Knows where their body starts and ends so bumps into stationary objects less often

Your child has become more confident as they move around different spaces. When they first started to walk and run you might have noticed they lost their balance when moving through small spaces or when running. Now, they are more aware of their body and have developed their balance so that they can adjust movements and will bump into objects less often.  

Controlling movement, the importance of balance and proprioception 

Your child maintains their balance by moving, you might notice that as they slow down, they sometimes look a little less steady. Slowing down, starting and stopping might have been times when you noticed a wobble or fall. [1] Your child’s understanding of their motion draws on their senses, particularly their sense of their body (proprioception), balance (vestibular sense) and vision. Your child’s brain processes information from these senses in order to understand their position and the way that they are moving. This information supports them to adjust their movements to maintain their balance and posture and to avoid obstacles. [2] 

When they are first mastering a new movement or perhaps refining a movement, for example, by stopping or changing direction when walking, your child will need to think about how they will adjust their movement. This might lead to some collisions with obstacles particularly if they are distracted. As they develop their skills and become more able to process information from their senses these adjustments will happen without them needing to consciously think about the adjustments them.  

Your child’s proprioceptive systems and balance are closely linked, the feedback from proprioceptors enables them to adjust their muscles in order to maintain their balance. [3] When your child moves, they can practise adjusting their movements according to feedback, if your child seems to find it difficult to avoid objects think about giving them lots of time to move in different ways and on different surfaces. You might also notice that when your child has a growth spurt, they might seem to fall or bump into things more often. It is thought this is linked to a need for their proprioceptive sense to adjust to a change in their body. [3]  

What next? 

Your child is likely to seek frequent opportunities to move in different ways and to climb. This movement will help them to develop their balance and proprioception and to continue to improve their control of their movements. You might notice that they gradually become more able to avoid obstacles and to do this not only when walking but also when running.  

References 

[1] Goddard-Blythe, S. (2000). Early learning in the balance: priming the first ABC. Support for Learning, 15(4), 154-158. 

[2] Goddard-Blythe, S. (2009). Attention, Balance and Coordination: The ABC of Learning Success. London: Wiley-Blackwell.  

[3] Hannaford, C. (2005). Smart Moves. Why learning is not all in your head. (2nd edn.) Salt Lake City: Great River Books.