Haktive
I hope I am now going to convince you of the powers of playing short ball games both by yourself and with others to develop skills that are beneficial within the classroom.
First of all choose a ball appropriate to the age of your child. Bigger balls are easier for younger children to manage and play with and they can start off by rolling, either to each other or rolling towards small targets. These practices develop gross motor skills, balance and coordination, even turn taking.
The act of having a ball in your hands and throwing it up to then catch it yourself requires a range of attributes and practice is the key for improvements and subsequent challenges, but lets start at the basics.
The ability to throw and catch develops gross motor skills which will aid fine motor skills in the classroom of handwriting, painting, using counters. It practices your hand eye coordination which will enable you to put your hand up at an appropriate time, to perform simple experiments and develop further sports skills e.g. holding a tennis racket.
Balance and coordination are key gross motor skills in a child’s development and can aid the successful sitting still or at a desk, to be able to pay attention and concentrate in class instead of continually wanting to move around. The ability to concentrate on the lesson will inevitably lead to more engagement and further positive developments.
By throwing and catching a ball and using alternate hands to throw and/or catch you are engaging both sides of the brain which help develop the bilateral movements and aids brain development. The act of being physically active will also help engage the brain for further learning and concentration (like a wake up call).
If ball games are used with two or more people it encourages communication and cooperation, it can enable a sense of achievement or resilience, it can even be made competitive if that is the challenge your children need or thrive on.
But most of all it can be FUN and we all need a bit of fun in our lives.
So in a short 5 minute activity you have all of these benefits - what is there not to like about this quick positive intervention?
For lots of individual, pairs and group ball games take a look atwww.Haktive.com/at-home