GM.A.35 SITS FOR 10 MINUTES, ARMS FREE TO REACH AND PLAY
The baby now sits with her head well up, her chin tucked in and an obvious neck. Her back is straight and she is nearly upright at the hips.
She no longer needs to prop herself up with her arms (except when her balance is threatened). Nor does she have to brace herself by ‘W’ sitting, as in GM.A.25. Her hands are now free for play.
It is important to remember that children do not sit for any length of time. They use it as a transitory position, along with many others. Your child should be encouraged to do the same. The only reason to encourage your child to sit for this long is because it is important for concentration, and therefore learning, and for certain play skills. Once your child has these attention skills and she is able to move into and out of sitting, you will find she will sit still anyway.
How to Assess
Method: Place your child in a sitting position, with toys to play with. Score plus if your child maintains the sitting position without aid for 10 minutes. She should sit with a straight back, and be almost upright at her hips, and she must be able to use her hands for play.
How to Teach
Refer to GM.A.25 for ways to teach sitting balance.
Sitting should be a mobile and relaxed position, not a rigid one. To encourage this, alter the position of your child’s legs while sitting to teach her to balance on different-sized bases. The easiest way to sit is with the legs straight and spread widely. This provides the largest and most stable base. This position is to be discouraged. If you bend 1 knee – foot placed close to opposite knee and knee falling out – you alter the base and this requires some trunk adjustments to maintain balance.
By slowly moving one or both legs your child learns to balance on a smaller base without relying entirely on her legs for support. So practise first moving one leg while the other is out straight.
Here are the steps.
- Bend the knee and place the foot in and the knee out.
- Bend the knee and place the foot flat on the floor close to her buttocks.
- From position 2, roll the knee in and out – each movement being performed slowly to allow her to adjust her trunk to the changing base.
- Bend both knees to one side to a side sitting position; it is from this position that she will move to a crawl position.
Never just place your child in sitting and leave her there, with toys all around her. She is likely to feel very secure in this position – particularly if her legs are wide apart – and there she will stay. She still needs to spend time in other positions.
Positioning, Carrying and Playing
Because your child is older, and therefore larger, you may be finding it difficult to carry her in the crook of your arm. Start by holding her in an up-and-down position, facing away from you. Now bend up her outside leg and twist her legs around towards you, supporting her in the crook of your arm as low as possible on her trunk.
As we have said above, your child should not be left for long periods in the sitting position. She should also be spending time standing and playing on her tummy and side on the floor. Let her sit on ‘difficult’ surfaces, such as a waterbed, a trampoline or a thick foam mat; here she will have to work hard to maintain the position. Let her sit on different-textured surfaces, too – rough and smooth, soft and hard, warm and cool – and talk about them. Children often develop a dislike for moving on certain surfaces, such as grass, and this is a good way to desensitise her.
Once your child can move into and out of the sitting position by herself, you will be able to leave her in sitting, knowing that she will soon be on the move to get something out of reach. You won’t have to be cautious about placing her in sitting tor ever, just until she is truly mobile.
At this stage you can start to use a highchair for feeding and Fine Motor practice, and you could also try her at a small child’s chair or better still a small low stool, with a flat (not tilted) seat, and table, as long as her feet are flat and together on a firm surface. Don’t prop her up or wedge her in any more than she needs, so that she can use her balance skills in her chair or highchair.
Remember your pick up, carry, put down and nursing positions, all the time thinking – ‘off centre’, ‘twist’, ‘knee to the sky’.