Exercises to develop coordination. Movement therapy

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Before we talk about what exercises will be useful for developing coordination in preschool children, let's say a few words about the concept itself.

So, coordination is the orderly work of the muscles of the body in connection with the need to perform a certain task. Coordination is almost always movement. This concept also includes the ability to maintain balance in uncomfortable positions, feel the rhythm, and navigate in space.

Children simply need to work on developing coordination, if only because the coordinated functioning of muscles will be the key to normal growth and harmonious development.

The development of coordination in children involves a number of coordinated processes that can create conditions for the effective functioning of the central nervous system. Adults - parents and teachers involved in education and training - are responsible for the development of coordination in children.

What do you need to know when planning training to develop coordination?

Exercises designed to improve their motor activity can train children’s coordination. It is necessary that the exercises be performed at different speeds, be varied and interesting. It is also important that exercises for developing coordination are:

• ordered;
• organized;
• providing the necessary load;
• limited in execution time.

Properly selected exercises that accelerate the development of coordination will have a positive effect on the development of dexterity in children.

Assessment of the level of training

Before you start selecting exercises that stimulate the development of coordination in children, it is useful to determine their level of preparation. Simple tests that can be done at home will help you do this:

If a child has poor coordination of movements, he is unlikely to be able to cope with even the simplest tasks.

Coordination problems: consequences

If you ignore the development of coordination abilities in children, they may subsequently face frequent injuries and illnesses and have problems with
control over the performance of a specific task related to movement, they will not be able to remember and repeat movements, especially those related to fine motor skills of the hands.

Children who suffer from coordination disorders may have difficulty performing completely mundane activities.

For example, children may not be able to tie shoelaces or fasten buttons or zippers on clothes. Many of them will never be able to ride a bicycle or scooter without support or take part in outdoor games.

In short, motor tasks that are quite simple
healthy children cope can become too much for children with coordination problems, imposing some restrictions on their life in the social world.

Children with impaired coordination of movements are forced to spend several times more time performing a certain task than healthy children, and this despite the fact that they develop completely normally both physiologically and intellectually. Moreover, as a rule, such children have above average intelligence, but they cannot use it to its fullest due to insufficiently developed coordination necessary for the implementation of motor, sensory and cognitive skills.

Is it possible to improve motor coordination in children?

In many ways, the level of development of coordination abilities will depend on motor memory, that is, on the ability of the central nervous system to remember the movements made and reproduce them when necessary. A high level of development of coordination abilities can be achieved through:

• using special techniques based on exercises of the “from simple to complex” type;
• grouping previously mastered movements into sets of exercises and then performing them with changes in rhythm, speed, duration and amplitude;
• use of special sports facilities and equipment.

Correctly selected exercises will help improve children's coordination and instill in them confidence in their own abilities.

How to work with children aged 2-3 years?

With younger preschoolers, you need to work on doing exercises that can improve balance. Only after kids can control their balance will they be able to perform more complex tasks.
exercises, including in the form of games, to which children pay great attention during walks.

Exercises for training coordination in children aged 2-3 years must be simple. This could be walking with obstacles, bending or squatting. Over time, when the tasks become more complicated, children can be offered the help of an adult who can support them, encourage them and give recommendations on how to perform the exercises.

How to work with children 3-4 years old?

At 3-4 years old, children can be asked to walk on a log or on a bench, taking turns touching the ground with one foot. A child can jump from a height only if he
will be able to do this gently, bending his knees.

At this age, the baby can already have access to the wall bars and rope ladder. Walking along special paths with obstacles has a great effect on coordination.

Adults should constantly support the baby and praise him for successfully completed exercises. You can continue to work on coordination both at home and outside, for example, by drawing obstacles for your child with chalk on the asphalt.

How to work with children 5 years old?

Middle preschoolers are already able to perform more complex exercises to develop coordination. At this age, the baby can be asked to walk along a log like a simple step,
as well as side-by-side, performing certain movements with your hands or holding the ball in them.

Adults should monitor the baby’s posture during exercises, helping him orient himself in space. It is better to start classes with simple exercises, gradually complicating them by adding weights.

How to work with older preschoolers?

Older preschoolers, children 6-7 years old, already have fairly developed coordination abilities, so exercises for them should be selected that can improve the clarity of movements while maintaining body stability during complex maneuvers (jumps, squats, etc.)

