As parents, we all want our little adventurers to have fun while they grow and explore the world. When children are younger, we often focus on the major milestones – rolling over, walking, crawling. As they get older and conquer these skills, we turn our minds to fine motor and social skills with school-readiness in mind. However, gross motor skills play a critical role in children’s ability to learn and concentrate at school.

So beyond letting them loose at the park, how do we focus on gross motor skills for young children and pre-schoolers? One of the best ways to support their physical development is through regular dynamic, full-body activities that engage large muscle groups. This is where whole body activities, like climbing, come into play.

Our Pikler Triangles play a crucial role in building gross motor skills and help your child to challenge and strengthen their whole body. The constant, varied movement—whether climbing up, crawling through, or balancing on the frame—supports the development of dynamic play and physical agility.

So, what are gross motor skills?

As a quick refresher - gross motor skills refer to the ability to use large muscle groups to perform coordinated movements. These skills are the foundation for everyday activities like walking, running, jumping, and even more complex tasks like lifting or balancing. Building gross motor skills in the early years is crucial, as they contribute to your child’s strength, coordination, and overall physical confidence.

Climbing, balancing, pushing, and pulling on a Pikler Triangle directly target major muscle groups, from the legs to the core, arms, and back. These activities require a combination of strength and coordination, helping your child develop the foundational abilities needed for more advanced physical tasks as they grow.

Why are gross motor skills are essential for success at kindy, prep and beyond?

We often think about fine motor and social skills when it comes to school readiness, but gross motor skills play a vitally important role – after all, it’s hard to learn to read if you can’t sit comfortably! Here are some of the ways gross motor abilities can set your child up for success:

Improved Focus and Attention

Being able to sit on the mat or at a desk and concentrate is important when you’re in big school. Having the core strength to maintain their posture and control their bodies makes it easier for your little one to sit still and focus during learning time.

Of course, all bodies and brains are different, so your little one might need additional support or resources to help them maintain their posture and concentration, but having core strength is a great foundation.

Increased Self-Regulation

When you’re five, it can be really hard to be patient or wait your turn, whether that’s in the playground, waiting to use the red paint or waiting for your turn at tuckshop. Gross motor activities like climbing and balancing help children to learn to control their impulses and develop patience, which are key for staying on task and following instructions at school.

They learn that while they might want to jump off the top of the Pikler, they have to take the slow and steady path to climb up there. Playing on the Pikler Triangle with friends also encourages turn taking.

Enhanced Coordination for Writing and Drawing

Learning to write is pretty tricky – there’s a lot involved, from letter shapes, to how to hold a pencil and how hard to push. But while we might think only fine motor skills apply here, the foundations are actually gross motor skills – think of core strength (to sit at your desk!), shoulder stability and cross-body movements as the building blocks for learning to write.

How can you support your child to develop these gross motor skills?

Pikler Triangles, Ramps, Slides and our Magnetic Whiteboard can all help your child to develop the gross motor skills that are essential for their transition to school. Here are a few ways you can support them to improve their postural control (core strength!) and shoulder stability.

Get them moving in ways that use multiple muscle groups – climbing, balancing, and jumping on an obstacle course is brilliant.
Support their shoulder stability by encouraging them to climb and pull themselves up on the Pikler. You can also hang the magnetic whiteboard on the Pikler and have them draw or use magnets to build their shoulder strength and vertical movements. For younger children, the shape sorter is alsowonderful at developing shoulder stability while they match the puzzle pieces.
Encourage their core strength. Set up a slide using the Large Pikler and encourage them to slide in different ways – see if it’s faster when they hold themselves still and upright!
Support core and endurance. Walking up inclines and moving over uneven obstacles supports core strength and endurance. Set up the ramp and encourage them to walk up one side and climb down the other
Crawling is crucial! From shoulder stability, core strength and cross body movements, it’s absolutely key to early childhood development. Set up an obstacle course that invites your child to crawl through the Small Pikler, under a ramp, or through the Large Pikler. Make it even more fun with a Tent Cover!
Introduce impulse control games using your Nimble Kids equipment. ‘Simon Says’ or ‘Do This, Do That’ support impulse control and encourage listening, as well as encouraging their ability to follow simple instructions and identify objects using language. It’s a great way to incorporate multiple aspects of learning and development in a fun way that also gives you an opportunity to bond and play with your child.

If you’re looking for the best set-up to support your child’s gross motor skills, we’d recommend the Adventure Seekers Bundle. It has everything you need to get started (and with a 15% discount!).

You can read more about gross motor skills with our friends at BillyLids Therapy.