Early Childhood Motor Development

Gross MotorFine Motor

Art in Development

Definitions

• Gross Motor - whole body movement, movement from large muscle groups

• Fine Motor – coordination of small muscle movements (i.e. fingers/eye coordination)

When can I…

Pedal and steer a tricycle?

When can I…

Pedal and steer a tricycle? 3-4 years

Gross Motor Skill

When can I…

Zip and Unzip large zippers?

When can I…

Zip and Unzip large zippers? 2-3 years

Fine Motor Skill

When can I…

Draw a person with six parts?

When can I…

Draw a person with six parts? 5-6 years

Fine Motor Skill

When can I…

Walk downstairs – alternating feet?

When can I…

Walk downstairs – alternating feet? 4-5 years

Gross Motor Skill

When can I…

Tie shoes?

When can I…

Tie shoes? 5-6 years

Fine Motor Skill

When can I…

Use scissors?

When can I…

Use scissors? 3-4 years

Fine Motor Skill

Early ChildhoodGross Motor Development

• Gravity shifts downward greatly improving balance.

• Children are steadier on their feet, freeing arms and torsos to experiment with new skills:– Throwing and Catching Balls– Pedaling Tricycles– Swinging on horizontal bars

Early ChildhoodGross Motor Development

• Then, upper and lower body skills combine into more refined actions– Pedal and steer a tricycle

Early ChildhoodGross Motor Development

• Age 2 – Children extend arms rigidly, ball bounces off body.

• Age 3 – Children flex elbows in preparation for catching, trap ball against chest.

• Age 5-6 – Children involve whole body, catch ball with just hands and fingers

Changes in Catching

Early Childhood Fine Motor Development

• Fine motor skills grow rapidly during preschool years.

• Growth most apparent in 2 areas:– Children’s care of

their own bodies– Drawing/Painting

Fine Motor DevelopmentSelf-Help Skills

• Young children gradually become self-sufficient at dressing and feeding:– Age 2-3 – put on and take off simple items of

clothing, use spoon effectively– Age 4-5 – dress and undress without

supervision, adept with fork– Age 5-6 – use knife to cut soft foods

Fine Motor DevelopmentSelf-Help Skills

• Age 6 – Tying Shoes– Shows the connection between cognitive and

motor development– Requires long attention span– Memory for intricate series of hand movements

and dexterity to perform them

Fine Motor DevelopmentDrawing

• Other factors combine with fine motor control in the development of children’s artistic abilities:– Realization that pictures

can serve as symbols– Improved planning and

spatial understanding– Emphasis that the child’s

culture places on artistic expression

Fine Motor DevelopmentDrawing

Drawing typically progresses in the following sequence:

1.Scribbles2.First Representational Forms3.More Realistic Drawings

La Casa Fantastica, Marker, Alice F.,Age 5, Fano, Italy

Fine Motor DevelopmentScribbling

• Western children begin to draw during 2nd year.

• First, intended representation is contained in gestures rather than resulting marks.

• Children experimenting with holding pencil (left or right-handed)

Choo Choo, Microsoft Paint, Alex H., Age 2, Oklahoma, USA

Fine Motor DevelopmentFirst Representational Forms

• Age 3 – scribbles start to become pictures

• Often, children notice they made a recognizable shape after making a mark through gesture and label it.

• Children begin to use lines to represent boundaries of objects enabling 3-4 year olds to draw the first pictures of a person.

Yorin Dancing with Mama, Marker,Yorin B, Age 4, The Netherlands

Fine Motor DevelopmentMore Realistic Drawings

• As cognitive & fine motor skills begin to improve, children start to desire greater realism.

• More complex drawings• Start to represent depth, art contains

perceptual distortions

Dancing Mice, Marker & Crayon,Megan B., Age 7, Canada

DrawingCultural Variations

• In cultures with rich artistic traditions, children create elaborate drawings reflecting cultural conventions.

• In cultures with little interest in art, even older children/adolescents produce simple forms.

DrawingJimi Valley of Papua New Guinea

Fine Motor DevelopmentPrinting

• First, preschoolers don’t distinguish between drawing and writing

• Age 4 – writing shows features of print– Separate forms aligned on a

page– Often includes picture-like

devices• Age 4-6 – children realize

writing stands for language

Motor DevelopmentIndividual Differences

• Wide individual differences exist in the ages when children reach motor milestones

• Sex differences in motor skills evident in early childhood

• Social pressures for boys to be physically active and for girls to play quietly exaggerate small genetically based sex differences

Enhancing Children’sMotor Development

• Formal lessons during preschool years have little impact on motor development

• Children master motor skills naturally as part of everyday play

• Physical environment of informal play affects mastery of motor skills

• Supported by daily routines• Social climate – focus on “fun”

rather than winning or correct technique

Art in Development

Lion Dance, Oil Pastel, Lisa C., Age 10, Sabah, Malaysia

Why Art?

• Human Right?– UN International Convention– Jewish Ghetto of Treason,

Czechoslovakia – I Have Not Seen a Butterfly Around Here

• Means of enhancing everyday life

• Means of expression• Means of understanding

culture

Why Not Art?

• Realm of the “gifted”• Emotional rather than serious thought– Less obvious utility

• Expensive

La Maison de Reve, Watercolor, Leonie V.,Age 5, Boulogne, France

Art & Children’s Programs• Employed parents have less

time for traditional craft and cooking activities

• Early childhood educators have greater responsibility to provide range of sensory experiences

• Exploration of different media

• Developmentally appropriate practice

Contemporary ModelsReggio Emilia

• 1940s – Loris Malaguzzi – journalist/psychologist decided to rebuild war-ravaged school system in town close to Bologna, Italy

Municipal Infant-Toddler Centers and Preschools - Reggio Emilia, Italy

Contemporary ModelsReggio Emilia

• Philosophy based on belief that art is a natural form of symbolic expression, central to the education process, and integral to the rest of the curriculum

• Problem-solving approach to learning

• Develop projects over a long period of time– Allows for expansion of ideas,

achievement of ambitious goals

Contemporary ModelsReggio Emilia

• Teachers:– Act as facilitators of

children’s development

– Challenge preconceived ideas, provoke new competencies

– Act as collaborators with students by alternating leadership

Reggio Emilia precepts at work at Madison AvenuePresbyterian Church Day School

Contemporary ModelsMia Mia Program

• Macquarie University, Australia• Demonstrates how successful art program can

be mounted at campus child-care center• Day care for children 6 months – 5 years• Unique collaboration between center’s staff

and Ursula Kolbe, artist-in-residence• Parallel philosophy of Reggio Emilia though

developed independently

Communicating About Art• Development of verbal language

to talk about art– Color, texture, line, patterns, mass,

space, shape• Increase observation skills –

children become more perceptive• Increasing awareness of visual

environment– “stretch” visual understanding of

cultural symbols through authentic visual forms Navajo Weaving

Sustaining Creativity

• Studies* show creativity rapidly diminishes over time– Age 3-5 – 98% think divergently– Age 8-10 – 32%– Age 13-15 – 10%– Age 25 – 2%

• Where elementary age children continue to experience artistic guidance/stimulation, art production continues to flourish

*Scottish Book Trust Conference, Glasgow, March 2005

Horace Pippin’s Interior

Art in DevelopmentSummary of Key Skills

• Increase problem-solving and critical thinking skills

• Increase visual perception• Increase verbal skills through discussing art• Appreciation of cultural diversity• Collaboration• Sustain creativity throughout life

Resources

• Global Children’s Art Gallery - http://www.naturalchild.org/gallery/

• NGA Classroom for Teachers & Students - http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/index.mhtm