The Program
When an Occupational Therapist and a PE Teacher saw first-hand an increasing number of children entering school without the fundamental skills needed to optimise their learning development, they decided to do something about it.
They aimed to develop a perceptual, holistic and movement-based learning program to work on the fundamental motor skills that a child needs in the early years of their schooling.
The Move Learn Grow program assists in integrating left and right brain functions, actively works on integrating primitive reflexes, provides sensory integration techniques, develops coordination and motor planning, promotes visual skills, furthers language and social skills and enhances working memory, literacy, numeracy, and executive functioning.
The program begins with a standardised Motor Skill Collective Assessment to determine any gaps or challenges in motor development for each participant. This is followed by sessions that start with a fine motor skill and exploratory play, then set stations designed to work on skills that are essential to every child.
The Results
After working on the foundational levels of development in the Move Learn Grow program, assessment results have shown that a child can then reach a greater level of academic performance, motor-based achievement and confidence. The test for all new students assesses the following skills: Fine Motor Precision, Fine Motor Integration, Balance, Strength, Bi-Lateral Coordination, Manual Dexterity, Upper Limb Coordination and Speed. Recent students of the program gained significant improvement over 4-9 months. For example, a 6-year-old boy with an initial test of 24% age-related norms, reached 79% after 4 months with Move Learn Grow.
