Picture an imaginary line that runs down the middle of your body from the top of your head to your feet, equally dividing your body into right and left halves. That’s the midline! The ability to “cross the midline” is the ability to reach with the right hand/foot to do things on the left side of the body and vice versa. Crossing the midline is a good sign that both sides of your child’s brain are working together to support their independence in handwriting, reading, and self-care!

The inability to cross the midline can have a significant impact on visual perception and coordination! When a child struggles with crossing the midline, it may lead to:

❌Limited Visual Field: Difficulty in crossing the midline can restrict a child’s ability to explore their full visual field. This may affect their awareness of objects or text on the opposite side.

❌Reading Challenges: Crossing the midline is crucial for tracking words across a page. Children who can’t do this easily may struggle with smoothly following lines of text, leading to slower and less efficient reading.

❌Hand-Eye Coordination: Cross-midline movements help improve hand-eye coordination, which is essential for activities like catching a ball, handwriting, and tying shoes, and may other tasks. Difficulty here can impact a child’s ability to perform these tasks.

❌Spatial Awareness: Crossing the midline is linked to the development of spatial awareness and a sense of left and right. When this is impaired, children may struggle with tasks like understanding directions or orienting themselves in space.

❌Balance and Coordination: Crossing the midline aids in bilateral coordination, which is essential for balance and coordination during physical activities. Without this skill, children might face challenges in sports and physical education.

❌Visual Tracking: It’s closely related to the ability to track moving objects smoothly. Children who can’t cross the midline easily might struggle to follow a flying ball, which can impact their performance in sports and games.

The inability to cross the midline impacts so many daily activities. How hard do you think it would be for child to pay attention who can’t cross the midline? Or do tasks without getting frustrated? What about the impact on self-confidence and self-esteem?

Certainly! So, if you recognize these signs in your child, here are some fun activities you can work on at home that can help your child improve their midline crossing skills:

✅Figure Eights: Drawing or tracing figure eights (the infinity symbol) with the hand is an excellent way to practice midline crossing.

✅Balloon Volleyball: Playing a game of “volleyball” with a balloon is a fantastic way to encourage kids to reach and stretch across the midline.

✅ Simon Says: Play a game of Simon Says that includes actions that cross the midline, such as “Simon says touch your left hand to your right foot.”

✅Hand Clapping Games: Many hand clapping games involve crossing the hands over the midline, and they are both fun and challenging.

✅Puzzles: Jigsaw puzzles, especially those with pieces that need to be placed on the opposite side of the body, can help improve midline crossing.

✅Threading Beads: Stringing beads onto a thread or lace involves crossing the midline and is a great fine motor activity.

✅Yoga Poses: Some yoga poses, such as the “cat-cow” stretch, can involve crossing the midline and improve flexibility.