Hand-eye coordination

Hand-eye coordination may look simple, but your child’s brain and muscles have to work together in harmony to make these movements work.

PICKING UP A toy or bringing a piece of banana to the mouth may look simple to an observer, but it’s actually a complicated task for your little one. He needs his eyes to see, his brain to process, interpret and understand what he’s seen, and using that information, he must plan his next action. And on top of that his muscles must then work smoothly enough to be able to execute elegantly coordinated motor activities. Just think how many times a day your eyes and hands have to work together and you’ll understand why you’d want your child to master this skill as well as possible.

Hand-eye coordination is linked to fine motor control. This refers to the body’s ability to control the tiny muscles in the hands, fingers and eyes. Children’s gross motor skills develop first – these are all the movements for which the large muscle groups are needed. It’s important to provide plenty of opportunities for your child to practise her large muscle groups by letting her run, climb, jump and crawl, as this is how she develops body awareness. This ability refines over time so that the smaller muscles of the body also soon fall into line under your child’s total control.

WHAT DO THE EYES DO?

Our eyes need to see, to follow moving objects, to be able to focus near and far, to estimate distance, to observe detail and to then guide the movement of the hands.

WHAT DO THE HANDS DO?

Our hands must feel texture, form, temperature and weight. Hands hold and manipulate an object, pull, replace, catch, throw, clap, rub, press or point. But without the guidance provided by the eyes, these actions would be useless.

HOW DOES IT DEVELOP?

At birth, your baby’s eyesight is weak. It is only with exercise and repetition over a few months that he learns to track an object with his eyes. Initially the object has to be close by and moving slowly. Later, he’ll start reaching for the object. If he can grab hold of it, he’ll put it straight in his mouth. These behaviours are all precursors to adult hand-eye coordination.

With toddlers, you’ll notice that good hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills play a role in how a child learns to look after himself. Think of the skills and movements required for dressing,

brushing teeth, and feeding yourself. Allow your little one plenty of time to practise and perfect his technique, though. It’s not a race. And don’t be tempted always to take over if you’re in a hurry. Why? Because by schoolgoing age, hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills are the key to better performance in the classroom as these skills are used to learn to write, cut, copy off the board, and read.