Active Imagination Activity Book: Sensorimotor Activities for Children to Improve Focus, Attention, Strength and Coordination: 50 Sensorimotor ... Focus, Attention, Strength, & Coordination - Softcover

Tilley, Kelly

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1935567284 ISBN 13: 9781935567288

Publisher: Future Horizons, 2011

Synopsis

The activities in this book tap into what kids love best play. The activities pictured provide fun, easy, and imaginative exercises to build your child’s skills that are necessary for meeting the challenges of everyday life at home, school, and out in the community.

About this title

About the Author

Kelly Tilley is a Board Certified Occupational Therapist that lives in Crystal Lake, IL. She was educated at The University of Toronto and the University of Western Ontario.

She currently works at Arlington Pediatric Therapy Management Services in Arlington heights, IL, providing therapeutic intervention for children with neurological and congenital conditions.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Active Imagination Activity Book

50 Sensorimotor Activities for Children to Improve Focus, Attention, Strength, and CoordinationBy Kelly Tilley

Sensory World

Copyright © 2011 Kelly Tilley
All right reserved.
ISBN: 9781935567288

 

Selecting Activities for each Child: Description of tabs

Tabs along the bottom border of each page allow the teacher, parent, or therapist to select activities that are ideal for calming, energizing, upper extremity strengthening, and core strengthening.  The tabs allow daily routines of activities to be easily developed. Tabs also make it easier to select activities that are specific to the child’s area(s) of need.  Often these sensorimotor activities improve more than one area, so multiple tabs will reflect this along the bottom of the page. For example, “Meteorite Launch” is an energizing and core strengthening activity.

 

Every child has a unique set of sensory needs and abilities. Some children appear “over-aroused” (too wired, unable to sit still) while some children appear “under –aroused” (too sluggish, trouble getting moving).  Improving children’s level of arousal and their ability to attend and focus can be achieved through sensorimotor activities.

 

Calming Activities

 

Activities that are designated as “calming” provide input to muscles and joints in a slow/rhythmic way. These activities generally focus on “deep pressure” and “heavy work”. Deep pressure activities refer to input such as “squishing under cushions, or being rolled snuggly in a blanket. Heavy work refers to any movement activity against resistance (pushing heavy objects, pushing up against gravity).  

 

Note:

These activities are great preparation for bedtime. They are also helpful prior to table top work at school or before homework.

 

Energizing Activities

 

Activities that are designated as “energizing” provide input to the body that “revs” up or “perks” up the nervous system. The movements are usually quick and often involve changes in head position. These activities often involve jumping, rolling, bending forward, leaping over objects, etc.

 

 

Upper Body Strengthening Activities

 

Activities that are designated as “upper body strengthening” involve weight bearing on extended arms, modified push- ups, animal walks, etc. These activities all help to build the child’s strength and stability in the shoulder girdle, arms, wrists, hands, and fingers. Upper body strength is critical to fine motor coordination which is necessary for children to perform everyday tasks such as writing, buttoning/zippering, tying their shoes.

 

Core Strengthening Activities

 

Activities designated as “core strengthening” target the large muscle groups of the hips, trunk, and shoulder girdle. These activities build postural control, bilateral coordination, balance, and the ability to grade movements. Climbing, running, jumping, and playing on the playground are more easily accomplished with good core strength. Development of the core is also important for regulation and attention.  Activities that require stability and postural control, such as sitting at a school desk during the day, are also more easily achieved when the child has better core strength.

 

Continues...

Excerpted from Active Imagination Activity Book by Kelly Tilley Copyright © 2011 by Kelly Tilley. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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Edition details

• Publisher: Future Horizons
• Publication date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1935567284
• ISBN 13: 9781935567288
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 54