By Sue Heron – Training Co-ordinator Tatty Bumpkin and Paediatric Physiotherapist
The posture for this week is SPIDER.
This week Tatty Bumpkin finds herself back at Wobble Farm – what a relief – as there is so much tidying up to do after all the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
As she dusts her house with the help of her friends cat and horse, Tatty Bumpkin comes across a very sad mummy spider….
Find your local Tatty Bumpkin class at http://www.tattybumpkin.com/classes/find-class.html
The posture for this week is SPIDER.
This week Tatty Bumpkin finds herself back at Wobble Farm – what a relief – as there is so much tidying up to do after all the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
As she dusts her house with the help of her friends cat and horse, Tatty Bumpkin comes across a very sad mummy spider….
Find your local Tatty Bumpkin class at http://www.tattybumpkin.com/classes/find-class.html
Spider Pose – Children and Toddlers
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| creepy, crawly spiders! |
Description of Pose
Note to parents – It is always best to do spider pose with your child or toddler so they can copy you; this is especially true if your child is younger. Recent research demonstrates that doing activities and movements together helps the bonding process between parents/carers and their child.
Find a clear area of floor or carpet.Ideally take off your shoes, so you can tickle each other’s toes then move onto your hands and knees ready to crawl as creepy spiders. As you crawl around the room try saying the Tatty Bumpkin spider rhyme:
"Creepy crawly, creepy crawly little spider go,
Creepy crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes – tickle each other’s toes!
I can be a spider too and crawl close to the ground
Where’s that little spider gone?
He’s nowhere to be found"
Find a clear area of floor or carpet.Ideally take off your shoes, so you can tickle each other’s toes then move onto your hands and knees ready to crawl as creepy spiders. As you crawl around the room try saying the Tatty Bumpkin spider rhyme:
"Creepy crawly, creepy crawly little spider go,
Creepy crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes – tickle each other’s toes!
I can be a spider too and crawl close to the ground
Where’s that little spider gone?
He’s nowhere to be found"
Want to Make it Harder?
See whether you can crawl backwards or even sideways (older children).
Games to Play in Spider Pose with Your Child
Make a spider obstacle course - Scatter some cushions on the floor and see whether you can crawl over them without losing your balance too much. Then see if you can crawl round a table leg or a chair!
Blowing game with your own spider web and family - Draw a spider’s web on a big piece of paper and place it on the floor. Then put a spider toy in the middle of your web (or maybe make your own spider out of a baked potato and twigs). Scrunch up some little pieces of paper, or break up a scouring pad into little bits - these are your baby spiders. Lie on your tummy with your child and see if you can both blow the baby spiders back to their mummy (or daddy) in the web.
Toddlers will find it difficult to blow instead they might enjoy picking up the baby spiders and putting them in the web
N.B. Supervise this activity with younger children and toddlers as they are likely to put the paper/scourer bits in their mouths if left to their own devices!
Blowing game with your own spider web and family - Draw a spider’s web on a big piece of paper and place it on the floor. Then put a spider toy in the middle of your web (or maybe make your own spider out of a baked potato and twigs). Scrunch up some little pieces of paper, or break up a scouring pad into little bits - these are your baby spiders. Lie on your tummy with your child and see if you can both blow the baby spiders back to their mummy (or daddy) in the web.
Toddlers will find it difficult to blow instead they might enjoy picking up the baby spiders and putting them in the web
N.B. Supervise this activity with younger children and toddlers as they are likely to put the paper/scourer bits in their mouths if left to their own devices!
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| Blow those baby spiders home! |
Hiding spiders! – Toddlers will be more likely to crawl with you if you give them a canopy to crawl under. Drape a piece of spidery fabric, or dark material, over two chairs and encourage your toddler to crawl underneath it with you to hide!
Why Spider Pose is ‘Good for Me’ - Children and Toddlers
As you child crawls in spider pose they will have the opportunity to:
Strengthen and activate their core muscles. When your child crawls in SPIDER pose they increase the activity in their shoulder, back, tummy and hip muscles. Activity in these ‘core’ muscles will aid you child’s posture and balance in both sitting and standing
Activate their shoulder muscles. Activity in their shoulder muscles will help your child to refine their fine motor skills e.g. writing and dressing skills. If your child complains of hand ache when they hold a pencil, it maybe because they are overusing their hand muscles. Children can stress their hand muscles either by holding their pen too tightly or by not using their shoulder muscles enough to support their arm. In either case spider pose will be a great activity for them as crawling will strengthen their shoulder muscles and also gently stretch and relax their hand muscles
Refine their visual tracking skills especially looking up and then down. Your child has to do this ‘tracking’ action many times during their day, when they look up at a person, or at a whiteboard, and then down to their paper, so it is important the action is as smooth as possible.
