How Physical Activity Builds a Child's Mental Abilities

What a child does physically in the first few years of life plays a major part in how well he or she will develop other abilities. Here's a simple model of how it works:

	The activity:	Leads to:
The instinctive reptilian brain	Grasping Touching Crawling Arm-leg movements Walking Reaching Pushing Turning Pulling	Hand-eye coordination Big-motor skills Prewriting ability
The balancing cerebellum	Spinning Tumbling Balancing Dancing Listening Swinging Rolling	Balance Sporting ability Bicycle riding Writing skills Fine motor coordination Reading skills
The emotional brain	Stroking Cuddling Playing together	Love Security Bonding Social skills Cooperation Confidence
The thinking brain or cortex	Stacking toys Assembling puzzles Recognizing patterns Making patterns Playing word games Repetitive play Appreciating music	Stacking toys Assembling puzzles Recognizing patterns Making patterns Playing word games Repetitive play Appreciating music

Special thsnks to Gordon Dryden for sharing this chart. Included with permission from The Learning Revolution. Originally reporduced from FUNdamentals Guidebook, by Gordon Dryden and Colin Rose.