Most exercises for children at this age are dynamic, performed using a beam or bench. The position of children's hands can be changed by inviting them to try options with their hands on the sides, on the belt or behind the head. All exercises should be varied and not too long, arousing children’s interest and desire to practice.

Exercises for coordination of movements are useful for everyone, but, first of all, for athletes, since they develop agility and speed, and help to win competitions. For those who are sure that agility is an innate quality, I would like to say that special exercises have been developed that help improve and develop this ability.

What does the concept of “dexterity” mean, which comes from “catch” - “catching”? For the ancestors, the production of a sufficient amount of food depended on this skill, i.e. hunting and fishing. The concept of “dexterity” means a complex of qualities: speed of reaction, flexibility, mobility, accuracy of movements, coordination. If they are normally developed, the body develops a tone that does not allow it to be taken by surprise in unexpected situations: a tourist, jumping over a bush near an unnoticed stream, will be able to react correctly in flight because he has developed coordination of movements.

Before starting the training, it is necessary to evaluate the current level of coordination using simple tests, for which you will need to stand on one leg and raise the bent second leg higher. After standing in this position for a minute, repeat the training for the other leg. This will help you understand on which leg it is easier to perform it, how easy it is to do it? Repeat the proposed test with your eyes closed, holding for 30 seconds on each leg. If the test is difficult to complete, then exercises to develop coordination are needed. It has been proven that over the course of a lifetime it is better to develop more than one arm and leg.

How to do exercises for coordination of movements correctly

The goal of the complex is to learn to move the body independently of visual sensations and the brain:

• Standing on one leg (arms to the sides) maintain balance for a minute. Change legs and repeat the workout. During execution, turn your head alternately to the sides, without fixing your gaze. As your skill grows, perform the training with your eyes closed.
• Stand on one leg against a door or wall. Throw the ball, and when it bounces off the wall, try to catch the projectile without looking at it. Do the same, changing the leg.
• From the “standing on one leg” position, jump, changing legs in flight to land on the other. During the next jump, return to the starting position. Perform the steps for several minutes.
• In transport, maintain balance exclusively with the help of your legs, i.e. without holding the handrail.
• "Juggling". Take a ball in each hand, throw them up and catch them alternately - first with your left hand, then with your right hand: with which hand you throw the projectile, you catch it with the same hand.
• You can complicate the previous actions like this: the projectile is thrown with the right hand, caught with the left. Then, vice versa.
• Now the balls are thrown at the same time, but, as in the previous training, the left hand catches the ball of the “right” hand, and the right hand catches the projectile thrown with the left hand.

Training performed in unusual conditions and from an unusual position will help improve your reaction. The main thing is to learn how to accurately and accurately reproduce new movements while maintaining balance.

First you need to learn simple combinations. The more complex and faster the movements, the more intense the training, which means that in addition to the muscles, the nervous system receives the load. Team games help develop dexterity: football, hockey, basketball, volleyball. To develop your abilities, you cannot neglect cross-country running, during which you have to jump over and go around unexpected obstacles. Walking on a log, curb, or rail will also help develop coordination. To make these exercises more difficult, during the exercise you can roll a ball around your body and throw it from hand to hand.

First exercise.

• Rotate your hands in opposite directions: right hand clockwise, left hand counterclockwise.
• Change direction after 15 minutes and repeat the exercise.

Second exercise.

• Touch the crown of the head with the palm of one hand placed at a distance of 10 centimeters from the head.
• With the other hand, simultaneously describe circles parallel to the plane of the abdomen.

Third exercise.

• Stretch your arm forward, rotate it clockwise, and rotate your hand counterclockwise.
• Movements should be smooth, without jerking.
• Having done them 10-15 times, change hands and repeat everything for the other.

Fourth exercise.

• Extend both arms forward.
• Try to depict a geometric figure with one, and perform arbitrary movements with the other.
• Change hands after 15 minutes and repeat the training.

What exercises help develop agility and speed?

Walking on your hands and pushing the ball in front of you helps develop coordination, strength of the back and arms. Accuracy, eye and reaction are improved by throwing the ball that bounced off the wall between partners: one player throws the ball, the second catches it as it bounces off the wall and returns it back in the same way.