Strengthen the connections between the right and left hand sides of their brain. These neural connections enable your child to: smoothly co-ordinate the right and left sides of their body and to retrieve, sort and sequence information. If these connections are not well established a child may have difficulties with knowing their left from right sides. Later on this may lead to a tendency to reverse numbers, letters and words i.e. b/d, on/no.
Develop their sense of rhythm and increase their levels of alertness for concentration. Crawling to Tatty Bumpkin spider rhyme or song will improve your child’s sense of rhythm. Spider pose is also quite ‘alerting’ and so can be an ideal ‘movement break’ i.e. if your child is finding it hard to maintain concentration on a desk activity, suggest they spider pose for 30 secs (time them) and then see if this helps with their concentration.
Strengthen and activate their core muscles. When your child crawls in SPIDER pose they increase the activity in their shoulder, back, tummy and hip muscles. Activity in these ‘core’ muscles will aid you child’s posture and balance in both sitting and standing
Activate their shoulder muscles. Activity in their shoulder muscles will help your child to refine their fine motor skills e.g. writing and dressing skills. If your child complains of hand ache when they hold a pencil, it maybe because they are overusing their hand muscles. Children can stress their hand muscles either by holding their pen too tightly or by not using their shoulder muscles enough to support their arm. In either case spider pose will be a great activity for them as crawling will strengthen their shoulder muscles and also gently stretch and relax their hand muscles
Refine their visual tracking skills especially looking up and then down. Your child has to do this ‘tracking’ action many times during their day, when they look up at a person, or at a whiteboard, and then down to their paper, so it is important the action is as smooth as possible.
Strengthen the connections between the right and left hand sides of their brain. These neural connections enable your child to: smoothly co-ordinate the right and left sides of their body and to retrieve, sort and sequence information. If these connections are not well established a child may have difficulties with knowing their left from right sides. Later on this may lead to a tendency to reverse numbers, letters and words i.e. b/d, on/no.
Develop their sense of rhythm and increase their levels of alertness for concentration. Crawling to Tatty Bumpkin spider rhyme or song will improve your child’s sense of rhythm. Spider pose is also quite ‘alerting’ and so can be an ideal ‘movement break’ i.e. if your child is finding it hard to maintain concentration on a desk activity, suggest they spider pose for 30 secs (time them) and then see if this helps with their concentration.
Spider Pose – Babies
Spider Pose for Younger Babies
Description of Pose
N.B. Remember, when you are doing the poses with your baby, never force the movements and keep looking at your baby to make sure they are comfortable.
This adaptation of spider pose is ideal if your baby is about 4 mos or younger and has yet to gain good control of their head and upper body in the sitting position.
This adaptation of spider pose is ideal if your baby is about 4 mos or younger and has yet to gain good control of their head and upper body in the sitting position.
- Settle your baby on their backs on a mat in front of you
- Make sure you gain good eye contact with your baby then crouch forward close to them
Do the actions to the Baby Bumpkin Spider rhyme/song with your baby – see below. Remember to make different facial expressions to your baby and give them lots of smiles!
As you do the rhyme with your baby encourage them to:
As you do the rhyme with your baby encourage them to:
- Keep their head in the middle, by keeping good eye contact with them
- Make purposeful and varied arm and leg movements. You can gently progress your baby’s’ movements by encouraging them to reach up with their hands, and kick out with their feet, further away from their bodies in different directions.
“Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly little spider go - Firmly but gently ‘tickle’ up both your baby’s arms - starting at their hands, moving up towards their shoulders and finishing on their upper body.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs – gently give their toes a tickle!
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly little spider go – Repeat from first line above i.e. Firmly but
gently ‘tickle’ up both your baby’s arms - starting at their hands, moving up towards their shoulders and finishing on their upper body.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Repeat from second line above i.e. Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs – gently give their toes a tickle!
