- Dec 9, 2013
- 101
- 122
To go off on a bit of a tangent but relating to gymdog's comments I do think that trampoline can be excellent for disabled children. I think it is rather different in the UK though because in the USA you have T&T whereas in the UK trampoling and tumbling are seperate (tumbling is in with acro.) A lot of trampoline classes also don't have DMT so then there is no rotating around. Beacuse you can only have one kid on the trampoline at once it tends to be kind of one-on-one anyway. If there's a second trampoline you might have children either seat bouncing or back bouncing, working on a set routine or practising skills set by the coach on the previous go, depending on their level of maturity. (I.e. if you don't trust them to only work on the stuff agreed and act sensibly then you can limit it to seat bouncing.) Ideally though you would have one coach on each bed so they are always under direct supervision on the apparatus.
That does mean it can be very adaptable to different abilities. It doesn't really matter if you have a class full of people all working on different things if you are only focusing on one of them at a time. (Certainly not from a rec perspective anyway.) Also kids who are too severely disabled to engage with general gymnastics can get something out of trampolining. Examples are bouncing with a coach where you hold one-another's forearms (hold nearer the elbow if the child needs more support or at the wrist if it is more for balance.) Even children who are in wheelchairs can enjoy trampolining. In a special needs class I once held a child in a seated position sat behind them in a straddle sit while another coach bounced us (because the child was not usually able to sit up unassisted and was strapped in a wheelchair with her head lolling) and she actually started to respond to the rhythm and movement and push against the bed to make it bounce. It was so extraordinary to be holding this child like a floppy rag-doll and then feel her start to make this really purposeful muscular effort. She lifted up her head and smiled and got up to her hands and knees and started pushing at the bed. She didn't really have the coordination to do that effectively, what she was doing sitting down was actual more effective, but it was really amazing and she clearly really enjoyed it. Also we got to our hands and knees and rocked the bed like that and so, that we were copying her and she was copying us to try to make what she was doing more effective was a sort of communication, which is a big deal for a child that can't speak and lacks the muscle and coordination to sign. She didn't even have a tap board. I think she was intellectually disabled and wouln't have been able to spell. That was obviously quite intensive with two coaches to one child but in fact the person sitting and holding needn't be a coach, it could be a carer. Another option would be to lay the child on a crash mat on the trampoline to support them and bounce them like that. If you had a child with that sort of severe difficulty you would certainly need them to be accompanied by a carer who could move them onto and off of the trampoline efficiently and take care of them between goes with toiletting and so on.
On the other hand for children with problems such as ADHD I absolutely do agree that general gymnastics is better. The flip side of the individual attention kids get while they are on the trampoline is that they have to wait for turns and not create a distraction or do anything dangerous like go under the bed while they are waiting. It is pretty hard to keep on top of that as well when coaching trampoline because of the amount of focus you need on the child on the trampoline. General gymnastics has less waiting around and more short spurts of varied activity and it is easier to police when you have a group doing the same thing or going through something cannon in quick succession.
That does mean it can be very adaptable to different abilities. It doesn't really matter if you have a class full of people all working on different things if you are only focusing on one of them at a time. (Certainly not from a rec perspective anyway.) Also kids who are too severely disabled to engage with general gymnastics can get something out of trampolining. Examples are bouncing with a coach where you hold one-another's forearms (hold nearer the elbow if the child needs more support or at the wrist if it is more for balance.) Even children who are in wheelchairs can enjoy trampolining. In a special needs class I once held a child in a seated position sat behind them in a straddle sit while another coach bounced us (because the child was not usually able to sit up unassisted and was strapped in a wheelchair with her head lolling) and she actually started to respond to the rhythm and movement and push against the bed to make it bounce. It was so extraordinary to be holding this child like a floppy rag-doll and then feel her start to make this really purposeful muscular effort. She lifted up her head and smiled and got up to her hands and knees and started pushing at the bed. She didn't really have the coordination to do that effectively, what she was doing sitting down was actual more effective, but it was really amazing and she clearly really enjoyed it. Also we got to our hands and knees and rocked the bed like that and so, that we were copying her and she was copying us to try to make what she was doing more effective was a sort of communication, which is a big deal for a child that can't speak and lacks the muscle and coordination to sign. She didn't even have a tap board. I think she was intellectually disabled and wouln't have been able to spell. That was obviously quite intensive with two coaches to one child but in fact the person sitting and holding needn't be a coach, it could be a carer. Another option would be to lay the child on a crash mat on the trampoline to support them and bounce them like that. If you had a child with that sort of severe difficulty you would certainly need them to be accompanied by a carer who could move them onto and off of the trampoline efficiently and take care of them between goes with toiletting and so on.
On the other hand for children with problems such as ADHD I absolutely do agree that general gymnastics is better. The flip side of the individual attention kids get while they are on the trampoline is that they have to wait for turns and not create a distraction or do anything dangerous like go under the bed while they are waiting. It is pretty hard to keep on top of that as well when coaching trampoline because of the amount of focus you need on the child on the trampoline. General gymnastics has less waiting around and more short spurts of varied activity and it is easier to police when you have a group doing the same thing or going through something cannon in quick succession.