Grade R - Muscle Mania

WHAT?

Muscle Mania is a programme developed for Grade R’s to develop:

• Fine motor and pre-writing skills
• Basic letter formation of lower case letters
• Number formations
• It also includes the functional fine motor and manipulatory skills required for Grade 1, including cutting, glueing, folding and colouring.

WHY?

The carefully selected activities

• Develop arm and wrist muscles as a support for the development of finger movements
• Strengthen hand muscles and in-hand manipulation

Muscle Mania introduces fun ways to develop the correct scissor and pencil grip from Grade R. Opportunity is also given for the children to learn the correct motor plan for each letter and begin learning letter formation which is now part of the Grade R curriculum.

HOW?

• 'Muggle' the Muscle Mania monkey brings fun and exciting new fine motor adventures to the classroom each lesson.
• Muscle Mania focuses on doing specific activities to develop the required movement patterns needed for colouring and cutting skills. The graded activities then move on to pre-handwriting and writing skills, with letter and number formation in the “Happy Handwriter” books.
• The OT presents the lesson; the teacher enhances the teaching aspects, ensuring clarity, and the OT and classroom assistant help the children perform each activity correctly.

WHEN?

• Two thirty-minute Muscle Mania lessons a week during the Grade R school day.
• The programme works because it is regular, repetitive and relevant, allowing consolidation and development of new fine motor skills.

History of the Programme

• Developed by occupational therapist Bunty McDougall, who has a long-standing interest in fine motor skills and handwriting.
• Trialed and refined over the past 8 years in more than 60 classrooms.
• Implemented in private schools, ex-model C schools, and previously disadvantaged settings.
• Designed specifically for large group classroom settings.
• Successfully run in classrooms of up to 45 children.
• Forms an integral part of school readiness programmes where it has been implemented.

Why does it Work?

• Built on solid fine motor and orthographic principles.
• Carefully graded activities build and develop skills progressively.
• Children love Muggle the Monkey, making the activities engaging and effective.
• Activities target goals directly and are suitable for large groups.
• Lessons are run by occupational therapists who understand handwriting skill development deeply.
• Teachers are integral to the lessons, ensuring carryover into daily classroom activities.

Structure of a Lesson

• Each lesson begins with a brief introductory story to engage the children—Muggle the Monkey leads them on adventures introducing the day’s activity.
• A main activity with clear goals follows.
• A skill-building activity focusing on muscle development concludes the lesson.

Skills in the Programme

• Functional Fine Motor Skills: cutting, pasting, folding, ruler skills.
• Manipulatory Skills: tearing, fringing, scrunching.
• Spatial skills including spatial assembly.
• Muscle development: wrist extension, hand differentiation, foundational pencil-grip muscles.
• Movement patterns for pencil control.
• Letter and number formation aligned with CAPS requirements.

What about Children who are in OT?

• These groups do not replace individual occupational therapy.
• They are highly supportive and beneficial for children already in therapy.
• If no improvement is noted, teachers may consider referral for OT assessment.