Movement Specialist Comes to Bebright

photo of children playing Jabadao under a huge rainbow cover
 April 25, 2019   |   comments

Jabadao Developmental Movement specialists who influenced EY curriculum came to play with nursery staff.

Two years ago I was on twitter.  I was curious about movement and how it affects our learning and our brains. During the twitter conversation a jabadao tweet popped up.  On a closer look I realised that Jabadao had run a 12-year study with Early Years on the importance of movement.  The findings of the study have influenced our Early Years curriculum.  

Two weeks ago Penny came to see us and share that knowledge with all our staff.  We are really excited to become a Jabadao enthusiast and incorporate the Jabadao ideas into BeBright Bunnies ethos.  They fit so well together – we play, we do and we learn!

nursery staff

What is Jabadao

So what is Jabadao and what were our EY specialists learning to make them outstanding key workers for your children?  Here are my top ten takeaways we learnt:

Jabadao developmental movement for babies
  1. Touching toes while lying on your back when you’re a baby then letting go feels great and helps children build a sense of self.  Try it with them!
  2. Small movements might be big developmental stages eg rocking on all fours is not getting ready to crawl but building up tummy muscles. 
  3. Children are wired to run, climb and sleep.  Our job is to help them do it safely. 
  4. Let children move when you read them a story – they will listen better. 
  5. Even better lie on YOUR tummy or back when you read and see how your child moves around you. Moving helps listening 
  6. Sitting still takes lots of mental energy – use the floor more. Floor play helps to strengthen the spine, hips, shoulders and neck, develop their sense of strength in their upper body.  This is where dextrous hands and writing begin.
  7. Tummy time on the floor helps improve bladder awareness and will help your child get out of nappies quicker. If they are doing the belly crawl this also helps develop open hands – essential for fine motor skills and writing later on.  
  8. Does your child walk or crawl using opposites or same sides?  
  9. Kids love to push, pull, stretch and hang – think of safe and fun ways to help them build their confidence, learn to take care of themselves and feel great in their skin. 
  10. Spinning, tipping and rolling aren’t just fun they’re great for balance – physical and emotional, help eye focus which will later help them organise information and be ready to learn.

So if you want to do it like Jabadao here are a few things you can do

  1. Clear some space 
  2. Celebrate play and movement
  3. Be clear and consistent when, where and how your child can move – and when they cannot
  4. Let your child explore and take safe risks. 

And watch out at BeBright Bunnies Nursery as we’ll be creating our very own Movement Play Area over the next few months.