People have some instinctive actions since birth, such as sucking, swallowing, grasping, etc. (also called unconditional reflex ). These movements are not random, and will gradually develop into purposeful random movements, such as: turning the head, looking for the light source, holding objects in the hand, swinging, stroking, knocking, turning over, crawling, standing, walking, etc. It is the development of these movements that makes it possible for humans to participate in social life practices. It can be seen that exercise is an indispensable part of children's physical and mental development.
Therefore, using sports training methods to correct children's disabilities and develop brain potential has been recognized by more and more experts, teachers and parents, and is widely used in some medical and educational departments, and has achieved good results. However, exercise often It is also the most easily overlooked by most parents.
What is gross motor training
Gross motor is simply called gross motor or gross muscle movement. It uses individual functions, cooperates with large muscle movements, and uses planned and systematic limb movements to improve individual motor functions, promote physical and mental development, and achieve the purpose of rehabilitation.
Autistic children need large-scale exercise training
Some parents of autistic children are skeptical when their children begin to receive large-scale exercise training. It is emphasized that the child's motor ability has developed relatively well, and the training content has been mastered, or has been trained, and the language and cognitive content should be strengthened in further training. Yes, the child's motor ability has developed to some extent, or the basic movements are more coordinated, but this can only mean that it has the function and potential for development, and it can never replace the appropriate level of development. When we carefully observe and analyze the motor development abilities of autistic children, it is not difficult to find problems in movement. There are roughly the following symptoms:
(1) Insufficient amount of exercise. shows that the daily activity time is often less than 2 hours, and the content is monotonous. It is generally limited to walking and running, and some even do no activities.
(2) Poor large muscle strength. is manifested in insufficient coordination and stability of movements. For example: legs tremble when jumping on a trampoline, and the jumping posture is unstable; weak movements when throwing and catching a ball, uncoordinated hand-eyes or fear of the ball hitting it, not daring to catch the ball, bending very low when shooting the ball; activities such as crawling and running Very afraid or avoiding.
(3) Low motor skills. shows that you can't shoot the ball, kick the ball, throw and catch the ball, jump rope, do exercises, etc.
(4) Low balance ability. such as: unable to walk balance beam , unable to stand on one foot, unable to jump on one or both feet, etc. Especially for lonely children without language, most of them have poor ability to land on both feet.
(5) Poor endurance and strong inertia. For example, : You cannot consciously complete the training content according to the regulations, and it is very easy to escape. You have to rely on a lot of physical help from the teacher to complete it.
Through the above analysis, it can be seen that the gross motor ability of autistic children is relatively low. According to relevant data, the motor development of autistic children is generally three to five years later than that of normal children. From the problem of motor development of autistic children, we can draw the conclusion that autistic children need large movements.
The role of gross motor training
(1) Promote brain development
Gross motor ability is closely related to children's growth and development. For example, a normal child should start to roll over at 3 months, sit at 6 months, crawl at 8 months, stand at 10 months, walk at one year old, walk freely at one and a half years old, and run at two years old. Just imagine, a child who cannot walk at the age of two or three must have a brain nerve problem. This shows that the development of children's motor ability is under the control of brain nerves and muscles, and motor ability is an important indicator of their growth and development level.The development of children's movements involves various parts of the body such as muscles, bones, tendons, etc. In these parts, many sensory nerve cells and nerve conduction devices are distributed. Through movement activities, the human brain obtains a lot of information about various parts of the body. , obtain information about the balance between the body and the external environment, coordinate movements, and respond correctly to the outside world. In this sense, children's intellectual development can be promoted through sports training.
For example: Practicing the movement of walking in a straight line with both feet not only exercises the vision, but also exercises the sense of correct step-by-step and balanced posture of the feet. There is also crawling and pattern training, known as brain surgery without a craniotomy. When discussing the theory of children's cognitive development, the famous psychologist Piaget believed that in the process of children's development, action is the source of all knowledge. Fully emphasizes the importance of movement development to children's intellectual development. In practice, we have also seen that some autistic children have improved their symptoms and improved their abilities to a certain extent after undergoing exercise training. It can be inferred that brain function has improved. Therefore, the training of gross motor coordination is an effective way to promote children's brain development and help intellectual development.
(2) Promote healthy physical growth
A healthy body is the material basis for intellectual development and a necessary condition for adapting to the environment. Extensive exercise promotes blood circulation, energy consumption, improves the functions of various organs of the body, and promotes growth and development. Some autistic children have poor physical development. For example, some are shorter than children of the same age, some are thin and weak, and some are too obese. Only by improving their physical fitness can they develop better.
(3) Promote the development of language and communication skills
Some autistic children have poor language communication skills, or even have no language, or can only make some simple sounds. It is not possible to carry out single language training (language training based on language) for such children. Because the formation and development of language itself is a relatively complex process, including the development of language nerves in the brain and language organs, the use of breathing and breath, the development of cognitive abilities, the influence of the language environment, etc. Therefore, the causes of language development disorders in autistic children are also multifaceted, and exercise training can promote their language development. In particular, doing a lot of jumping exercises will improve the smoothness of the breath. Jumping and speaking at the same time can improve the function of the vocal cords and enhance the power of pronunciation. In short, in sports training, talking while doing allows them to better feel the language. At the same time, it promotes the development of language center through exercise. In addition, during sports, teachers and students interact, and peers interact, so that children learn to listen to instructions and feel the fun of communication, and gradually learn to communicate.
