Pedi Kinetics (2 - 7 years)
What is Pedi Kinetics?
Our Junior Kinetic Program is called ‘Pedi Kinetics’. This is a group-based perceptual-motor program with a preventing, improving and/or therapeutic nature and is
presented once a week by registered Kinderkinetici (qualified therapists and paediatric exercise scientists) at selected Pre-schools and Kindergartens around Pretoria
East. This fun program is designed for children between 2 and 7 years in order to develop a child’s motor skills and optimize a child’s perceptual-motor skills. It also
encourages creativity as well as proper brain development and aims to prevent educational implications, thus helping a child to reach his/her full potential.
How does Pedi Kinetics work?
Once a year a general motor assessment is done in order to determine whether a child is developing his/her skills to the full and, if not, to detect a problem or delay in
time so that proper intervention can take place. After the assessment, the parents receive a report explaining the findings. Together with the report, specific exercises can
also be provided upon request to stimulate and develop the child’s motor skills adequately at home.
If a serious problem is detected, an in-depth assessment is suggested where after remedial therapy can be provided by the Kinderkineticist on the school’s premises,
should it be required (Remedial Kinetics). The child can also be referred to another profession if the problem falls outside our expertise.
What does Pedi Kinetics address?
Our perceptual-motor program uses a variety of equipment such as parachutes, hoola-hoops and trampolines and focuses on the following aspects:
- locomotor skills such as crawling, running, hopping, skipping and jumping,
- balancing skills (both static and dynamic),
- spatial orientation skills,
- coordination skills (general coordination and specific coordination such as eye-hand & eye-foot coordination),
- manipulation skills or ball skills
- fitness skills (flexibility, agility, strength and muscle endurance),
- rhythm and timing,
- body awareness.
It also addresses the following underlying elements:
- eye-muscle control
- muscle tone
- posture
- motor planning
- vestibular functioning
- laterality
- midline crossing
- reflex integration
- visual-motor integration
Apart from addressing the above-mentioned basics necessary for future academic success, the program also includes music from time to time. This allows creative movement as well as the use of imagination and adds variety to the lessons – something the children love!
Why Pedi Kinetics
Proper motor and perceptual-motor development are main areas that need to be addressed by experts in their fields. Why, you may ask? Experts are trained to recognize
and address the unique needs of each child according to their individual development. Motor abilities are further one of the key factors for school readiness, while the
health of children has a strong relationship with physical activity patterns. Brain research also proved that movement increases the number of connections in the brain
and that it contributes to the eventual structure of the brain. Motor development is therefore regarded as the foundation of total development in children as it affects all
other facets of their development and impacts their total well-being.
It is further important to focus on motor and physical development as it:
- increases oxygen and blood supply to the brain and thus aids in concentration and learning ability
- improves sleep, mental health & mood
- reduces risk for diabetes, certain cancers & obesity
- increases general health & longevity
- improves strength, posture & muscle tone
A ‘window of opportunity’ also exists where the brain is more ‘open’ to certain types of stimulation than at any other time. If a child misses this opportunity for further brain
development, it could mean that the brain is denied the opportunity to develop neural networks to its full potential. The critical period for perceptual-motor development is
between 3 – 7 years of age and for gross motor development between 0 – 5 years of age. (For music, it is between 3 and 10 years of age!). Logically then, it is more vital
to provide proper motor stimulation for toddlers and kids during the above-mentioned time frames than any other stimulation.