Jumping in place while dribbling the ball is another exercise for coordination, agility and speed. To make it more difficult, you can turn your body 90 degrees while jumping on one side, then use two balls on the other side. Leg strength and coordination are developed by jumping on two and one leg (sideways, backwards or straight) over a gymnastic bench. It is more difficult to perform training while dribbling the ball while jumping.

Another productive exercise: toss the ball, do a somersault, and catch it. To make it more difficult, do a somersault quickly, stand up, jump and catch the ball while jumping.

Exercises for coordination of movements and muscle function stimulate a person’s creativity, contribute to the enrichment of psychomuscular experience, and are an effective means of organizing leisure time for cadets.

1. From a squat, wide lunge, sitting, lying position – acceleration by 2-3 m, followed by: a) catching; b) hitting rolling balls and other objects sent at a fast pace.

2. Squat jumps: a) moving forward; b) left-right; c) with rotations around its axis.

3. Jumping from the knees: a) on both legs; b) on one leg; c) point-blank lying behind.

4. Running jumps with a push of one or two legs, reaching for a high-hanging object (ball): a) with the head; b) foot; c) by hand.

5. While jumping, turn 360°.

6. Jump your legs forward and sideways while simultaneously reaching your toes with your hands.

7. From a squat position, lifting your hands off the floor, throw yourself forward into a lying position, while simultaneously putting one leg forward for safety.

8. Lying on your stomach, hands behind your back “locked” - stand up without using your hands.

9. Lying emphasis - moving to the right (left) in a circle (toes in place).

10. While lying down - lifting onto your fingers and lowering onto your entire palm.

11. Lying emphasis - simultaneously push off the floor with your hands and clap your hands. The same thing, while lying in position from behind - clap in front of the chest.

12. Lying on your back, spread your arms to the sides with your palms down and raise your legs up without bending your knees: a) raising straight legs up at an angle of 90º; b) put your legs straight to the right, then to the left.

13. Lying on your back, hands behind your head, with your feet resting on a wall bars, bench, etc. - bend backwards as much as possible with body turns left and right.

14. From a lying position on your back, straight legs together, hands behind your head: a) raise your legs - clap your hands under your knees; b) the same from a sitting position, arms to the sides. Do not bend your knees.

15. Lying on your back, arms bent behind your head - lifting your torso up.

16. Lying on your back, legs bent at the knees, the ball in your hands behind your head on the floor - perform a “bridge” with support on the ball.

17. In the shoulder blade stand, one leg is straightened upward, the other is bent - alternate flexion and extension of the legs upward.

18. In a standing position, bent over - moving on straight arms to a lying position and back: a) alternating movements; b) simultaneous pushes of the hands; c) the same, but with a throw go to point-blank range.

19. While resting on your knees, bend and straighten your arms. Bend your arms while simultaneously extending your legs.

20. Standing - raise your right leg, extend your left arm and twist them simultaneously in opposite directions.

21. Join your hands behind your back, one hand on top over your shoulder .

22. Standing - fall into a lying position.

23. Standing or sitting, join your hands and stretch your leg through them.

24. While sitting, clasp one leg and touch your forehead to your ankle.

25. While kneeling, alternately sit left and right.

26. In a sitting position with bent legs, knees wide apart, with springy movements, pull the soles of your feet towards you.

27. While sitting, lean on your hands from behind: a) raise your legs; b) leaning on one hand, maintain balance.

28. Deep lunge with your right hand, with your hands resting on the floor in front of you - alternately moving your legs back and forth, trying not to jump.

29. Stand on one, the other forward - squat. Then we change the leg.

30. In a lying position - flexion and extension of the arms: a) on the fists; b) fingers; c) with arms spread wide apart; d) with cotton.

31. Lying on your fists, swing your straight legs back and up, without bending them at the knees.

32. The same from a crouching position. With a sharp swinging movement, straighten your legs back as high as possible.

33. Gymnastic “bridge”: a) bend our arms and move our torso back and forth; b) the same in the wrestling bridge.

34. From a stance with legs apart - lean forward point-blank with your head on the floor, first securing yourself with your hands: a) hands locked behind your back; b) movements of the body back and forth and left and right.

35. Standing in a free position: a) connect your fingers behind your back; b) spread your arms to the sides, c) connect your palms with your fingers up behind your back at the level of your shoulder blades.

