Growing up, I vividly remember my mother frequently correcting my posture. The biggest challenge was sitting at the dinner table. My mom would sandwich her arms around me and shift my rounded shoulders and slumping posture back to sitting upright. It was quite alarming when I realized that I was slumping so far over in my chair that my chest about touched the table.
Do you ever find yourself doing this to your kiddos or find yourself correcting your own posture? With virtual schooling and working from home continuing to take place, it is important to evaluate you and your child’s posture. There are many ways to change up our positions that can incorporate different muscle groups and continue to help develop strong core muscles that make sitting up in a chair easier.
Here are some tips and tricks on different positions that can help with your child’s posture:
Seated Posture:
It is recommended that your child sit all the way back in their chair. Place a small, rolled-up towel or lumbar cushion behind their mid-back to protect the spine’s natural curve. Keep the knees bent at a right angle, keeping them the same height, or a bit higher, than the hips, and feet should be flat on the floor.
- Have a table that is too tall where your child’s feet cannot touch the floor? Grab a box or stool that can go under their feet to help maintain a right angle throughout the hips and knees, keeping the feet flat on the surface provided.
- Is your child looking down at their laptop to complete their Google meets and school work? Grab a box, stool or plastic bin to place the computer on that would raise the screen to eye level when they are seated in their chair.
Tall Kneel:
Tall kneel is a great alternative to sitting in the chair. Whether completing school assignments online, playing games with family and friends, drawing or coloring on vertical surfaces, or watching tv, tall kneel and/or half-kneel are two ways to incorporate core strengthening and balance, and continuing to work on your child’s posture.
Prone:
Prone positioning is great for upper-body and core strengthening. Incorporating prone positioning into your child’s daily activities such as when they are coloring, drawing, reading a book, watching a movie, playing with legos or playdoh, or other board games, this is an awesome way to work on their upper-body, core strength and posture. When your child is in the prone position, there are a few things to watch out for including:
- Holding their breath
- Moving in and out of the position
- Laying their head on their arms and/or the floor
- Pulling their knees up beside their hips
Side Sitting:
Side sitting is another way to change up your child’s posture. Side sitting is great for core strengthening and is easy to incorporate into the child’s daily activities when seated on the floor whether inside or outside. Enjoy playing games or going outside for a picnic? Side sitting is an awesome way to work on your child’s core strength, balance and posture.
Dynamic Sitting:
Have a physioball laying around the house? Adding a ball as an option for a chair is a great alternative. Sitting on a physioball addresses core strengthening and balance, and continues to work on your child’s posture. Similarly to sitting in a chair, we also want the child’s feet to be flat on the floor with 90 degree angles through the ankles, knees and hips during dynamic sitting.
Posture to AVOID: W-Sitting
W-sitting is common for kids to move into, however, this is a posture we want to avoid. W-sitting can lead to increased stress on the hip and knee joints, and can lead to the hip and leg muscles tightening which can lead to difficulties with overall strength, endurance, coordination and balance. When sitting in this position, it makes it more difficult for the child to rotate their bodies and shift their weight as well as decreases the need to engage their core muscles because they are getting a wider base of support with the “w.” It is recommended to encourage your child to move out of this position into other postures mentioned above or “criss-cross applesauce.”
If you have any concerns regarding your child’s sitting posture contact your child’s therapist, and they will be glad to help give any tips and pointers to help increase your child’s postural control.
