The Ready-Steady-Move programme uses a wide range of knowledge to facilitate movement and language learning in children. Definitions of the movement terminology below help you understand how our lessons promote better physical health and improved cognitive abilities in children. Uniquely, the Ready-Steady-Move programme also gives children the opportunity of learning English through movement and other target languages as well.

Body Awareness is developed as children learn what their bodies can do. Children explore shapes their bodies can make, balance on different parts of their bodies, and transfer weight from one part of the body to another part as they develop in body awareness.

Fine Motor Development involves small muscle movements of the body’s extremities. Most often,
fine motor skill development refers to the child’s developmentally appropriate use of small muscles of the hands and feet. Fine motor movements include grasping, reaching, holding, pushing, and buttoning. Fine motor skills require dexterity, precision, and the ability to manipulate.

Fundamental Movement refers to the use of different parts of the body for moving the body in
space. Fundamental movement skills involve such activities as walking, running, throwing, catching, and striking. Fundamental movement skills are the foundation of the complex motor
activities found in sports, dance, gymnastics, and recreational activities.

Gross Motor Development involves the entire body or large body parts. Most often, gross
motor skill development refers to the child’s developmentally appropriate use of large muscle groups. Gross motor movements include walking, running, rolling, skipping, bouncing, and
throwing. Gross motor skills require agility, balance, coordination, flexibility, speed, strength, and endurance.

Loco-motor Movements refer to the ability to be mobile. They include gross motor activities such as walking, running, skipping, jumping, leaping, hopping, sliding, and galloping—but not activities such as bouncing or throwing.

Manipulative Movements include gross motor activities such as bouncing, catching, kicking,
and striking, and fine motor activities such as cutting, holding, grasping, and lacing.

Movement or Movements describe ways of moving the body in space. Motor abilities involve three basic types of movement: loco-motor, non-loco-motor, and manipulative.

Movement Education is noncompetitive physical education. It is designed to build children’s confidence and movement motivation. While performing developmentally appropriate fundamental movements and exploring movement elements (force, time, patterns, etc.), children develop skills that will be used in sports, dance, etc.

Non Loco-motor Movements (sometimes called axial movements) include swinging and swaying, pushing and pulling, bending and stretching, and twisting and turning.

Perceptual Motor Development involves the child’s sensory skills and his or her ability to take in, interpret, and respond to information through movement. Perceptual motor skill development involves sensory awareness, spatial awareness, and temporal awareness.

Pilates for Children teaches correct movement patterns to help children use their bodies without stressing the back and joints. It improves children’s posture and body coordination for better balance skills and body awareness that will carry through into adulthood. Pilates and English is an enjoyable and creative activity, using fun props such as balls, hoops, flex bands, foam rolls, and more.

Psychomotor Development is the progressive acquisition of skills in the psychomotor domain; it involves both mental and motor activity. For example, over time a child may grow in the ability to gesture to express feelings and thoughts, draw from memory, build complex structures, and create movements to express emotions.

Sensory Awareness relates to children’s use of their senses as they move. Part of sensory awareness is an understanding of force, which develops concepts of strong and light.

Spatial Awareness relates to children’s own use of personal and general space. Spatial awareness encompasses directional concepts of back and front and the ability to move backward, forward, and sideways. While combining directions, children learn pathways of moving in low, high, and medium levels. Movement offers the ability to move inside or outside, on or off, and near to or far from, as well as around or through and over or under.

Temporal Awareness uses the element of time. Time offers movement variety as children
experience quick and slow movements.

Yoga for Children helps channel energy and impulses in a positive way by learning how to instil calm, confidence and balance. Yoga and English encourages language learning through imaginative visualisation, and acting out fun stories and emotions through movement. Working with each other on poses, children also learn team skills and bonding.