FIll It Up Friday- The W-Sit

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Fill it up Friday

Each Friday we will look at an article to fill up on the whys of teaching.

So I have to give a shout out to one of my parents (I lovingly refer to the parents of my students as my parents) for sharing this one with me.  She is an OT and did an ah-mazing training at my school for handwriting.  I was blown away by the how much of handwriting has nothing at all to do with handwriting.  As a Kindergarten teacher I wanted to know more and have attended classes put on by OT, PT, and teachers at various conferences to learn more.
Here is the article she shared: What's Wrong with W-Sitting?  It is a really short one so I recommend heading over there for a quick read.
Basically it is on the hazards of W-sitting.  Have you heard of a W-sit?  I hadn't until my parent shared it.  This is a sitting position where the child has their legs splayed out to the sides of them, slightly behind them.  Don't even think about trying this as a grown up unless you are a yogi.  Since most of use aren't yogis I found this graphic to demonstrate:
 
 This was found on the Little Hands Love Big blog.  She is a pediatric occupational therapist who has several suggestions for better sitting postures.

The year my parent held this class I had several little ones who had difficulty with writing, but more importantly difficulty sitting in a chair without falling out. After reading this article and realizing how many of my children were using this as their primary method for sitting during play I realized that at least part of the problem could be the position so I took action.  I am a big proponent of class meetings and shared much of this information with the children themselves.  I let them know that sitting in the W-sit can make it hard to get their "best work" while writing ("best work" is a phrase I use A TON with my kids!).  After our meeting the kids took the lead and ensured that they reminded one another about sitting in a more appropriate manner.

Have an article you’d like to share?  Let me know!

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