(4) Promote the development of attention
Attention problems are common problems in the development of autistic children. The use of large movement training can help them improve their attention. The exercise process itself requires attention, such as: shooting the ball, throwing and catching the ball, kicking the ball, sliding on the slide, walking on the balance beam, etc. In particular, walking on the balance beam is very helpful for training concentration. In addition, children can easily attract attention when they are interested and interested in moving objects. After a period of training in this way, you will find that the child's attention has improved to a certain extent.
(5) Promote the development of balance and spatial perception
Balance ability is a basic ability that children must have in their development. Spatial perception ability has a significant role in promoting the development of thinking. Therefore, the improvement of balance ability has a significant effect on children's reception, conduction and integration of various sensory information. Most autistic children have a poor sense of balance. Doing somersaults, rolling, skateboarding, climbing, walking on a balance beam, spinning, and coordination activities of the left and right hands and feet (playing football, running, going up and down stairs, etc.) can effectively improve the body's balance ability and Spatial perception ability.
(6) Stabilize emotions and change behaviors
People's behavior is often affected by emotions, especially children with autism have poor ability to control their behavior. Their emotions fluctuate greatly and they cannot express them. They often vent their emotions through crying, making trouble, etc. The behavior progresses to aggression, destruction, self-injury, etc. The method of punishing bad behavior has limited effect. Even if it is effective at the time, it will happen again soon, and it cannot fundamentally solve the problem. Doing exercise will be very effective. Obviously, this is because exercise can produce chemical changes in the human body and make people feel pleasure. For example: We adults all know that sometimes when we are in a bad mood, if we go out for some exercise, we will immediately feel better.
In sports, intensive training is carried out, and it is useless to lecture children on their bad behaviors. Instead, through continuous training, their bad behaviors will be changed unconsciously. Gross exercise training is the process of replacing bad behaviors with beneficial activities and is an effective method to change bad behaviors.
5 tips to teach you how to exercise your children's big movements
Many autistic children often have problems with big movements. In addition to letting their children undergo rehabilitation training in professional institutions, parents should also insist on exercising at home. Below we will share with you some daily exercises at home. I hope it can give parents some help with the exercise programs that can be carried out to help with physical activity.
01. Goose-stepping
Goose-stepping is a simple large movement activity. It can help train the development of many different abilities, including the use of leg muscles, the use of arm muscles, hand and foot coordination, balance ability, muscle control ability, and abdominal and back muscle control, etc. This action itself is relatively boring. Parents can combine some stories and set an example of the action to help their children learn the correct posture, and try not to force their children to perform it.
02. The bouncing action of the trampoline
can provide very important sensory information input for children, helping them reduce sensory overload and various levels of anxiety. It can also allow parents to temporarily forget that their children are different, because after playing on the trampoline, the number of repetitive physical behaviors of many autistic children, such as waving, turning in circles, etc., has significantly decreased. It can help the children calm down and regulate their own behavior.
03. Ball games
For many children, ball games are a very good sport. Receiving and serving can be used as a simple warm-up at the beginning, and the difficulty can be gradually upgraded later. In the early days, parents can learn with their children how to roll the ball back and forth, which can exercise their eye tracking skills and encourage children to form an action plan when chasing the ball.
Ball games can be played like this: kicking a ball, running with the ball, bouncing on the horn, etc. Later, after the child adapts to playing ball, parents can introduce their children’s familiar companions at the right time to play together, which will improve the child’s social skills. helpful!
04. Balance activities
Balance can be a very difficult skill for many children with autism, and many gross motor tasks involve requirements for a good level of balance.
can test it: let the child close his eyes and stand motionless to see how long it takes for him to lose balance. This way parents can determine if balancing activities are necessary for their child. Let the child simply walk in a straight line at first, and then gradually increase the difficulty.
05. Bicycles
Although bicycles are not specially designed for children with autism, most bicycles can still be used by these children. Both two-wheeled and three-wheeled bicycles can help children exercise leg muscles and develop a sense of balance. When children ride a bicycle, they not only have to pedal constantly but also pay attention to the direction of the bicycle, which is still very difficult for them. Therefore, the coordination of their limbs and sight, the synchronization of various muscles, etc. can all be exercised in the activity of cycling.
Through exercise training, it can well promote the development of the brain nervous system , thereby reducing or improving core symptoms, and at the same time promoting the development of other abilities, such as relaxation ability, balance ability, sense of speed, sense of direction, muscle strength, and sense of rhythm. , coordination ability, and change ability. During the training process, parents can reward their children appropriately, but remember not to use rewards as bribes, but to let the children feel the joy of activity training. At the same time, these activities can be adjusted according to the actual situation, and it is important to suit the child's stage ability.
