“I can do it by myself!”

As we shared in our Back to School Night presentation, one of our main goals this year is building independence. We are encouraging different types of independence every day, including independence in problem-solving, in communicating ideas, and in taking care of oneself.

In particular, our self-care routines are designed to support our students’ fine and gross motor development. As children become independent in dressing and feeding themselves, they develop important muscles in their hands, wrists, and arms, which they then use for drawing and writing!

In this post, we will zoom in on some of our Purple Room self-care routines, highlighting how they support physical development. At the end of the post, we will share some ways that you can practice these skills at home.

Snack

We serve snack family-style in the Purple Room. There is a tray in the center of each table (our “family plate”) with each of the snack options for the day. Children transfer snack from the family plate to their individual plate.

Depending on the day’s snack, children will use either a serving spoon or their pinching fingers to serve themselves. Using a serving spoon requires dexterity in the wrist (to scoop), as well as wrist stability (to move the spoon from one plate to another without spilling). When a serving spoon is not available, children use their strong finger muscles to practice grabbing individual pieces of snack.

There are some days when we use utensils to eat our snack. For example, we use spoons to eat yogurt and forks on Pasta Fridays. The skills used to pick up a piece of pasta with a fork are also used to draw a circle or a line on paper.

Finally, we have been practicing pouring water from the pitcher into individual cups. Children tip the pitcher slowly to control how much water comes out. Again, this builds strength and dexterity in the wrist muscles.

Dressing/Undressing

Clothes and outerwear provide additional opportunities for self-care practice and physical development. Buttons and zippers, in particular, support bilateral coordination. While one hand does the unbuttoning or zipping, the other hand provides support and stabilization. Buttons and zippers also naturally encourage a pinching position of the fingers, which supports grip development.

A term you may hear during your time at Barrow is the “flip trick” or “flip-and-dip.” This is a strategy to help children to put on their coats independently. When doing the flip trick, the child positions their coat on the ground, then stands by the hood or tag. They place their arms into the coat, lift their arms up over their head…and voila! The coat is on, no grownups required! The flip trick leans more into gross motor development, as children work to move both arms in sync.

It’s common for children to take their shoes off when we visit the gym. We build in extra time at the end of gym to practice putting shoes and socks on independently. Children use their strong pinching fingers to stretch their sock over their toes. They need both hands to work together as they pull the sock over their foot and ankle. Shoes often have velcro or zippers, which again supports grip strength.

Self-Care at Home

We have the luxury of extra time and support at school to practice these self-care routines. We know this isn’t always the case at home! With this being said, whenever possible, we encourage you to let your child dress, serve, and feed themselves. As they gain competency with these self-care skills, they develop a sense of pride and responsibility.

Some great places to start include:

– Give your child time to get themselves dressed in the morning, or have them change into their PJs independently.

– Let your child put on their own socks and shoes. If you’re running late, you could try “you do one, I do one,” where your child puts on one of their socks/shoes and you do the other.

– Have your child do the flip trick to put on their coat, then do hand-over-hand to connect the zipper.

– Let your child serve themselves with a serving spoon. This could help alleviate some food struggles, as they get to be in charge of the proportion of food that they take. This may work better with sides than the main meal.

Be on the lookout this month for an individual story about your child’s self-care practice in the Purple Room!