For a child to pay attention and concentrate, he needs to be able to sit up, and to hold himself upright without tiring, for fairly long periods of time. This is only possible if the child has strong core muscles and well developed postural control.
Muscle tone describes the resting state of tension in the muscles. We need adequately developed muscle tone to hold muscles firmly across joints and to keep the body upright. Some children have hyper-mobile joints, and this can appear as low muscle tone.
These children often use the muscles which are intended for movement, to stabilise themselves. They should instead be using their core muscles, as these muscles are in fact designed to sustain muscle contraction for long periods of time. These children may struggle to maintain a good upright position for more than a few minutes. They tend to tire more quickly, to lean on things, or to prop themselves up on things for support. They typically rest their heads in their hands, or they slide down into their chairs. They tend to be restless and fidgety as they make frequent postural adjustments to relieve their tiring muscles. Their ability to concentrate could also be affected as a result.
Weak shoulder muscles and poor shoulder stability can hamper the development of fine motor coordination, since movements of the hands and fingers require a stable base. These children may dislike fine motor tasks because they find them tiring. It is little wonder that a child with poor postural control is likely to avoid fine motor activities, and to dislike tasks such as colouring, cutting, drawing and writing!
A detailed assessment of the child’s posture, and movement patterns can inform the type of stretches and strengthening exercises which could assist the child.
