Learning with dad - a smart start to life, part 8

Do you remember climbing up on small garden walls and balancing on top of them? Well, it's a great skill to learn and you can start pretty early with introducing the concept. A good time to start is when your little champ has mastered the skill of jumping. All you need to get them started on balancing is to find a safe place and a wooden beam (or narrow surface). A great place to do this exercise is a beach with plenty of driftwood or the forest. Of course your backyard or a park is just as good, as long as there is plenty of space and soft ground (grass, sand, etc).

So find something your child can balance on - a wooden beam, a log, a row of bricks, etc. Get them to walk across with their hands stretched out for better balance. You may need to support them initially by lightly tapping under their elbow. You can very the exercise by asking them to do a heel/toe work or even walking backwards.

Enjoy!

-Stef