In our previous post we unpacked the forward roll and the various ways to develop confidence in rolling. Many have asked about the developmental importance that a child receives from this particular skill. Forward rolls speed up the development of body awareness in children. This is linked to our proprioceptive system (the input our brain receives from our joints and muscles). Close your eyes and bring your finger to touch your nose. The ability to know where your nose is without physically seeing it is your proprioceptive sense in action. Children tend to have disorganised processing of these inputs while their brains are developing. To us as fully developed grown-ups, this under developmen
The forward roll is a fundamental gymnastic skill and a physical milestone for every child. It is also a great confidence builder and guaranteed fun! "Many children that I have taught are very scared to roll forwards." In order to perform this skill your child requires a reasonable degree of flexibility and coordination, as well as an awareness of their body is as it moves in space. Your child would need the basic understanding that in order to roll, they will need to tuck their head to their chest. Many children that I have taught are very scared to roll forwards. It is a skill which involves taking their body weight over their heads. Self-preservation kicks in and I feel it is often undere