Ashford Active Learners Project
Active Movement
Facilitated by
Julia Haynes Health Visitor
and
Carol O’Malley L.C.C. Choosing Health
Develop
intellectually,
emotionally,
socially, and
spiritually as well
as physically
ACTIVE
MOVEMENT
helps your child to
Build the
foundations for
learning, moving and
communicating
Be healthy
and happy,
confident
and feel
loved
What’s changing for infants?
• Too much time in baby containers (car
seats, prams…)
• Busy lifestyles
• Lack of extended families
• Lack of space to play
• Emphasis on technology
Tummy time while awake!
• During tummy time important muscles are
strengthened for moving and exploring.
• Whenever possible babies should be out of
‘containers’ and off parents’ knee, and onto
their tummies.
• Floor play encourages movement, exploration
and rolling.
Why is crawling important
Visual skills
Independence and
exploration
Crawling helps develop
Spatial
awareness
Communication between
2 sides of brain
Strong muscles in the arms,
Shoulders and neck,
Legs and fingers
Pincer grip
Ashford Active Learners Project
• March 2009 – Active Movement Champion
Training – Multi-agency Children’s
Workforce.
• Pilot study commenced in Tenterden
funded through a bid to the Health and
Wellbeing partnership fund.
• Cascade training to Early Years staff –
Education and Health.
• Evaluation of pilot study - March 2010.
The workshops for Early Years Staff
All staff who attended the workshops…
• felt confident to talk to parents about the
evidence base for awake tummy time and
parents role as early childhood educators.
• had written information they could share
with parents.
• had increased awareness of the
importance of early childhood physical
activities.
Pilot study in Tenterden
• Sharing information with parents about
awake tummy time and its important links
with crawling.
• Data was analysed from 8-10 month child
development review.
• Study demonstrated an increase from 30%
to 100% of infants crawling between 8-10
months.
Our short term goals –
by March 2011
•
•
•
To analyse a representative sample of
10-12 month reviews from the 3,000
infants born annually in Ashford.
Develop an insert for the PCHR (red
book).
To extend the workshops to
1. Early Years Staff working in Ashford
2. Health Visiting teams through out Eastern
and Coastal Kent
We believe
• Active movement is a very worthwhile initiative, that is
simple to deliver within services that already exist.
• It will help our children to develop their fundamental
movement skills and to reach their full potential.
• It is especially important now when more children are
starting school with developmental delay.
• Active movement with babies could change this.
• Active Movement stimulates a child’s brain at a critical
stage of life. It is integral to their development.
Thank you!
For more information on the project
please contact:
julia.haynes@eastcoastkent.nhs.uk or
Carol.O'Malley@eastcoastkent.nhs.uk