More and more skilled movement with preschoolers: figures and insights

Physical activity is good for physical and mental health. Attention and provision are growing for all kinds of target groups, but preschoolers are still often overlooked. Even though this is precisely where much can be gained. It is crucial that children engage in enjoyable, frequent and varied physical activity from an early age. This stimulates their motor skills. Well-developed motor skills are decisive when it comes to participating in sports and games during childhood and later in life. The extent to which young children are physically active also determines their physical activity behavior throughout the rest of their lives.

Preschoolers and physical activity: the figures

According to the physical activity guidelines, children aged 4 and over should engage in at least one hour of moderate-intensity physical activity every day to stay healthy. They should also do muscle- and bone-strengthening exercises three times a week and avoid sitting still too much. The figures show that:

• Only 55.9% of preschoolers met the physical activity guidelines in 2019[1].
• Of preschoolers, 66% participated in sports weekly in 2019, including school swimming and swimming lessons[1].
• Preschoolers spent more than six hours sitting each day in 2019[1].

Children spend a great deal of time using media. For example, children aged 0 to 6 spend an average of an hour and a half per day on various media activities. This exceeds the guidelines of the World Health Organization (WHO). They advise that young children up to the age of 2 should preferably use as little media as possible, and that children up to the age of 5 should use it for a maximum of one hour per day.

Impact of the coronavirus pandemic on preschoolers and physical activity

The coronavirus pandemic also left its mark on the physical activity behavior and motor development of preschoolers, as the Mulier Institute investigated in 2021:

• After the first lockdown, a larger proportion of primary school children had less-developed motor skills than children of the same age before the lockdown.
• Preschool programs at sports clubs were discontinued, and there were no more physical education lessons at school.
• Preschoolers in particular scored worse after the lockdown, especially in balancing. This suggests that frequent physical activity is important for developing balance skills.

The importance of motor skills in preschoolers

Research shows that good motor development lays the foundation for a lifetime of enjoyment in sports and physical activity. After all, preschoolers who are skilled at moving are also more physically active later in life. And vice versa: preschoolers who do not learn to move well are less active later on. We explain exactly how this works.

Frequent and varied physical activity is extremely important for young children’s physical and mental health and proper development. Children with well-developed motor skills generally exercise and play sports more, which means they are often fitter and become even more skilled. They enjoy sports and physical activity more and are less likely to develop chronic conditions or become overweight. This also continues as they grow older, because they often continue to participate in sports and physical activity later in life.

The relationship between skills and level of physical activity

David Stodden’s model shows that the parameters ‘motor skill’ and ‘level of physical activity’ are related. Each influences the other. The model also shows that this relationship is different for young children up to approximately age 8 than it is for older children:

Up to the age of 7–8, the development of motor skills is stimulated by varied and sufficient physical activity. Children develop their skills by moving in a challenging and varied environment where they can experiment. The actual level of their motor skills is not yet important.

From the age of 7–8, this relationship begins to reverse: motor skills start to stimulate the level of physical activity. Between the ages of 9 and 12, we see that children with better motor skills participate more in sports and games than children who are less skilled.

It is therefore crucial that children engage in frequent and varied physical activity at a young age and develop their motor skills properly. At a later age, these skills influence how much they continue to participate in sports and physical activity. This continues to affect them throughout their lives. Primary school is an important place for every child’s positive future in sports and physical activity. Good and sufficient physical education in particular lays the foundation. Read more here about the positive effects of more sports and physical activity at school.

Measuring physical activity and motor skills

Measuring motor skills in preschoolers is still difficult because development occurs in leaps. From the third year of primary school onward, a suitable measuring instrument can be used to assess physical activity skills and motor development. Here you can find the guide for schools on choosing a suitable measuring instrument. Based on the results, suitable additional physical activity or support programs can be offered to groups or specific children.

