The proprioceptive sense is one of the three basic senses related to sensory integration. It is the sense of the position of our body parts in relation to our own bodies. This information is essential to coordinate and integrate movement because it allows us to know where we are in space. According to Cindy Hatch-Rasmussen, the proprioceptive sense is responsible for providing the body with the necessary signals to allow us to sit properly in a chair and to step off a curb smoothly. Some common signs of proprioceptive dysfunction are clumsiness, a tendency to fall, a lack of awareness of body position in space, odd body posturing, minimal crawling when young, difficulty manipulating small objects, eating in a sloppy manner, and resistance to new motor movement activities (Hatch-Rasmussen).
Tactile proprioceptive perception refers to the simultaneous sensations of touch and of body position. This perception is necessary for such ordinary tasks as judging the weight of a glass of milk or holding a pencil efficiently in order to write.
Vestibular proprioceptive perception refers to the simultaneous sensations of head and body position when the child actively moves. This perception is needed for throwing and catching a ball or climbing stairs (Kranowitz 133)
Activities to develop proprioceptive sense:
**provided opportunities for crawling through tunnels and boxes **push objects and toys of varying weights and sizes **Lifting weights **wheelbarrow walking **sit on and bounce on a large ball
**trampoline jumping or jumping on a mattress **hoppity hop **digging dirt and sand **tug of war games. (Mills)
Dysfunction with in the tactile, vestibular and proprioceptive systems manifests itself in many ways. Gross and/or fine motor coordination problems are common and may result in speech/language delays and in academic under achievement. Behavior wise the child may become impulsive, easily distracted, and shows a general lack of planning.
Another dimension of proprioception is praxis, or motor planning. This is the ability to plan and execute different motor tasks. In order for the system to work properly, it must rely on obtaining accurate information from the sensory systems and then organizing and interpreting this information efficiently and effectively (Hatch-Rusmussen).
The more a child touches and explores objects, and the more he learns to move his body in different ways, the better his motor planning and motor skills become.
General fine motor activities:
**placing shapes in sorter **pop-beads **removing and placing pegs in large peg board **construction kits, Legos, Duplo blocks **String beads **stacking blocks **nesting cups **opening and closing containers **puzzles **coloring - imitating simple strokes including "down" lines, "across" lines, and circles. **play dough - kneading, shape, pinch, squeeze, and pound it.
Motor planning activities:
**Moving through obstacle course **Hopscotch **walking like animals **Simon says, Ring around the rosey,Hokey pokey,Mother may I, London bridge **Rolling child up and unrolling in a blanket (Mills).
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