16 replies to this topic

[jellytots]

Hello All!

I have just been speaking to a KW in our setting about a specific child. The said child is continually matching objects/lining up objects throughout the day here whether it be during play or even at snack! Just this morning she has lined up all the pairs of shoes in the baseroom, laid flat in lines pieces of tissue paper, put matching animals in a big circle, lined up her apple pieces in a long line before eating, and the list goes on!

I am struggling to suggest ways in which these characteristics can be developed to suit the child. I don't think it is anything to worry about, I have suggested for KW to mention to mum to see if the same occurs at home, but I would ideally like to foster this interest she has into some fun activities for her. I am hoping to have aninformal chat to her about her interests at some point this week so maybe this will highlight more areas of interest too.

Sorry if this sounds a little odd, would appreciate any suggestions!

Jellytots

[Beau]

Have you looked very much into Schema's? This site is a very good starting point.

[Weightman]

Definitely sounds like schematic behaviour to me!

[jellytots]

Brilliant! Just what I was looking for!

[Peggy]

Agree with others and if you have any areas of her development, concept understanding that you are not sure of or want to extend then you could use this interest to inform plans. For example, do you know whether she could benefit from some maths input, if yes, then providing a washing line with numbers, shapes to sequence etc in a line would most probably grab her interest compared to say looking at these concepts through 'non linear' activities. (hope tat makes sense).

This could be incorporated in many learning areas, pictures to make a story line (CLL). Length and measure, colour shading.
musical bottle water chimes set out in a line, dough balls in a circle (fine motor skills) all sorts of sorting in a linear fashion.
And even musical chairs for some physical activity and one less than.

One of the pictures below is where a girl lined compare bears up, matching the number on the strip of white paper at the base.

Activities could then extend to weaving and other patterns.

Have fun

Peggy

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•  lines.GIF   857.4K   53 downloads
•  weave.GIF   656.57K   45 downloads

[Esme]

Hi everyone,
This is my first post although I've been reading the forum for a long time, and I don't know what I'd do without it.
I've decided to post on this thread after thinking long and hard about whether or not I should.
When my son was 6 years old he started lining objects up in just the same way that you describe jellytot, even lining the balls up in the garden in size order at the end of the day. My husband and I used to think what a good boy he was for tidying up. But to cut a long story short, it took over his life and was eventually diagnosed as having Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Please don't think I'm suggesting for one minute that your child has OCD because the likelihood is that it is a schema, but I'm just wondering if you should keep the thought at the back of your mind.
I hope I've not offended anyone.

[Inge]

so glad you took the plunge Esme to make that first post.. no stopping you now..

it is always worth making comments or observations that others may not think of and perhaps making us think in a different direction..


welcome and look forward to hearing more...

Inge

[Beau]

Hi and welcome to the forum Esme and thanks for sharing such a personal story with us. I think it really does illustrate that there are so many sides to any given behaviour and we are all just second guessing all the time to try to make sense of what is going on.

As with all things associated with mental health, the reasons why one person may develop what society would deem 'normal' behaviour and another develops behaviour which leads to a mental disorder label is quite complex. Did you see the Horizon programmes on BBC2 about mental health? It was fascinating to watch and really made you think about how mental disorders are defined and diagnosed, along with the stigma that is attached to the disorder itself.

I do hope that your son has had good support and been able to bring his compulsions under control to enable him to live his life fully.

[Peggy]

A Warm welcome to te forum Esme, and as others have said thank you for sharing your personal experience to shed another perspective to this thread. In no way do I think you could have offended anyone, your gesture to share is admirable.

Peggy

[HappyMaz]

Welcome to the Forum, Esme

I know how brave you needed to be to share that story with us: and it is a useful reminder that for some children these behaviours are just an example of schematic behaviour which we can exploit to help them learn and develop in meaningful ways. However for a small minority they can be a precursor to something altogether more worrying - and this is why we need to be sensitive to children and the behaviours they display.

Thank you for making me think about this more deeply - and I look forward to reading more of your posts in future!

Maz

[Wolfie]

A warm welcome from me too, Esme!

[emmajess]

Welcome to the forum Esme - what a thought-provoking first post.

[yasmeenmultani]

A warm welcome from me too Esme

[Nichola]

Welcome Esme, what a great first post.
In answer to the original post, there are a number of different reasons as to why they like lining things up but another thought to put into your head is something that we find very common at work. The children who line objects up are often those children on the Autistic Spectrum. We have several kids who love nothing more than lining things up no matter what they are. Just another thing to keep at the back of your mind.

[Esme]

Thanks everyone for the warm welcome.
This forum is so friendly and that's because you're made to feel that it isn't you against the rest of the world. We're all in this together and all want the best end product possible.
Thanks again.