By Rachael Carnes
Kinesthesia refers to the movement of the muscles, joints, organs and tendons and the sense, cognitively and physically, that they create. As caregivers, we can enjoy a variety of ways of moving with our children, and it can be a joyful experience to see, hear and feel them learning and playing through engaging their bodies.
When I am teaching any group, I try to use language that encompasses a variety of movement, not "rights and wrongs". "What does it feel like to move in a curvy pathway?" sounds very different than, "Move your arms like this." A child who has a visual impairment may want to stay a little closer to me or mom. For a dancer who is hearing impaired, my gestures and physicality, as well as the rhythms in my body as I'm moving, may be a greater cue. Sometimes children with special needs have 'filtering' issues, and some parts of movement class could be an over-stimulating experience. I try to work with the caregiver and child to understand what about it is too much: Is it the music? The props? Is it moving through space? We try to make the experience one that feels comfortable for caregiver and child.
But your child doesn't have to take a class to play and learn through movement. Every child can learn through the kinesthetic sense, and as caregivers, we can adapt the use of movement play to make it a fun, enjoyable part of our daily lives with our children. Here are just a few examples of using movement for play and learning at any age:
Rocking, swaying, cuddling and cooing: Newborns are stimulated, and soothed, by touch, and the tactile sense helps them, among many benefits, to regulate their breathing, digestion and temperature. Newborns can spend a little time playing on their tummies, helping their bodies and brains to make all the fantastic neurological connections that will lay the groundwork for what's to come! As they curl and unfurl, stretch their heads and hips, reach one half of their bodies to reach and grasp, babies are exploring a movement pattern that you could see the world over: It's the way our human brains are designed to learn!
As Babies and Toddlers begin to make some forays into independence, taking little moves away from caregivers to explore, they'll continually come back for reassurance and love. During this time, I encourage caregivers to find any activities that their child enjoys doing on his/her tummy. Babies may enjoy being bounced gently on caregiver legs, or rocked on our shins. Toddlers may like to play at being snakes and lizards. All this crawling (on the belly) and creeping (on all fours) has a terrific effect on the developing brain and central nervous system. Though it might feel a little silly, it can be a great stress reliever for caregivers, too!
Children usually enjoy moving in their own bodies, if given an adaptive, safe and supportive environment for exploration. And for many children, the kinesthetic sense can continue to be a terrific learning tool throughout the school years. Why? Because the kinesthetic sense is embodied. It is felt. When we add conceptual ideas to the kinesthetic sense, like making letters, or doing fractions, or studying science or languages, kids already have a terrific sense in their own bodies. I use these "concepts", like shape, energy, place, time, in every class I teach. If children can grab onto something with their bodies, in my experience, they can take it anyplace they want to go. And as children head into educational experiences that are more dominated by visual and auditory learning, it's great for parents and caregivers to feel empowered to help their kids learn through movement.
One of my hopes as a movement educator is that by working together, children of a variety of backgrounds can see movement not as something to be done "correctly", but as a window into how each child problem-solves. Kids receive a special lesson from working together in this way: "There are different ways to approach an idea. My way doesn't have to be right or wrong, and I can begin to observe, appreciate and articulate what I like about myself, and about the way other people do things.
In my movement classes for Little Ones and their Big People, I begin each session with the encouragement for caregivers and their children to "make the movement feel good to your body." "It's not about how it looks," I say. "It's about how it feels."