The influence of the social environment

This brings us to the question: how can we work together to ensure that preschoolers get enough physical activity? The social environment has a major influence on preschoolers’ physical activity behavior. It helps if we encourage them to be active in many different ways.

Parents and grandparents can be more physically active at home with their children or grandchildren, childcare providers can offer more activities involving movement, schools can schedule more activity breaks during the day, municipalities can provide more attractive play areas, community sports coaches can organize more activities for preschoolers in the neighborhood, and sports clubs can also expand their offerings for preschoolers. We will explain a few of these roles in more detail.

The role of the specialist teacher

From 2023 onward, all preschoolers will be required to receive two hours of physical education per week from a qualified teacher. In the Netherlands, most preschoolers receive physical education from their class teacher. Research shows that using a specialist teacher adds value to the motor development of preschoolers[2]. This is someone who knows which lessons, exercises, methods or interventions should be used to teach all motor skills. Physical education specialist Theo de Groot, in Rotterdam, shares his vision and tips for physical education lessons that meet preschoolers’ natural need to move.

Below, watch the video by physical education teacher Sander Geurtsen about physical education specifically for preschoolers. He explains how he teaches fundamental motor skills and ensures sufficient variation and differentiation.

The role of the class teacher

Preschoolers do not acquire motor skills only during physical education lessons, but also in the classroom and in the school playground. Many schools would like to do more to promote physical activity, including for preschoolers. The Dynamic School Day is also becoming increasingly popular. Below, see how De Waterhof primary school in Delft organizes its Dynamic School Day.

At Columbus primary school in Almere, the specialist teacher and class teacher work together, starting from the preschool years. Class teacher Ilja Wardenaar explains how this works. “The same specialist teacher teaches my preschool group twice a week. That is very valuable, because I can consult with this colleague about what is going on in my group. When it comes to social interaction among the preschoolers, we can work things out together for the gym. After the summer holidays, for example, we always start with a new group, and group formation can continue in the gym. We then decide together which children we can place together in a group for a little longer or which game we can try to encourage even more interaction among the preschoolers.”

Ilja explains that the physical education lesson is sometimes also an extension of the other lessons: “We recently finished the pirates theme, and the specialist teacher then adapted an entire physical education lesson to the pirates theme. This makes the children extra motivated to move. It is really nice to have the lessons flow into one another like that. As a class teacher, it is also helpful for me to observe the interaction within my group from a distance for a while, or to give one-on-one attention to a preschooler.”

The role of the community sports coach

In 2021, we investigated how community sports coaches experience physical activity with children aged 0 to 6. Most community sports coaches already offer activities for young children. The vast majority of these activities are aimed at preschoolers, whom the community sports coach reaches through schools and sports clubs.

Community sports coaches mainly offer sports and physical activity lessons. They also raise parents’ and partners’ awareness of the importance of physical activity for young children and refer them to local programs. Examples of enjoyable local initiatives include:

• An activity program at a playground, combined with eating tips.
• Community sports coaches are sometimes hired as specialist teachers in preschool classes at school.
• Providing after-school lessons for preschoolers to facilitate their transition to sports clubs.

The role of out-of-school care

Many young children regularly spend time in childcare. Childcare organizations therefore have a major influence on young children’s physical activity behavior—and consequently on their development. In practice, frequent physical activity and play are not always a given. For example, the social and physical environment of out-of-school care does not always challenge preschoolers enough to be active. And the physical activity guidelines are often not included in childcare policy.

An important step in making out-of-school care more conducive to physical activity is to establish physical activity in policy and implement it within the organization. Several studies have concluded that training childcare staff also leads to an increase in the amount of physical activity within childcare. Would you like to increase physical activity at out-of-school care? Then view these tips for physical activity policy in out-of-school care and this article with practical activity tips for out-of-school care.

Conclusion

The more physical activity, the better! It is clear that we can all play a part in ensuring that preschoolers have the opportunity to develop into people with strong motor skills who enjoy physical activity throughout their lives.