Activities for Children in the Nursery

• Published in: Dyslexia and Physical Education pp. 21 - 32
• Main Author: Portwood, Madeleine
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: United Kingdom Routledge 2003; Taylor & Francis Group
• Edition: 1
• Subjects: Teaching of a specific subject; Early Learning Years; ADHD; Phonological Assessment Battery; Vice Versa; Co-occurring ADHD; Basic Motor Skills; Bunny Jump; Developmental Dyslexia; Feet Resting; Jogging; Competent Motor Skills; Walk Tall; Walk Heel Toe; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Lily Pad; Box Tunnel; Yellow Circle; Dyslexic Child; Judge Distances; Sponge; Basic Movement Skills; Field Events; Square Root Rule; Sport Appeals
• ISBN: 9781853469701; 9781138175952; 1138175951; 185346970X
• DOI: 10.4324/9780203934258-3

The assessment of motor skills described in the previous chapter measures the competencies that should be evident given the children's expected neurological and physiological development. However, any screening of this population currently attending nursery or playgroups would yield a significant proportion unable to complete many of these tasks. In the majority of cases, it is due to lack of experience; the children have not had sufficient opportunity to practise their movement skills. Entry to nursery can provide opportunities to develop abilities but this must be carried out in a structured way. It is important to cover the aspects of development that may have been 'missed' in the early years. It can no longer be left to chance (Wetton 1997) because the ability to coordinate movement and develop perceptual skills is fundamental to further learning experiences. The child needs to begin to express his/her ideas, firstly through drawing and then writing. Children who have perceptual and coordination difficulties in their early development struggle to produce legible handwriting. The problems are exacerbated as the children progress from Foundation Stage through the other key stages as the requirement for written work increases.