3 ways to improve kids motor skills

6/13/2018

Balancing – Can your child balance on one leg?
Balancing on one leg strengthens core key stabilising muscles necessary for everyday activities and sports such as football, karate, tennis, dancing, and gymnastics.

How to encourage balance
Start by asking your child if they can stand on one leg, if they have trouble, help them by holding their hand and suggesting they focus on a single point. Once they can balance for short periods, make a game of it and use a timer to see if they can stand on one leg for the length of the timer. Are they better on the left leg or the right leg?

Once they have mastered balancing on one leg, increase the challenge by asking if they can close their eyes or wave their hands above their head. Look around the house for interesting things they can balance on. Do you have a length of wood they can use as a balance beam? Do you have any unstable bases they could use to safely practice their balance such as a trampoline or a Bosu ball?

Crossing the Midline – Does your child naturally reach across their body?Imagine drawing a line down the middle of your body starting at your forehead. This is the midline and as adults we cross our midline during everyday activities such as driving a car, reading a book or cooking. Crossing the midline is an important skill for kids to master but it doesn’t come naturally to everyone.

How to encourage crossing the midline.
Get your kids to help them wash the car and ask them to stand in one spot. If they are right handed, how do they wash the car to left of them? Do they swap the sponge into their left hand to reach the other side? Do they twist their trunk in order to reach? Ask them to use just their dominate hand so they have to reach across their body in order to wash the car. Clapping games such as “Miss Mary Mack” are also a fantastic way to engage your child and encourage them to reach across their body.

For younger children, driving a toy car is will help them to develop “crossing the midline” skills. Set up an obstacle course and tell them to keep both hands on the steering wheel as they navigate the course.

Running – Can your child run in all directions?

Running seems like an obvious skill and your kids have probably been doing it since they were 18 months old but can they run sideways? Backwards? The ability to run in all directions and to change direction quickly is a skill required in many sports such as netball, tennis, and football.

How to encourage running in all directions
Try a family game of tips to encourage kids to use different movement skills such as weight transfer and changing directions. Kids also love dodging balls, so get them to stand in a circle while you roll a ball towards them and see if they can get out of the way without being hit by the ball.
Ask them to focus on one point such as a tree and run to a different point, such as yourself without taking their eyes of the tree. Try moving around to see if they can ‘catch you’ while still their body continues to face the tree. Practice multi-directional running by calling out instructions for your child to follow “forwards, backwards, right, left, etc”.

Give your child the chance to use their skills

Tennis is a sport that requires competency in all of the above areas, and is a great sport for developing core skills that set up an athletic base for life. Here at the Parkside Tennis Academy we offer fundamental perceptual motor skills programs suited to 3 to 5 year olds and Junior tennis programs from 5 years that starts to add in a technical tennis elements.

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10 good reasons to play tennis

6/13/2018

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Tennis is a sport that can be played for life
Learning tennis at a young age gives kids a chance to learn a sport they can enjoy over a lifetime. Kids can start tennis lessons from 3 years old and there are tournaments and social competitions that cater to all age groups from 5 to 80+ years. The whole family can get involved in tennis and it’s never too late to learn how to play the game. Age, sex and race is no barrier to playing a good game of tennis!

Tennis enhances fundamental motor skills in key areas
Tennis involves running, jumping, striking, balancing, throwing and catching skills. On top of this it enhances spacial awareness and promotes agility and quick reflexes. There are not many other sports which involve such a comprehensive suite of Fundamental motor skills. Tennis can also enhance your child’s visual acuity as the player’s eye is constantly challenged by analysing the variety of spin, speed, heights and angles a tennis ball comes through the air.

Increased health outcomes
Tennis consistently comes out on top in overall health outcomes such as a recent study performed at Oxford University which showed tennis to reduce the incidence of premature death by 47%. Tennis requires explosive speed and strength (Anaerobic) but also longer term endurance (Aerobic). It’s great for strength and muscular development while also enhancing cardiovascular health. It is a low impact sport which reduces stress on joints and possibility of injury compared to other ‘high-impact’ sports such as netball or football. It is also a great mind and body workout.

It’s fun and challenging
Tennis involves a variety of shots to learn (e.g. groundstrokes, volleys, smash’s, and serves) It also involves a variety of spins such as topspin and slice. Learning to play the game is a constant adventure and the game is complex enough to challenge the most demanding of players but can also be played by beginners.

Improves decision making and problem skills
Tennis is a fast paced and strategic sport which requires lightening quick decision making skills. As the player improves these have to be made under increasing amount of pressure, which develops self confidence and trust in oneself.

Tennis is popular sport all over the world
Tennis is a popular sport in Australia and internationally. You could move almost anywhere in the world and find it is easy to meet new tennis players and get a game together. For serious players and coaches it offers a range of opportunities and has a rich international history including grand slams with millions of dollars’ worth of prize money.

Tennis can be played all year round
Tennis is traditionally associated with summer but runs all year round meaning kids can continually build on their skills without losing momentum. Training in winter also has health benefits such as boosting the immune system and cardiovascular efficiency (your heart has to work a little harder to get the blood around the body and therefore has to be more efficient).Training in cold weather is also great for mental toughness and can give kids an edge over their competitors as well as boosting their mood.

Tennis can be played competitively or socially
Tennis is a sport which can be enjoyed in a competitive or social environment. Not everybody is wired to be involved competitively and there are many players who enjoy the social aspect of the game. There are many pathways also available for the competitive hound.

Tennis can be both an individual or team sport
When playing a game of tennis in a singles match you are guaranteed to be consistently involved in the game. There is also the opportunity to learn good team building skills in the doubles environment.

Tennis builds Character
As tennis is a sport which requires many hours to master, it requires a good work ethic, commitment, a willingness to learn from others, and an ability to bounce back from setbacks. It also rewards resilience and high levels of concentration.

As tennis great John Fitzgerald says ‘It may be the best sport we have’
Enroll your family into tennis today!

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3 ways to improve kids motor skills

10 good reasons to play tennis

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