A floor-based movement approach to learning concerns, Mary Mountstephen

from International School Magazine - Summer 2017

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The early years in school are critical in providing firm foundations for learning, and it seems that increasing numbers of children now are causing concern in terms of learning readiness and classroom behaviour. Why do they have difficulty with focus, expressive and receptive language, fine motor skills and self-help skills? Can it all be ‘blamed’ on modern life styles, busy parents and overreliance on technology, or are there less obvious contributory factors? Regardless, there are implications for schools to consider in terms of interventions that are time- and costeffective, and measurable in terms of impact. Here I outline one programme that produces positive results in schools internationally, through practising early movement activities in a structured, systematic and sequential process, carried out on a daily basis as a whole class activity. This approach revisits the physical experiences that infants typically engage in on a daily basis and that may contribute to overall physical and cognitive development.

The Move to Learn programme maps its exercises to the hierarchical development of

A floor-based movement approach to learning concerns

Mary Mountstephen looks at programmes for physical and cognitive development

primitive reflex integration.

Why isn’t Alfie doing better?

Alfie (age 7) is struggling to concentrate in class activities, producing poorly organised and presented written work with an awkward pencil grip, and growing increasingly frustrated and emotional both at home and in class. His teacher has provided resources to help him produce neater writing and to help with reading, but progress remains slow. He presents as a child of at least average ability, whose performance is not in line with perceptions of his potential. He is well supported at home by busy working parents and has a younger sister who is performing to expectations. There are no obvious reasons for his difficulties. A regular optician has tested his eyesight and there are no concerns about his hearing. From a developmental perspective, it is possible that Alfie’s difficulties may be partly related to early experiences that have left him underprepared for the classroom. He may be a child whose early physical development was compromised by pregnancy, birth trauma and/or early movement experiences that are

contributing to immature fine motor skills and poor visual performance. Although his eyesight has been judged as no cause for concern, it is possible that his eyes are not working well together as a team and that tracking and convergence issues are present.

Archer and Siraj (2015) summarise the influence of movement on a child’s neurological system, learning and development, and explain how early movement experiences such as crawling, rolling and tummy time contribute significantly to learning readiness. These deceptively simple movement patterns contribute to the maturation of skills such as visual tracking, motor control, postural development, efficient coordination and visual processing. So if Alfie, for whatever reason, has gaps in these areas, his profile may remain immature and compromise his potential. These movement patterns can, however, be revisited for Alfie as part of a school intervention programme which may result in him becoming more able to meet expectations, being less frustrated and more emotionally resilient.

My interest is in researching how targeted physical programmes may contribute to improvements in classroom performance for children in the early years and primary years with learning differences/delays and early indicators of dyslexia and specific learning differences. Is it possible that a physical programme can exert measurable impact on classroom performance and on the extent to which some pupils can improve functioning in specific areas? Can some pupils acquire the skills to cope with more complex processes without the need for extra resources? Is it possible that daily sessions devoted to physical aspects of development can reap later rewards in terms of improving pupils’ cognitive motor development and help them learn to focus inwards on the quality and speed of their movement, and to become more aware of posture and balance and body awareness? Will this then transfer to improved classroom performance?

Signs that may indicate difficulties of this type are:

Difficulties with balance and the control of slow, precise gross motor skills

Poor pencil control and letter formation

Difficulty tracking text when reading

Difficulties sitting still/ attention

Academic underachievement

The Ten Gems for the Brain programme was developed by the Australian company Move to Learn over 30 years ago. It ‘begins at the beginning’, replicating the movements of an infant in the first year of life, and was developed by a specialist teacher and occupational therapist. It is intended to be a low cost, whole class approach that is integrated into the school’s daily routines.

The rationale for addressing identified weaknesses through a physical intervention

Reading and writing are executive functions that are dependent on developmentally mature sensory systems. Movement programmes apply ‘spiraling’ principles similar to classroom overlearning practices that are repetitive and build fluidity, awareness of tempo and rhythm. Physical interventions can therefore provide the means to build or rebuild the child’s perception of spatial awareness and timing that are necessary to access learning more effectively. They help the child to develop greater awareness of proprioception: the reception of information received from the body and positional feedback. The Move to Learn programme maps its exercises to the hierarchical development of primitive reflex integration. Each floor-based exercise addresses specific reflexes and builds a foundation for more effective functioning. Children from a very early age can engage in activities such as rolling, creeping and crawling to provide the brain with additional opportunities to revisit these fundamental learning processes that, for a number of reasons, may have been missed.

Practical implications

For children like Alfie, it is important that interventions are effective and that a programme is inclusive; that it not only benefits him, but also provides the teacher with a tool to identify other pupils whose full potential might not be developed due to developmental immaturities. Move to Learn was developed to address those with learning differences; however its use as a more general screening and intervention programme is, I believe, a potentially powerful tool that is not intended to replace more conventional approaches for learning differences; rather it acts as an additional resource in the teacher’s toolbox. Move to Learn provides one-day training courses for teachers, other professionals and parents, and currently has a presence in countries as diverse as UK, Singapore, Cyprus and Eire.