36. The ball is sandwiched between the feet - swing the legs and throw the ball: a) forward; b) back; c) the same with catching the ball with your hands.

37. Toss the ball up: a) crouching, slam your palms on the floor; b) emphasis sitting at the back; c) lying down - stand up and catch the ball; d) the same, take a step forward and catch the ball behind your back near your waist; e) the same, but after throwing the ball, turn 360° and catch the ball.

38. Passing the ball against a wall while performing: a) squats; b) turns; c) jumping; d) clapping - followed by catching the ball.

39. Stand with legs apart, stick behind your back under your elbows: a) sit down, straightening your legs at the knees, without touching the floor with your hands and stick; b) stand up without touching the floor with your hands and stick.

40. Stand with your legs apart, stick in the left, grab the middle from above - release and catch the stick on the fly.

41. Stick below: a) without letting go of the stick - stepping over it with your left, right; b) jumping over a stick.

42. Tossing small objects with your toes.

43. Sit your legs together, arms forward - bend forward, touching your hands to the floor near your feet.

44. In a crouching position from behind: a) alternately extending the legs forward and returning back to the crouching position; b) simultaneous extension of the legs; c) the same in a close position, crouching in front.

45. In the main stance with a turn in a circle, sit down with your legs crossed, stand up in a reverse movement and sit down with a turn in the other direction.

46. ​​In a wide stance, alternately touch the knee to the floor. Do not move your feet and do not turn your torso.

47. In a stand with legs apart, alternate turns of the body with fingers touching opposite heels.

48. Sitting legs apart, without lifting your feet from the floor, alternate turns in a circle while lying on bent arms.

You can come up with a lot of exercises of this kind if you call on your imagination to help. For example, try to move a wall by resting your hands on it; bend or break a metal rod or thick stick, holding the ends with your hands; crush any hard object by squeezing it with your palms, etc.

Muscle spasticity is defined as a condition of increased muscle tone with increased tendon reflexes, which often occurs due to excessively rapid stretching or movement of muscles. Correctly performed exercises can alleviate these conditions.

1. Avoid positions that increase spasticity.
2. Do gymnastics that allow you to stretch your muscles as much as possible, but slowly.
3. Keep in mind that moving a muscle to a new position may cause increased spasticity. If this happens, allow your muscles to relax for a few minutes.
4. During gymnastics, try to maintain a vertical position of your head, without tilting it to one side or the other.
5. If you are taking medications that reduce spasticity, do exercises no earlier than an hour after taking the medication.
6. The dosage of anti-spasticity medications should be adjusted regularly depending on the condition of your muscles.
7. The sudden appearance of spasticity can be triggered by various diseases, inflammation of the skin, and even uncomfortable shoes or clothing.

Typically, patients with multiple sclerosis experience spasticity of the extensor or flexor muscles. In case of spasticity of the flexor muscles, the knees are bent and pressed towards each other. Sometimes the hips and knees are separated.

Spasticity of the extensor muscles is less common. In this case, the hips and knees are straightened, the legs are very close to each other or crossed.

Know that if you decide to refrain from actively performing exercises and prefer to do passive gymnastics, you must choose those exercises that are suitable for you for the type of spasticity that you suffer from. If you are susceptible to extensor spasticity but prefer active exercise, avoid exercises that require straightening your legs and knees.
It is important to remember that the recommended body positions in this section are designed to reduce spasticity. If this does not help you, consult your doctor or physical therapist.

• Prone prone position.

This position is good for patients suffering from spasticity of the muscles that flex the hips and knees. Remember that you don't

You need to wait a few minutes for the muscles to relax in this new position.

• Prone side lying position.

This position is suitable for those whose knees tend to roll inwards. Try placing a small pillow or towel between them. Remember that it takes some time for the muscles to adapt to the new position and relax.

• Side lying position.

This position will help patients who simultaneously experience spasticity of the extensor muscles of the hips and lower legs. Lying on your side, bend the leg that is on top at the knee, and straighten the knee of the other leg. You can also place a pillow or towel between your legs.

• Lying position on your back.

If you have spasticity when lying on your back and your hips and knees are pushed outward (frog pose), place a pillow or large towel under your hip (all the way to the knee) and roll it up so that your hips and knees are aligned. Your toes should be pointing upward.