Can Good Balance Helps Kids Learn?

Academic performance, is it influenced by good balance in our children?
 
In a day and age when our lives have been consumed by more and more technology, have we left an important aid in learning lying dormant as an afterthought and not given it enough credit?
 
Recent research indicates we should be encouraging exercises that challenge postural stability in our young children, especially in combined nature. Our brain shares elements of sensory and movement origins related to cognition and therefore overlapping brain networks may influence pre-adolescent children’s learning (1). To simplify - this means that movement and sensation hugely affects our learning.
 
Although requiring more research, it has been suggested that promoting sustained moderate level physical activity and cardio respiratory fitness alongside games and exercises (which challenge our dynamic postural stability system) is well supported for primary school children and ongoing learning enhancement (2-4). Therefore use your balance and move in challenging ways to maximize your learning ability.
 
At Sprouting Health we are big advocates for engaging in continued physical activity and movement activities that challenge your balance system. We assess and support people in making sure their body is functioning at the most optimum level possible to achieve this in an ongoing basis in these areas.

REFERENCES

1. Haynes, W., Waddington, G. and Adams, R.D., 2018. Associations among balance, physical activity, physical fitness, and academic results in schoolchildren. Health Behavior and Policy Review, 5(1), pp.57-68.
   
2. Diamond, A., 2012. Activities and programs that improve children’s executive functions. Current directions in psychological science, 21(5), pp.335-341. 
3. Niederer, I., Kriemler, S., Gut, J., Hartmann, T., Schindler, C., Barral, J. and Puder, J.J., 2011. Relationship of aerobic fitness and motor skills with memory and attention in preschoolers (Ballabeina): a cross-sectional and longitudinal study. BMC pediatrics, 11(1), p.34.
   
4. Esteban-Cornejo, I., Tejero-González, C.M., Martinez-Gomez, D., del-Campo, J., González-Galo, A., Padilla-Moledo, C., Sallis, J.F., Veiga, O.L. and Up & Down Study Group, 2014. Independent and combined influence of the components of physical fitness on academic performance in youth. The journal of pediatrics, 165(2), pp.306-312.