Pyramid of Learning

“Where do I begin?”

This question often comes about when thinking of ways to support our children. Many of us benefit from having a structure or general guidelines; the “Pyramid of Learning” is a source for that. The Pyramid of Learning is an illustration that depicts a general idea of our children’s foundational skills, and what other skills build upon those. This information is useful, as it helps breakdown skill sets into underlying characteristics and helps prioritize what to address.

The Pyramid of Learning

The Pyramid of Learning was developed by occupational therapist Kathleen Taylor and special educator Maryann Trott. They utilized the Sensory Integration theorist, Jean Ayres’, concepts to display the foundational skills that support academic learning.

This illustration outlines the foundational skills at the bottom of the pyramid, and the skills that are supported by the foundational skills on the tiers above. Once the bottom tiers of the pyramid are adequate, the tiers above can be more efficiently developed. Addressing the skills in this order is known as utilizing the bottom-up approach.

The Pyramid of Learning Tiers

The very bottom box in the illustration is the central nervous system, which most closely supports the second tier.

The second tier identifies our children’s sensory systems:

• Olfactory (smell)
• Visual (vision)
• Auditory (hearing)
• Gustatory (taste)
• Tactile (touch)
• Vestibular (balance)
• Proprioception (knowing where their bodies are in space)

The third tier depicts their sensory-motor development:

• Body scheme (body awareness through movement)
• Reflex maturity (having developed reflexes, for safety purposes)
• Ability to screen input (knowing what sensory experiences are important to pay more attention to)
• Postural security (confidence in maintaining certain postures to prevent falling)
• Awareness of two sides of the body (bilateral integration)
• Motor planning (ability to plan their movement)

Build forearm control with forearm supination activities, or try classroom proprioception strategies.

The fourth tier depicts perceptual motor development:

• Auditory language skills (hearing and speaking appropriately)
• Visual-spatial perception (identifying what is seen in space). Parents may want to help assist their children in this area by checking out the Little Thinkers Center (littlethinkerscenter.com) to learn more about this and to see how they can implement this development into their day to day lives.
• Attention center functions (maintaining attention to tasks)
• Eye-hand coordination (when they use what they see to guide the movement of their hands)
• Ocular motor control (locating and fixating on something in their environment)
• Postural adjustment (adjusting their posture to maintain balance)

The fifth/top tier depicts cognition intellect:

• Academic learning
• Daily living activities (such as eating, toileting, bathing)
• Behavior
• This means that the quality of our children’s sensory systems (the second tier) is closely linked to adequate functioning of their central nervous system (the first tier).

Our children’s ability to plan their own movements, use both the left and right sides of their body efficiently, along with other sensory motor development characteristics (the third tier), depend on the quality of their vision, touch, proprioception, and other sensory systems (the second tier).

Their ability to use their eyes and hands in a coordinated manner, their ability to adjust their posture for balance, and other perceptual motor development characteristics (the fourth tier), depend on their ability to plan their own movements, and other sensory motor development characteristics (the third tier).

Their ability to attend to formal, academic learning, eat, bathe, toilet, and perform other cognition intellect characteristics (the fifth tier), depend on their abilities to adjust their posture for balance, and coordinate their eyes and hands together, and other perceptual motor development characteristics (the fourth tier).

The pyramid at a glance

Cognition and learningAcademic learning · Daily living skills · Behavior

Perceptual motor skillsEye-hand coordination · Ocular motor control · Visual-spatial perception · Auditory language · Attention · Postural adjustment

Sensory motor skillsBody scheme · Reflex maturity · Screening input · Postural security · Using both sides of the body · Motor planning

Sensory systemsSmell · Sight · Hearing · Taste · Touch · Vestibular (movement and balance) · Proprioception (body position)

Central nervous system

OT activities for each level of the pyramid

You can support every level of the pyramid through play. These OTPlan activity collections match each level, using simple materials you probably already have.

• Sensory systems: touch and tactile play, heavy work and proprioception, movement and vestibular input, and sensory processing activities.
• Sensory motor skills: body awareness, motor planning, using both hands together, crossing midline, balance, and core strength.
• Perceptual motor skills: eye-hand coordination, ocular motor control, visual perception, visual tracking, and visual motor activities.
• Cognition and learning: daily living skills, sequencing, executive functioning, pre-writing, and scissor skills.

You can also browse activities by skill or start with your child’s age: toddlers, preschoolers, or school-age kids.

How to use the pyramid at home

• When a task is hard for your child, look one or two levels down. If handwriting is tiring, for example, play with core strength, hand strength, and eye-hand coordination alongside writing practice.
• Start with what your child enjoys. A child who loves movement may focus best after a few minutes of heavy work, like carrying a laundry basket or doing animal walks.
• Treat the pyramid as a guide, not a checklist. Children build skills at several levels at the same time, and every child’s path looks different.
• Notice your child’s sensory preferences. Seeking or avoiding certain sounds, textures, or movement tells you something useful about what their body needs.
• If you have questions about your child’s development, talk with your pediatrician or an occupational therapist.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Pyramid of Learning?

The Pyramid of Learning is a diagram created by occupational therapist Kathleen Taylor and special educator Maryann Trott. It shows how the central nervous system and the sensory systems form a base for sensory motor and perceptual motor skills, which then support attention, daily living skills, and academic learning.

What is the bottom-up approach?

A bottom-up approach supports the foundational skills lower on the pyramid, like sensory processing and motor planning, to help the skills that build on them. In practice, occupational therapists often combine this with practicing the actual task a child wants to do, like writing their name or buttoning a coat.

Is the Pyramid of Learning the same as the sensory pyramid?

Many people search for it as the sensory pyramid, the sensory pyramid of learning, or the learning skills pyramid. These names usually refer to the same idea: the senses at the base and learning at the top.

Does my child need to master one level before the next?

No. Development overlaps, and children work on several levels at the same time. The pyramid is a way to think about what might sit underneath a challenge, not a strict order to follow.

How can I use the Pyramid of Learning at home?

Pick a skill your child is working on, find its level on the pyramid, and add a few playful activities from the level below it. Short, regular play works better than long sessions, and following your child’s interests keeps it fun.