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  • Learn about 7 kinds of halfway play that create vital foundations

  • Try some play structures that invite halfway play

  • Develop your movement observation skills within a developmental movement framework

  • Learn to spot when children might need more time building early foundations to enhance their upright movement skills

Learn why halfway play is such an important part of physical development. And how to spot when foundations need more work to support skilled upright movement.

Take this course to: 

Building confident bodies

Reviews 

" Very detailed course. Who knew there was so much to learn about movement. "

Carys Flynn

CF

" This course is extremely informative. Packed with so much valuable developmental discussion. ” 

Adele Quittenden

AQ

" If you get a chance to go on this course go for it, it's so interesting to see how the children develop.  ” 

Deborah Caimino

DC

" This course is very interesting especially if you work with babies and very young children. It gives lots of very useful information on how the babies body develop and what they need to grow into healthy upright play.  ” 

Janet Bowers

JB

Halfway and Upright Play

Previews 

It's easy to miss or rush Halfway Play. But it's a crucial part of physical development in which children can set themselves up for a lifetime of strong, confident, comfortable movement.

Logan watches the pull and push games that other children invent with one another. He doesn't get involved. 

As a baby he loved his activity chair - he spent hours playing in it. When he approached walking, he took a long time to find how to balance himself upright and his loving family spent loads of time bent double, holding his hands, as he practised!

Watch him carefully now and it's as if his limbs don't connect into his core. He uses strength in his arms, but he can't support it with power from the rest of his body. He seems to walk above the ground, not connecting into it.

What might support him well? Floor play first; halfway play next ... the trick is to find the things that will entice him into engaging here. This is not something we can teach him, but if we are canny, we can create environments and offer resources that will entice him into playing his foundations in to action.

Developmental Movement Play in action 

Valuing halfway play

Halfway play has an important role to play in building physical power, agency and confidence. Value and support it fully to maximise children’s ability to develop a genuinely confident, grounded physicality.

Developmental movement

Design learning environments and opportunities that continue to value sensory play, floor play and halfway play as part of the everyday learning culture throughout the early years - not just as a stepping stone to upright.

Early identification and support

Use your growing understanding of developmental movement to plan early and targeted support for children who are not meeting the milestones as you would hope.

Develop your pedagogy

When adults think differently, children move differently

Join the course

If you're training individually follow the "Buy Now £42" link. For multiple people to gain access to the course, follow the "Group Bookings" link. 

Step 1. Create an account

Step 2. Press play 

Head over to the course dashboard and start watching.

Step 3. Get going

Take the knowledge and extend your physical development provision.

Course Info

Content

How to take the course 

18 short filmed lessons divided into four modules, lots of visuals. Downloads to support new ways of observing movement. A quiz to finish.

The lessons take 1 hour 20 to watch straight through. The observation you do as part of your everyday routines, (using the structures provided), will be a big part of your learning.

How long can I access the course for?

The course will be live on your dashboard for 3 months.

Will I get a CPD certificate?

Yes, you'll receive a certificate of completion when you have finished all modules.

Course Modules

Module 1: Intro 

Module 2: Movement Observation

Introduction to the course and taking a developmental movement approach.

Movement observation lies at the heart of this approach. Two simple techniques to use, Body Scan and Environment Audit. 

Module 3: Halfway Play

Looks in detail at 7 kinds of halfway play. 

Module 4: Upright Play

Introduces detailed checklists (for you to download) to help you clarify what you already know and see more detail in children's upright movement.

Penny Greenland

Penny has been teaching across the early years sector for thirty-five years. In 1998 she set up the action-research project which led to the creation of Developmental Movement Play and has continued to research and develop the approach ever since.

She is author of Hopping Home Backwards: body intelligence and movement play and a contributor to several early years text books about physical development.

Jabadao Team | Developmental Movement Play Specialist

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