilibrium. This is often referred to as postural control.
We promote motor skills development, focusing on enhancing these gross motor skills to improve overall physical coordination and performance.