I can be a spider too and crawl close to the ground – Point at yourself and nod your head at your baby. Then come forward right down close to your baby, resting on your forearms either side of their head/upper body.
Where’s that little spider gone? – Do a puzzled expression at your baby – maybe make a puzzled gesture taking your hands out to either side.
He’s nowhere to be found!”–Hide your face in your hands, then open them and say a gentle ‘boo’ to your baby.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs – gently give their toes a tickle!
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly little spider go – Repeat from first line above i.e. Firmly but
gently ‘tickle’ up both your baby’s arms - starting at their hands, moving up towards their shoulders and finishing on their upper body.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Repeat from second line above i.e. Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs – gently give their toes a tickle!
I can be a spider too and crawl close to the ground – Point at yourself and nod your head at your baby. Then come forward right down close to your baby, resting on your forearms either side of their head/upper body.
Where’s that little spider gone? – Do a puzzled expression at your baby – maybe make a puzzled gesture taking your hands out to either side.
He’s nowhere to be found!”–Hide your face in your hands, then open them and say a gentle ‘boo’ to your baby.
Spider Pose for Older Babies Who are not Crawling
Description of Pose
- To do spider pose in sitting your baby needs to have their hands free to wave around, hence they will need to support around their middle. If you do the pose with your baby on your lap then they can also move their legs.
- It is best to do this adaptation of spider pose with the help of a partner so they can sing/say the Baby Bumpkin spider rhyme (see below) to your baby, and do the actions with them, whilst you’re supporting your baby. If this is not possible try doing the pose sitting in front of a mirror with your baby in front so they can lean against you for support.
To help your baby to improve their balance in sitting and enhance their reaching skills guide your partner to:
- Gain good eye contact with your baby and generally keep still – initially your baby will be using vision a great deal to keep their balance, especially if they are younger. Therefore if they can look at something steadily ahead of them, this will help.
- Encourage your baby to move both their arms and legs in various directions for tickles! This will help your baby develop both their sitting balance and their reaching skills.
Whilst your partner is doing spider song and the tickling your baby, try to give your baby just enough support so that they feel happy. You can vary the level of support you give your baby by altering the position of your hands – to give your baby more support, position your hands higher up their body. If your baby is older they may need less support, if this is the case position your hands lower e.g.
- If your baby is not able to sit by themselves, but is becoming increasingly confident in sitting, they will need support around their lower body or hips
- If your baby is able to sit by themselves with their arms free you will still need to provide them with some support around their hips so they do not completely lose their balance when they move their body to the spider tickles.
Actions to Tatty Bumpkin Spider Pose Rhyme/Song
“Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly little spider go - Firmly but gently ‘tickle’ up both your baby’s arms - starting at their hands, moving up towards their shoulders and finishing on their upper body.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs – gently give their toes a tickle!
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly little spider go – Repeat from first line above i.e. Firmly but gently ‘tickle’ up both your baby’s arms, but this time encourage your baby to vary their reaching position i.e. prompt them to reach out a bit more towards you or to reach slightly upwards or downwards.
Creepy, crawly, creepy crawly tickling your toes! Repeat from second line above i.e. Continue tickling down your baby’s body and both their legs, but this time encourage your baby to vary their leg position i.e. prompt them to kick out a bit more towards you or to kick out to the side.
I can be a spider too and crawl close to the ground – Point at yourself and nod your head at your baby. Then come forward close to your baby and smile at them!
Where’s that little spider gone? – Do a puzzled expression at your baby and make a puzzled gesture with your hands out to either side.
He’s nowhere to be found!”–Hide your face in your hands, then open them and say a gentle ‘boo’ to your baby.
‘Why Spider Pose is Good for Your Baby’
As you do spider pose with your baby you will give them a chance to:
Strengthen and stretch out their arms and leg muscles. Encourage your baby to reach up towards you and out to each side as you tickle them. As your baby moves their arms and legs up against gravity and away from their body they will be strengthening their arm and leg muscles
Increase their body awareness. As you tickle your baby from their hands down their whole body to their feet your touch will be helping your baby become more aware of where their body starts and finishes and how each part of their body relates to each other. Research in child development has demonstrated the importance of babies building up an image of their body in their minds which they use as a reference to refine their movements.
