Gross motor skill

Gross motor skills are the abilities usually acquired during childhood as part of a child's motor learning. By the time they reach two years of age, almost all children are able to stand up, walk and run, walk up stairs, etc. These skills are built upon, improved and better controlled throughout early childhood, and continue in refinement throughout most of the individual's years of development into adulthood. These gross movements come from large muscle groups and whole body movement. These skills develop in a head-to-toe order. The children will typically learn head control, trunk stability, and then standing up and walking. (Humphrey) It is shown that children exposed to outdoor play time activities will develop better gross motor skills. Gross motor skills are the abilities usually acquired during childhood as part of a child's motor learning. By the time they reach two years of age, almost all children are able to stand up, walk and run, walk up stairs, etc. These skills are built upon, improved and better controlled throughout early childhood, and continue in refinement throughout most of the individual's years of development into adulthood. These gross movements come from large muscle groups and whole body movement. These skills develop in a head-to-toe order. The children will typically learn head control, trunk stability, and then standing up and walking. (Humphrey) It is shown that children exposed to outdoor play time activities will develop better gross motor skills. Motor skills are movements and actions of the muscles. Typically, they are categorized into two groups: gross motor skills and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills are involved in movement and coordination of the arms, legs, and other large body parts and movements. Gross motor skills can be further divided into two subgroups of locomotor skills and object control skills. Gross locomotor skills would include running, jumping, sliding, and swimming. Object control skills would include throwing, catching and kicking. Fine motor skills are involved in smaller movements that occur in the wrists, hands, fingers, and the feet and toes. They participate in smaller actions such as picking up objects between the thumb and finger, writing carefully, and even blinking. These two motor skills work together to provide coordination. Less developed kids focus on their gross movements, while more developed kids have more control over their fine movements. Gross motor skills, as well as many other activities, require postural control. Infants need to control the heads to stabilize their gaze and to track moving objects. They also must have strength and balance in their legs to walk.Newborn infants cannot voluntarily control their posture. Within a few weeks, though, they can hold their heads erect, and soon they can lift their heads while prone. By 2 months of age, babies can sit while supported on a lap or an infant seat, but sitting independently is not accomplished until 6 or 7 months of age. Standing also develops gradually across the first year of life. By about 8 months of age, infants usually learn to pull themselves up and hold on to a chair, and they often can stand alone by about 10 to 12 months of age. There is a new device called a “Standing Dani” developed to help special needs children with their posture. Walking upright requires being able to stand up and balance position from one foot to the other. Although infants usually learn to walk around the time of their first birthday, the neural pathways that control the leg alternation component of walking are in place from a very early age, possibly even at birth or before. This is shown because 1- to 2-month-olds are given support with their feet in contact with a motorized treadmill, they show well-coordinated, alternating steps. If it were not for the problem of switching balance from one foot to the other, babies could walk earlier. Tests were performed on crawling and walking babies where slopes were placed in front of the path and the babies had to decide whether or not it was safe. The tests proved that babies who just learned how to walk did not know what they were capable of and often went down slopes that were not safe, whereas experienced walkers knew what they could do. Practice has a big part to do with teaching a child how to walk.Vision does not have an effect on muscle growth but it could slow down the child’s process of learning to walk. According to the nonprofit Blind Children Center, “Without special training, fully capable infants who are visually impaired may not learn to crawl or walk at an appropriate age and gross and fine motor skills will not properly develop.” When the child is not able to see an object then there is no motivation for the child to try to reach for it. Therefore, they do not want to learn independently. Learning to walk is done by modeling others and watching them. Children when put in environments with older children will observe and try and copy the movements done. This helps the child learn through trial and error. The babies will imitate others, picking up the skills a lot faster than creating their own errors. Visually impaired children may need physical therapy to help them learn these gross motor skills faster. One hour of therapy each week is not enough so parents have to make sure they are involved in this process. The parent can help by telling the baby the direction of where the object is and encourage them to get it. You must have patience because every child has their own developmental schedule and it is even truer for the children with special needs. Focusing on the progress of your child is better than focusing on comparing your child to other children. (Humphrey) It has been observed by scientists that motor skills generally develop from the center to the body outward and head to tail. Babies need to practice their skills; therefore they will grow and strengthen better. They need space and time to explore in their environment and use their muscles. “Tummy-time” is a good example of this. At first they are only able to lay their belly on the floor but by around two months they start to gain muscle to raise their head and chest off the ground. Some are also able to go on their elbows. They will also start to kick and bend their legs while lying there, this helps to prepare for crawling. By four months they are able to start to control their head and hold it steady while sitting up. Rolling from belly to back movements is started. At about five months the baby will start to wiggle their limbs to strengthen crawling muscles. Infants can start to sit up by themselves and put some weight on their legs as they hold onto something for support by six months. As they enter their first-year caregivers needs to be more active. The babies will want to get into everything so the house needs to become ‘baby proofed’. Babies are able to start to reach and play with their toys too. It is said that the use of baby walkers or devices that help to hold the baby upright are said to delay the process of walking. Research has been found that it delays developing the core torso strength, which can lead to different issues down in their future. Around ten months they should be able to stand on their own. Throughout their years of life different motor skills are formed. (Oswalt) With regards to the gait pattern, study shows that infant at 12 months old exhibit larger mediolateral motion, which may be caused by weak muscle strength and lack of stability. They also show a synchronized use of hip and shoulder while they are walking, which is different from a mature gait pattern performed by adults. The ankles didn't move as much among 12-month infants as compared to that of adults performing a mature walking. Development in the second year of life, toddlers become more motorically skilled and mobile.They are no longer content with being in a playpen and want to move all over the place.Child development experts believe that motor activity during the second year is vital to the child's competent development and that few restrictions,except for safety, should be placed on their motoric adventures. By 13 to 18 months, toddlers can move up and down steps and carry toys. Once they reach the top of thestairs though, they are not able to get back down. They also begin to move from one position to another more smoothly. (Oswalt) Significant changes in gait patterns are also observed in the second year. Infants in the second year have a discordant use of hip and shoulder while walking, which is closer to an adult walking pattern. They are also able to utilize the rage of motion of their ankles, toes, and heels more, which is similar to a mature walk. By 18 to 24 months, can move quicker or run for a short distance along with other motor skills. They also start to walk backwards and in circles and begin to run. They can also not only walk up the stairs with their hands and feet but are now able to hold onto the handrail and walk up. Near the end of their second year, complex gross motor skills begin to develop including throwing and kicking. Their skills becomes more natural. Pedaling a tricycle and jumping in place is acquired. At the end they are very mobile and can go from place to place. It is normal for them to get themselves into small situations that could be dangerous such as walking into the street because their brain can’t send the information fast enough to their feet. Parents need to keep an eye on their children at all times. (Oswalt) In a majority of the select kinematic and kinetic variables, there are greater differences between two-year-old children and four-year-old-children than there are between four year old children and six year old children. The variables for which there were significant differences tended to be in displacement, velocity, and magnitude of force measurements. In a majority of the select kinematic and kinetic variables, there are greater differences between two-year-old children and four-year-old-children than there are between four year old children and six year old children. The variables for which there were significant differences tended to be in displacement, velocity, and magnitude of force measurements.