Motor Skills lay foundations for Sport
Dr Jackie Goodway explains how the skills developed through the Mini Movers app are foundational for all sports and physical activities.
For example, if children cannot successfully catch a ball in their hands, they will not be able to join in with lots of different activities with siblings, at school, or during extracurricular activities.
Mini Movers develops Locomotor Skills
Locomotor skills are a type of fundamental movement skill (FMS). It They cover all kinds of movement from one space to another, like crawling, jumping, skipping and hopping. These are critical skills which are practiced in the Mini Movers app.
Mini Movers develops Object Control Skills
Here Professor Jackie explains how object control skills like catching a ball or using a bat are slower to develop and require lots of practice.
Sports and activities require good hand-eye or foot-eye coordination, and include tennis, rugby, golf, archery, netball, volleyball and many more! Fun Mini Movers games help children improve their coordination so they can see and meet objects with their hands, feet, or rackets.
Motivate with the right level of challenge
To keep your child engaged in activities, they need to be at right the level of challenge. If games are too easy they will get bored, and if they are too hard they will be frustrated and give up. The Mini Movers activities are designed to be at the right level for your child so they will have lots of success – keeping them motivated and continually improving their skills!
Mini Farm
This game involves underarm throwing which is a complex action that develops coordination, balance and strength
Mighty Jungle
This game uses a racket to hit a balloon to help develop hand-eye coordination. This is a complex action that helps wire the brain
Mega Sealife
This ball chasing game develops tracking, coordination and agility. Chasing the ball and collecting is needed for fielding skills in sports.
Games across our worlds on the app connect the balance system (in our ear) to our muscles and joints so we can move with control.
Children need to learn to use their muscles together with their balance systems to run, jump and play games. Mini Movers games include moving with whole body actions to develop strength and control.
Parents are shown to encourage children to try jumping two feet to two feet and swing their arms. Explosive controlled jumping and landing is needed for lots of sports.
Some games involves crawling and travelling on hands and feet to improve upper body and core strength as well as coordinating both sides of the body
Some Mini Movers games work on agility where children will move quickly and change direction. Agility is important for many sports and physical activities which involve moving away from opponents.
Obstacle courses help your child develop strength, balance and coordination as they will travel and balance in different ways. This helps their body management and awareness of space needed for sport
Games across our worlds on the app develop eye-tracking which helps with catching as well as reading.
Underarm and overarm throwing games that you will play on the MiniMovers app develop coordination and builds connections in the brain.
Many games in the Mini Movers app develop balance and foot-eye coordination. Using the whole body together helps link body systems and build connections in the brain.
Some Mini Movers games involve using a racket which is a difficult skill. It helps your child develop hand-eye coordination and learn to control the force of their movements.
These skills are difficult travelling actions which require balance, coordination, and rhythm. They develop brain connections and will help language development.
Some of the Mini Movers games involve dancing and moving creatively to music, which helps develop rhythm which is essential for language and hand writing.
If you have a baby that is not yet walking..
Children need the right equipment and activities for their stage of development. Learn about equipment for supporting your child on our dedicated page