Deformities of the Spine
Spinal deformities arise as a consequence of incorrect body posture. Defective body posture is caused by unstable posture or by changes in the curve of the spine. Spinal deformities are typically pervasive. This group includes various types of scoliosis, as well as so-called “roundback”, and other deformities on the front-rear plane of the body.
Supporting children with physical disabilities in kindergarten
As regards the education of children with a physical disability, you must bear in mind that the child is learning how to move, and learning through movement. Children with a physical disability may – due to limited mobility – have limited possibilities in terms of acquiring experience from their surroundings. Personality disorders often co-occur in children with organic damage to the brain. Memory tends to be affected by how easily the child tires; problems occur in particular when recalling and reproducing previous information.
• We use games to teach the child the stereotypical movements they will need in school and especially in everyday life. We therefore try to regularly practice grasping objects of different sizes and manipulating everyday items. The child should also learn to be as independent in self-care as possible.
• When educating children with severe disability (including mental, physical or combined) we should remember that they have difficulties satisfying their basic needs.
This concerns mainly the following needs:
• The need to avoid hunger, thirst and pain,
• The need for stimulation, change and movement,
• The need for security, stability – stability of relationships,
• The need to bond, to be accepted, the need for tenderness,
• The need for respect, and self-worth,
• The need for independence, self-reliance and self-determination.
If the defined goals of education and upbringing of children with severe disabilities are to be met, the satisfaction of the above needs is a fundamental condition.
• We should also make sure to regularly change the child’s position, to ensure proper blood circulation throughout the body and to avoid long-term compression of organs in the abdominal cavity (e.g. after spending the entire day in a wheelchair).
• Using massage balls, touch and careful manipulation to convey tactile and sensory stimuli from the parts of their body whose movement the child cannot control (for instance massaging, touching or carefully moving the immobile or reduced-mobility arm of the child).