I was beginning to wonder if it would ever happen--and now it has! For quite some time, Judah has been sort of Army-crawling, on his belly, as if he's wriggling under barbed wire in enemy territory. (Already, he has an active imagination!) But he moves so quickly using this method, he didn't seem to have any inclination to get his belly up off the floor, even when I supported it or lifted him up with his overall straps. Generally speaking, he fussed and whined until I set him back down on the floor, where he'd continue to evade the enemy's snares (Already a theologian!). I have been more than ready for him to start crawling for quite some time now.
I even asked the pediatrician if it was anything to be concerned about. I have heard that there's a link between crawling and reading--that crawling develops the reading part of the brain, so if that crawling milestone isn't met, the child may have difficulty reading down the road. Well, hello--I was an English major (though the grammar and syntax in this blog may suggest otherwise). I will do everything in my power to help my kids love reading, even if it means intensive crawl-training. The pediatrician said that he wasn't familiar with that link (but I swear I've heard it multiple times from several different sources, and I believe it to be true), and said that I shouldn't worry. Judah is also an adept sitter, but only achieves a seated position with assistance or from a standing position. He has never crawled into a sit, or pushed himself off the ground to sit. Again, I've been trying to teach him this, but to no avail.
But look at those pictures! Last Wednesday was the first time he crawled with his belly off the floor--but it was only about two strides, and he hadn't done it since, until this morning! He crawled enough that I was able to get the camera and take some pictures, and then he finished with his dismount: a reverse half-somersault in the tuck position for a perfectly stuck butt landing! While he was diaper-clad, he was a crawling fiend! When I put clothes on him, I think he found them a bit too slippery to support him, and his knees kept sliding out from under him. Even so, I'm calling it: as of today, Judah is officially a crawler! Yippee!
4 comments:
I've been wondering the same thing about the reading-crawling connection! Alex is an army crawler. Frequently more of a wounded army crawler -- kind of a pull and push lopsided movement. I want him to get a nice balanced opposition movement right hand, left knee; left hand, right knee. I think it's a left brain-right brain development thing. On top of that he doesn't seem to like it when I read him books. He just wants to chew on them! Every once in awhile he'll crawl a few paces. And earlier he was trying to pull some leather-bound classics off a shelf. Maybe there's hope!? I'm glad I'm not alone in my mommy fears.
i feel the need to dispell the reading crawling connection -- i'm getting a ph.d. in literacy, and i can tell you there's nothing out there to confirm this. there are a few research supported motor-control findings -- though the research is relatively scant. the first area is skipping - you have to be able to skip to be able to read because of all the issues of coordination required in both - i guess it's not all that different from the coordination in crawling but crawling just happens too early to be predictive of anything - same with walking (i.e., early walkers are not necessarily great readers). the other interesting motor-control fact is that kids who can't keep time to a metronome by tapping their fingers often have difficulty reading. again, very likely related to issues of coordination.
--sarah (your cousin)
Sarah, on behalf of all concerned mothers everywhere, THANK YOU! I don't honestly remember where I first heard this theory, but I have been preaching it across the land as absolute truth. FINALLY I have someone who can tell me with certainty that this scary factoid rattling around in my brain has little--if any--merit. I had also heard the skipping thing, but only when a friend whose son was being tested for learning disabilities asked me why on earth they would ask him to skip for them. Thank you so much, Sarah--and it's great to hear from you! If you're ever on my side of the state, I owe you dinner!
April--looks like we can breathe again! :) I'm sure Azzezander will be a GREAT reader, starting, of course, with the Masters! Who needs "If you Give a Mouse a Cookie" when you've got "Ulysses"?
Post a Comment