Physical Development
Physical development is a stage that all children go through. It is not necessarily based on a certain timeline so there will always be differences in height, size, and level of gross motor and fine motor skills found in each classroom (Monaha, 2011, p.1).
Gross motor skills refer to the larger muscles in a child’s body such as legs and arms. Having the ability to control these larger muscles enable the child more freedom of movement, participation in sports and a greater sense of autonomy. Everyday examples would include: walking, running, and everyday sports (Cherry, 2012, p.2).
Fine motor skills refer to the smaller muscles in a child’s body such as their fingers, toes, eyes and other areas of the body. When children develop their fine motor skills this allows them to grasp small objects, draw, write and participate in everyday classroom activities. Having this ability will make it a lot easier for a child’s integration into the classroom setting when they are expected to participate in activities mentioned above (Cherry, 2012, p.2).
Major Motor Skills between 7-12 years old include:
Sex Differences: Boys
-More adept at batting, kicking, dribbling, and catching
-Greater muscle mass: 150% greater compared to girls
-->Develop larger skeletal muscles, hearts and lung capacity
-Boys experience a growth spurt at age 14
Sex Differences: Girls
-More adept at fine motor skills. E.g., hand writing, drawing
-More adept at gross motor skills that depend on balance and agility.
E.g., hopping and skipping
-Girls have pubertal growth spurt earlier than boys (10-11 vs. 13-14)
Clicking on the button below will offer further information as to how you can support and teach your child about puberty:
Gross motor skills refer to the larger muscles in a child’s body such as legs and arms. Having the ability to control these larger muscles enable the child more freedom of movement, participation in sports and a greater sense of autonomy. Everyday examples would include: walking, running, and everyday sports (Cherry, 2012, p.2).
Fine motor skills refer to the smaller muscles in a child’s body such as their fingers, toes, eyes and other areas of the body. When children develop their fine motor skills this allows them to grasp small objects, draw, write and participate in everyday classroom activities. Having this ability will make it a lot easier for a child’s integration into the classroom setting when they are expected to participate in activities mentioned above (Cherry, 2012, p.2).
Major Motor Skills between 7-12 years old include:
- Continuous fluid skipping - the child can vertically jump and accurately jumps from square to square
- More accuracy in throwing and kicking
- Coordination hitting a baseball and dribbling a basketball
Sex Differences: Boys
-More adept at batting, kicking, dribbling, and catching
-Greater muscle mass: 150% greater compared to girls
-->Develop larger skeletal muscles, hearts and lung capacity
-Boys experience a growth spurt at age 14
Sex Differences: Girls
-More adept at fine motor skills. E.g., hand writing, drawing
-More adept at gross motor skills that depend on balance and agility.
E.g., hopping and skipping
-Girls have pubertal growth spurt earlier than boys (10-11 vs. 13-14)
Clicking on the button below will offer further information as to how you can support and teach your child about puberty:
Activity:
The Human Knot
Children can take part in this activity when with friends or put in small groups. It engages the gross motor skills of the participants. This game includes physical movement of larger muscles, strategic planning and problem solving, as well it incorporates a large amount of communication and agreement among the members. This activity would be beneficial for grades 4-6.
How To Play:
1. Children stand in a circle touching shoulder to shoulder.
2. Children reach for the hands of 2 of other members of the circle; each hand must be holding 2 different peoples hands.
NOTE: The hands of the person on either side of the child can't be held. Children must reach across or diagonal to hold 2 different peoples hands.
3. Circle of children must work together to untangle themselves.
GOAL: To unravel the knot of arms without letting go of the people's hands you are holding, to end up standing side by side in a complete circle.
Sports (Hockey Soccer, Basketball, Skating, Volleyball, etc...)
Getting your child involved in a sport is a great way for them to engage their gross and fine motor skills. Sports not only keep children physically active but help children build coordination, team building skills, sportsmanship, confidence, and self-esteem.