Spatial skills are one of the primary skills that a child needs to develop from an early age. They help children develop a better understanding regarding the world around them and deduce judgement accordingly. In this post, we will look at how you can help your child develop sound spatial skills at an early stage to pave a way to a healthy future.
Before we go any further, it is important to understand what is spatial ability, and why it is important for children. Spatial ability is a primary ability of human beings to understand the relation between different objects. Spatial ability encompasses various other skills that include verbal ability and perception of different objects. Now why do we need our children to have these skills early on in life?
Research shows that developing brains have the capacity to consume more information than a developed brain. Inn addition, children who develop spatial skills at an early age are better equipped to handle scholastic pressure in contrast to kids who spend their early childhood days with video games.
Introduce Toddlers to Specific Words
Research shows that exposing children to specific words can possibly increase their spatial skills. Below is the list of specific words that you can use with children:
- Big
- Rectangle
- Little
- Fat
- Thin
- Short
- Thick
- Tall
- Empty
- Tiny
- Full Circle
- Octagon
- Triangle
- Oval
- Pentagon Bent
- Curvy
- Straight
- Flat
- Edge
- Pointy
- Side
- Line
Toys and Games for Developing Spatial Skills
- Shape sorting puzzles: Sorting puzzles allow children to use their cognitive ability to differentiate one object from the other.
- Object sorting: Object sorting can be done with anything; cutlery, blocks and toys.
- Folding activities: Fabric folding and other folding activities are a great way to enhance children’s spatial skills at an early age.
- Music: Music is an excellent medium to help kids learn spatial ability. Teach your kids how to read and write music notes, and help them learn the various sounds.
- Jigsaw puzzles: It is a well-documented fact that Jigsaw puzzles help kids develop strong cognitive ability. If you are planing to give a birthday present to your child, consider getting a jigsaw puzzle.
- Lego game: Your kids don’t enjoy the outdoor playground equipment? Not to worry, here is something that can not only help your child develop enhanced cognitive abilities, but can also allow him to have a recreation that he craves.
- Construction toys and Mazes: Another set of toys that play a key role in building spatial skills include construction toys and mazes.
Board games: Here’s something way better than the commercial playground equipment or any other play equipment for that matter. Board games are known to help kids pick up myriad cognitive skills that are otherwise hard to garner.