Develop their postural control (balance and body position) body and reaching skills. Reaching skills and postural control have a positive effect on each other i.e. reaching games will improve posture, and improved postural control will refine reaching skills. Therefore when you do spider pose with your baby, encourage them to purposefully reach out with their arms and kick out with their feet towards you. Babies rely on vision a great deal to keep their head in the middle and hence their balance. So if your baby is younger, and they are doing spider pose in lying, encourage them to keep looking at you as this will help them to keep their head in the middle over their body (early balance skill). If your baby is older, and they are doing spider pose in sitting, encourage them to keep looking at your partner as this will greatly help with their sitting balance. If you are doing spider pose in sitting with your baby remember to vary the support you give them by moving your hand position so that they have the opportunity to refine their sitting balance
Increase their levels of alertness. Spider pose uses movement and touch to help your baby increase their levels of alertness. Hence try doing spider pose with your baby if they are a little drowsy after being still for a while, i.e. after being in a car seat or buggy, to help them become more active. Remember to keep looking at your baby to make sure that they are not too tired and do not do the pose for too long as this may over-excite them
Develop their communication skills. Spider pose offers you the chance to make many different faces and expressions at your baby – the peek-a-boo encourages your baby to learn to anticipate gestures and add meaning to them. Seeing, copying and responding to gestures is an important part of early communication.
Make it Multi-Sensory, Educational & Fun
In Tatty Bumpkin classes we use unique storylines to make the activities meaningful and to fire the imagination.
All our classes are multi-sensory comprising of:
All our classes are multi-sensory comprising of:
- Adapted yoga poses and activities which both stimulate and calm the body senses
- Dedicated songs and rhythms which are relevant to the stories
- Bespoke hand-woven props to look at and feel. Tatty Bumpkin has its own range of fairly traded animal props to back up the yoga poses and bring the stories to life. Our teachers are supported to use natural props in the classes which are great to feel as opposed to smooth plastic
We have carefully linked each Tatty Bumpkin to the new 2012 Early Years Foundation Stage framework. Importantly supporting children to learn ‘how to learn’ not just focusing on what on they learn.
So … The Adventure This Week ..
In this week’s adventure Tatty Bumpkin finds herself back home, on Wobble Farm, and she quickly sets about cleaning and dusting her house with her animal friends.
On finding a gloomy mummy spider Tatty Bumpkin asks her why she is so sad?
Mummy spider tells Tatty Bumpkin that she is sad because her baby spiders have gone off to play and she does not know where they are!
Tatty Bumpkin has a think and decides that mummy spider should spin her web in a very obvious place and put a spider treat in the middle. This will surely entice those pesky baby spiders to come home. But where should the spider build her nest? Tatty Bumpkin and mummy spider need some ideas…
This story will give your child an opportunity to:
On finding a gloomy mummy spider Tatty Bumpkin asks her why she is so sad?
Mummy spider tells Tatty Bumpkin that she is sad because her baby spiders have gone off to play and she does not know where they are!
Tatty Bumpkin has a think and decides that mummy spider should spin her web in a very obvious place and put a spider treat in the middle. This will surely entice those pesky baby spiders to come home. But where should the spider build her nest? Tatty Bumpkin and mummy spider need some ideas…
This story will give your child an opportunity to:
1. Develop their core stability and awareness of their left and right hand sides whilst doing spider, cat and horse poses
2. Increase their sequencing skills as they pretend to spin spider webs
3. Use gestures or words to express their thoughts i.e. Feeling
- ‘Happy’ with Tatty Bumpkin when her friends offer to help her with the cleaning
- ‘Gloomy’ with mummy spider
- ‘Mischievous’ with the baby spiders
- Develop their sense of rhythm as they crawl in different directions to the Tatty Bumpkin Spider song
- Problem solve with mummy spider and Tatty Bumpkin and come up with their own ideas on where mummy spider could spin her web
- Develop their fine motor skills as they play with the baby spider props
- Practise their blowing skills as they blow the baby spiders home
- Have fun with their friends – tidying Tatty Bumpkin’s house after Christmas, joining hands to make a giant spider’s web and blowing together to help the baby spiders home!
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| Make a huge spider's web! |
Find your local Tatty Bumpkin class at http://www.tattybumpkin.com/classes/find-class.html
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