My son struggles to hold a pencil. His writing is very difficult to read. All his life, he has struggled with motor skills. This is a common problem for many children with autism. Whether it’s gross motor skills, fine motor skills, or both, many children struggle with these developments.
As our children with autism grow, there are steps we can take to help their motor skill development. Some activities and therapies can be incorporated into everyday life to help children overcome motor difficulties.
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What are motor skills?
Motor skills are functions involving specific body movements to perform certain tasks. A person’s nervous system, brain, and muscles must work together to perform these tasks.
However, many children with autism spectrum disorder struggle with the motor development necessary to perform these skills. The two types of motor skills that help with motor function are gross and fine motor skills.
Gross motor skills
In the simplest terms, gross motor skills allow people to control large muscle groups to move their entire body. Many athletic activities, including walking, running, sitting, and jumping, are connected to gross motor skills.
Fine motor skills
Fine motor skills control the movement of a smaller group of muscles. My son’s inability to hold a pencil and write when he was younger is an example of a struggle with fine motor skills.
However, the hand isn’t the only body part involving fine motor skills. Vision and hand-eye coordination are also affected by fine motor skills.
Common motor skills challenges in autism spectrum disorder
Many autistic children experience motor challenges. Some may struggle with gross motor skills, while others struggle with fine motor skills. However, there are ways to recognize which motor skills with which they are struggling.
Gross motor skills issues
Children with autism who struggle with gross motor skills may have trouble with balance, posture, or coordination. They may be viewed as clumsy as they struggle with everyday tasks like walking or jumping. Many of these children also struggle with hitting important milestones like crawling.
Fine motor skills issues
Since fine motor skills focus on a smaller group of muscles, these struggles present themselves differently than gross motor skills. Some of the main struggles associated with fine motor skills include:
- Motor planning – This involves difficulty with movements that require precise movements. Motor planning struggles affect writing and using utensils.
- Motor coordination – This involves struggles with tasks that require different body parts. Motor coordination difficulties can make it hard to tie shoes or use scissors.
- Motor delays occur when children with autism fail to meet milestones related to fine (or gross) motor skills. Some of these milestones include grabbing objects and pointing.
Why are fine motor skills important for autistic children?
Every person needs improved fine motor skills for everyday tasks. These skills are used to carry out daily tasks like eating, dressing, or communicating. Fine motor skill development is essential in helping children with autism achieve some level of independence.
It can be as simple as opening a jar, a task my son struggles with daily due to fine motor skills issues, or buttoning clothes. Fine motor skills help children become more self-reliant.
These skills also help improve social skills for children with autism. Many types of play require fine motor skills. Fine motor development can help encourage more play time with other kids and make it easier to explore new environments.
Fine motor skills are also integral as children pursue many artistic opportunities. These skills help children grip a pencil for drawing or a brush for painting. Fine motor control can motivate children with autism to pursue artistic interests in the future.
Activities for improving motor skills in autism spectrum disorder
If your child struggles with motor skills, there are key activities they can do that will help them develop their motor abilities.
Trampolining
Children can jump on a trampoline to develop gross motor skills. This equipment helps develop muscle tone while improving motor planning, balance, and body awareness. Trampolining can also help with sensory processing difficulties and sensory input.
Games
Several games can be played inside or outside to help improve gross motor skills. Twister is a game using a mat that requires people to put their hands and feet on different colored circles. It helps improve balance and body awareness.
Games with balls help teach children with autism how to throw and catch while improving hand-eye coordination. Starting with larger balls that move slower through the air can begin developing these motor skills while moving to smaller balls that move faster as the skills improve.
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Playscape equipment can also be used for games to improve gross motor skills. Monkey bars, swing sets, and slides can assist in climbing, jumping, and gripping. Some of these also help improve fine motor skills on top of the gross motor skills.
Travel games can also be used to develop fine motor skills in children with autism, as the kids will need to pick up smaller pieces. While the regular-sized version of the game may be necessary to start working on fine motor development, the travel-sized games help provide practice as the child improves their skills.
Swimming
Swimming is another gross motor activity that can help improve coordination skills. Using the entire body to move through the water helps improve these skills. It’s important never to swim alone and never let your autistic child swim alone as there is inherent danger with this one.
Art
Encouraging children with autism to participate in artistic activities can help improve their fine motor skills. Drawing or writing with pens and pencils, cutting with scissors, and molding with play dough or clay all encourage motor development.
Food
Since fine motor challenges often affect dining, children can practice using utensils and chopsticks to eat snacks like dry cereal or raisins to improve motor development.
Occupational therapy
If your child’s struggles continue after trying some of these activities, it may be a good idea to get them into occupational therapy. Occupational therapists work closely with your child to help them develop the necessary motor skills they may be lacking. They can also provide key strategies and new activities to help with motor development.
My sons have seen occupational therapists to improve their fine motor skills. My older son had to work on exercises to improve his grip on a pencil so that his writing would be legible in school, while my younger son tended to walk on his tiptoes. Therapy was needed to help encourage him to walk flat-footed.
Arm yourself with patience and understanding
It can be hard to watch your children with autism struggle to perform everyday tasks that seem to come naturally to other children. However, there are strategies and activities that you can implement to address motor difficulties.
Be patient and understanding as they struggle with motor impairments and try to improve motor functioning. Working with them can improve academic performance, social interaction, and communication skills.
FAQs
Q: Does autism affect balance and coordination?
A: People with autism spectrum disorder may face many motor skills challenges, including balance and coordination.
Q: Does autism affect fine motor skills?
A: People with autism spectrum disorder can struggle with many types of motor development, including fine motor skills, gross motor skills, and motor planning.
Q: What are the signs of motor skills issues in autism?
A: Some struggles with motor skills in children with autism spectrum disorder include balance and coordination issues, trouble holding writing or eating utensils, and difficulty walking, running, or jumping.
Resources
Busti Ceccarelli S, Ferrante C, Gazzola E, Marzocchi GM, Nobile M, Molteni M, Crippa A. Fundamental Motor Skills Intervention for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A 10-Year Narrative Review. Children. 2020; 7(11):250. https://doi.org/10.3390/children7110250
Colombo-Dougovito, A.M., Block, M.E. Fundamental Motor Skill Interventions for Children and Adolescents on the Autism Spectrum: a Literature Review. Rev J Autism Dev Disord 6, 159–171 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40489-019-00161-2
Motor skills of children with autism spectrum disorder, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-0037.2019v21e60515
Motor Skills as Moderators of Core Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorders: Preliminary Data From an Exploratory Analysis With Artificial Neural Networks, 2019, https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.02683/full
