Healthy Posture for Babies and Children: Tools for Helping Children to Sit, Stand, and Walk Naturally

A manual for parents, teachers, and kids to restore their natural alignment • Explores the principles of natural alignment in accessible ways to share with children • Details simple and fun exercises--for kids and adults alike--that “remind” the body of its natural patterns and movements • Explains how innate movements and natural alignment play an essential role in the development of a fully functioning body and nervous system Babies and toddlers develop naturally healthy alignment by moving in instinctive ways. Their posture is easy and relaxed, founded on correct pelvic positioning and deep core muscles to hold their bodies upright. Yet, as evidenced by the slouching epidemic seen in school-age children, most kids lose this natural alignment early in life, often due to an overreliance on strollers, baby seats, and bucket-style carriers during infancy and the reluctance to put babies on their bellies because of widespread fear of SIDS. In this richly illustrated manual for parents, teachers, and kids themselves, movement educator and researcher Kathleen Porter explains how to relearn natural alignment with a simple movement routine that “reminds” the body of its natural patterns. Detailing the principles of natural alignment in accessible ways to share with children, she also explores research on the importance of “tummy time” and how the movement patterns present at birth act as an engine that activates neural pathways to key areas of the brain.