Lego and sand sensory play!

This week, we are doing all things Lego!! Our T.A.S.K. kids have been SO excited for this theme. It gives us a chance to build some of the coolest creations! 

A couple weeks ago, we got a bin of kinetic sand. It's special sand that can be molded and all the kids really love it. Today, we wondered how hard it would be to build something out of Legos AND kinetic sand. It was pretty cool!

Sensory play is important for a few reasons. 

1. Research shows that sensory play builds nerve connections in the brain’s pathways, which lead to the child’s ability to complete more complex learning tasks.
2. Sensory play supports language development, cognitive growth, fine and gross motor skills, problem solving skills, and social interaction.
3. This type of play aids in developing and enhancing memory
4. Sensory play is great for calming an anxious or frustrated child
5. This helps children learn sensory attributes (hot, cold, sticky, dry).

If you would like to learn more about why we think sensory play is so important, click here!

Getting Our Gross Motor on at Liberty Park!

RAIN RAIN GO AWAY! 

 It is too bad our Group B missed out on going to Liberty Park today, but group A sure did have a blast yesterday!  Although it was a very hot day, they still got a chance to get their wiggles out!  The TASK students love a playground and the more challenging the better!  This park had a zip line and all!

Gross motor skills are important to enable children to perform every day functions, such as walking, running, skipping, as well as playground skills (e.g. climbing) and sporting skills (e.g. catching, throwing and hitting a ball with a bat). These are crucial for everyday self care skills like dressing (where you need to be able to stand on one leg to put your leg into a pant leg without falling over).

Gross motor abilities also have an influence on other everyday functions. For example, a child's ability to maintain table top posture (upper body support) will affect their ability to participate in fine motor skills (e.g. writing, drawing and cutting) and sitting upright to attend to class instruction, which then impacts on their academic learning. Gross motor skills impact on your endurance to cope with a full day of school (siting upright at a desk, moving between classrooms, carrying your heavy school bag).

If you would like to find out more about why we value play, click here!