How parents can help

Motor development requires time. In order to learn motor skills, children with Down’s syndrome have to continue to exercise. This has the best results when they are enjoying activities, i.e. playing. That is why it is very important that parents stimulate their children in a playful way in their daily routine. Parents exercise their children through purposeful play and by using the care routine in a deliberate manner.

One of the principles of the BMS method is that the parents should be burdened as little as possible. The treatment should not interfere with normal family activities. That is the only way in which parents will be able to stimulate their children regularly and therefore to bring them up as normally as possible. The paediatric physiotherapist will make the parents’ wishes a priority and will tailor the treatment to the specific situation of the individual family.

In the course of the treatment, the parents will gain insight into the specific motor problems and development of their child. Thus, the Lauteslager method enables parents to take an active part in their own child’s physical development.

Practical examples of collaboration with parents:

Anne
The most important thing we learnt from Peter was to adjust our tempo to Anne’s reaction speed. As a result, she had more time to move and to develop. Now, for example, when we are changing her nappy, we let her roll onto her side. We look very closely to see if she is actively moving herself. If we are too quick then she doesn’t need to do anything. But if we wait for a moment, Anne almost completely rolls over! It’s not much effort to include these exercise movements into the daily routine. It is exactly moments like that which are stimulating her motor development.

Daan
Daan found it difficult to maintain his balance when he was sitting. Recently, on Peter’s advice we then dressed him with him sitting on the ground. Previously, we had always done that with him lying on the changing mat. In the course of being dressed and undressed Daan himself had to take care not to fall over. Now he is doing his best to maintain his balance. And he’s getting better and better! In this way, we are doing movement exercises in the sitting position with him at least twice a day. It is nice to discover that you can stimulate your child’s motor development yourself in a playful way.