The Easter Bunny is coming!
Get ready to hop, skip and jump with the Easter Bunny at Kindergym. Come and explore all things of this special holiday, from searching for easter eggs to crawling through rabbit burrows- it’ll be an Egg-Citing time!
Discover the Set Up
This theme we are spending our time on Trampoline, floor and uneven bars.
Trampoline will give us the chance to jump and bunny hop. We’ll need to watch out for the carrot thieves as well! 🥕
On the floor this week we’ll learn more about where rabbits live. We will get down low to crawl through the burrows, then climb up, up, up and out!
Over at the Uneven Bars, the easter bunny will need some help delivering all the eggs. We will climb up high, then drop the easter eggs - I hope they don’t crack!
Movement Matters
The kids will be JUMPING for joy during this theme!
Jumping is an exciting milestone for kids as it is the first time 2 feet leave the ground at once. Children develop at different rates, but we usually see the ability to jump with two feet start to happen around 2 years of age. It’s actually more tricky than it seems as a powerful jump requires a combination of balance, motor planning and leg strength.
After starting with jumping and landing at ground level, we will explore lots of different types of jumps during our Easter theme. We will jump over objects, jump in different directions, jump from various heights and even jump upside-down. All of this practise will help our children to increase their lower limb strength, develop greater awareness and improve their dynamic balance. Children first use dynamic balance when they do a number of jumps in a row and then learn to jump and stop - we love doing this on the trampoline!
Jumping and landing are a foundation skill, important not only in gymnastics, but across all sports and also in the playground. We teach children to be aware of their bodies and the safe landing technique to avoid common injuries resulting from improper force absorption and awkward landings. At Kindergym, children will learn to:
Coordinate an arm swing to help them take-off. This will transfer their weight to achieve lift-off.
Land with their knees and feet slightly apart to steady the touchdown.
Remain upright on landing, with their arms outstretched for balance.
Hold the landing for three seconds to improve control.
Did you know the pressure downwards through the bones of the legs when jumping increases bone density? Messages sent to the brain after participating in impact exercise stimulate bone growth resulting harder, stronger bones.
Gym Kids are Smart Kids 💡
Jumping requires constant motor planning - for example, how to plan where to jump (up, over, forward), how to judge distance, and how to perform the jump and then stop safely. This experience creates a natural understanding of scientific and mathematical concepts including direction, force and momentum - it’s a learning opportunity disguised as fun!
The fun we have at Kindergym provides many experiences which lay foundations of knowledge that can be awoken and explored further during their school years.
We know that children who are given this opportunity have the ability to adapt and understand and will become life long learners in the future!
Have a Happy Easter everyone 🐰