Developing Gross Motor Skills at the Park | Yorba Regional Park

There are many ways to improve your child’s balance and coordination when exploring in your local community. Visiting local parks can be a great way to work on these skills, while also having a lot of fun! 

Yorba Regional Park is a beautiful, spacious park, only a 10-minute drive from Infinity Kids in Anaheim Hills. As a physical therapist, I love this park due to its huge variety of activities available, including volleyball, fishing, physical fitness course, and boat riding. 

Here are some of my favorite ways to work on balance and coordination: 

1. Balance on the large rocks near the water. Hold onto your child for safety, and have them walk across the stones. Begin with larger rocks that are close together, or find rocks that are smaller and further apart to make more challenging.
2. Practice jumping! Hold one or both of your child’s hands, and encourage them to jump off or onto rocks. Start with smaller, flat rocks, and progress to taller rocks. 
3. Practice walking on an uneven surface, such as a bumpy grass hill, dirt walkway, or over tree roots. Have your child practice walking sideways or backwards. 
4. Kick a soccer ball on a grassy field. Encourage your child can kick with left and right legs, and see if they can stop the ball from moving by placing their foot on top. 
5. Reverse playground use. Have your child climb UP a slide, DOWN a rock climbing wall, or DOWN a ladder. Sometimes doing skills in a new or different way can be difficult for kids to figure out. 

We hope you enjoy the outdoors and have plenty of fun exploring!