Spiral of development

Body & mind maps

You have given me a map of how Jack’s body and brain are developing, and how they are connected. I am reassured he is developing well and, naturally, that Jack is a baby genius.

You’ve given me insight into development that brings me down to a very basic level. I see that less is more, and that simple interactions are powerful to the core. — Jennifer

Movement and the emerging mind

From the beginning babies and children are active participants in their own development. Loving relationship, touch, movement and all their senses enable a child to grow in every arena of their little beings.

Whole child

While professions may split a child into emotional, social, cognitive, and physical parts, this separation is only an idea, not the lived experience of either the child or the parent – or any caretaker. For example, language arises first through attentive dialogue with you, while your baby responds in movement, gestures and early vocalizations. Movement is a primary developmental resource for babies and young children for many years. Through developmental movements children connect together all the parts of themselves, and organize their little brains.

At every age and stage a child reconfigures his capacities, building on the scaffold of earlier development. In a spiraling manner, children revisit themes of development, such as the emerging sense of self, emotional intelligence, learning capacities, and physical integrity.

With each cycle through the spiral of development your child stands upon the platform of his earlier, lower levels of experience and internal organization. His own internal organization provides a matrix for the next round of developmental drivers to springboard him up into the next level.

Secure sense of self and other

Your child forms her sense of self in a spiralic fashion, at the same time forming her sense of other. Each stage of individuation requires your child to enter into a new stage of bonding. Along with your consistent affection and attention, your child also relies on movement that form her body maps underlying her own internal sense of self.

Mindful Parent/Mindful child

Mindful parenting fosters a mindful child. Bringing awareness to direct experience of oneself as a parent and to your child fosters a deep trust within and confidence in one’s ability to engage with others and the world. Understanding how movement supports development of the mind, parents can honor the innate wisdom of the body-mind as it unfolds through childhood and parenthood.

Play to learn

Children love to move, and play is your child first way of learning. Developmental movements of early childhood create bridges between your child’s body and mind. These neural bridges are primary links that organize her brain. During in utero and birth experiences, in the first year, and on through the early years of school, your child develops her brain and body through developmental movement.

Developmental movements build neural networks in your child’s brain for attention asset, instead of poorly organized attention deficits. These same movements organize your child’s vision, hearing and other senses, in the first and most fundamental school readiness activities. Using all her senses, your child finds passion for learning in joyful play.