I'm a full-time mummy

I have previously read in some FB parenting groups I'm in that letting their children sit on a gym ball helps them to focus. I don't really believe it until I tried it out on our 6.5-year-old boy. He just cannot sit still and focus 100% when I'm teaching him. Frustrated, I told him to roll out the gym ball that daddy bought long ago but was not frequently used and has since been kept in the storeroom. His face lit up when I told him to sit on the ball to do his worksheets.

It took less than a minute for him to learn to balance himself while sitting on the ball and doing his worksheets but after he got the hang of it, I have a very peaceful uninterrupted minimal whining and no more loss of focus phases from him. He got his work done promptly and was bouncing himself on the ball as he passed back the completed worksheets to me. Win-win!

Apparently, in 2003, a study was published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy concluding that in students with ADHD (not that ours have ADHD), sitting on therapy balls improved behaviour and legible word productivity. In other words, students using ball chairs were able to sit still, focus and write more words clearly. Awesome findings!

Also, in a simpler and easier to understand terms, because of the ball's instability and in order to remain balanced while sitting on one, the child's body instinctively — and continually — engages core muscle groups. Constant movement is required in order to stay seated on the ball. And that movement, however slight, helps them focus. Lovely, lovely!

I will continue to let our boy sits on the gym ball for now and see how it goes from here...

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