It is imperative for today’s teachers to be well versed in children’s health and acknowledge that just over twenty one percent of five to eleven year old children in Australia are either overweight or obese (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). In addition to this, the 2007 Australian National Children’s Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey found children did not adhere to recommended Australian nutritional guidelines (Commonwealth Scientific Industrial Research Organisation, 2008). Due to the large portion of time children spend at school it is paramount for teachers to play an active role in educating and helping children combat these statistics and implement healthy lifestyles. Following is a discussion on the physical development of children in middle childhood focusing on development of fundamental motor skills (FMS) and how these skills can aid in increasing a child’s level of physical activity. The discussion is supplemented with strategies to integrate incidence of physical activity in the classroom to promote healthy life long habits.
Middle childhood, as defined by McDevitt and Ormrod (2010, p. 161) as being “six to ten year olds”, is a time where children’s growth rates slow down while motor skills continue to improve with practice (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010). In this age group children will be strengthening their FMS and expanding on their motor ability. A strong base in FMS increases future opportunities to engage in physical activity, a notion agreed upon by Stodden and Goodway (2007) and Branta (2010). In this age group children refine their motor skills and begin to utilise them purposefully (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010). Gross motor skills such as running and catching increase in speed and coordination, while fi...
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Through the performance of physical activity in children there is a continued positive effect on the motor development and further refinement of actions. During this developmental stage, it ...
Generally, preschoolers mainly engage in physical activity with other children (“Preschoolers at play”). Teachers encourage this by helping children plan roles, encouraging to talk to peers, and posing open ended questions since physical play is significant to the development of children (Rice 2). According to the Child Development Institute, physical play helps a child develop connections between the nerve cells and the brain (Wonderly 1). As these connections develop, a child’s fine and gross motor skills are improved (Wonderly 1). According to the North Carolina Child Care Health and Safety Resource Center, “All children birth to age five as well as school age children should engage in daily physical activity that promotes health-related fitness and movement skills” (Wonderly 2). This is due to the fact that physical activity is significant to children and their development because the process of physical development starts in human infancy and the peak of physical development happens in childhood (Thomas 1). It is a crucial time from infancy to late adolescence for neurological brain development and body coordination (Thomas 1). This is a time where gross and fine
Getting involved in any school or at home physical activity helps promote a healthy habit and reduce the risk of heart disease .Children can play on the playground and by going up and down the slice help’s weigh management. When my son was 3 years old, I fel...
The text depicts a historical perspective on Middle Childhood, as during the twentieth century, children were viewed primarily as an economic source of income, in terms of providing for the family. According to the text this happens often in European counties and in parts of the United States. Elizabeth D. Hutchinson, Dimensions of Human Behavior The Changing Life Course 3rd, 2008. In this short review we will look at how this historical perspective in itself is not a question to how, but when these individual give.
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Physical, Intellectual, Emotional and Social Development of Children Ages 0-8 Years Works Cited Not Included Physical development When the baby is picked up, the head falls backwards. This is because the neck muscles are not strong and developed enough to support the head. This is why the head always needs to be supported when the baby is lifted. When a newborn baby is held in a sitting position, they appear to roll up into a ball.
Physical activity enhances children’s quantitative development within middle childhood, supporting growth toward healthy strong people, physically and psychology. Middle childhood is documented as being between the ages of six to ten years old. A lack of physical activity affects children across all areas of development; it is not restricted within the domain of physical development. Discussed within are the expectations of motor development within middle childhood, the benefits of physical activity and the consequences of prolonged inactivity. Along with how a student’s physical development facilitates or restricts development in other areas and how the learning environment can accommodate and support the physical needs of students.
In our society today one of the most difficult problems we are facing is the large numbers of obesity in our children. One of the major factors in that is this; our children have become less physically active. At an early age children start watching TV, learn how to operate a computer, and play video games. Having technological skills is now a necessity in all of our lives because everything has turned “computerized,” but the fact is that our children are relying on these types of entertainment rather than getting up and physically exercising to entertain them selves. This directly affects the large number of obese children in our country today because of the lack of physical exercise. It is not that we want our kids to look a certain way or to be better at sports than everyone else, but it is that we want our kids to be physically fit and to develop a healthy lifestyle. Physical exercise is not only for adults, it is for children as well, so we must understand the importance of our children exercising and the benefits from it. By doing that it will make an impact on that child for the rest of his/her life.
Physical education exists in schools to help students perform physical activity in schools and promote healthy lifestyles. It is extremely important that physical education teachers promote physical activity and healthy diets to young students because they are the ones who will be at risk of developing health issues such as obesity. Physical educators need to teach the younger generation the proper way to stay healthy so that they will continue to be physically active outside of phys...
Childhood obesity poses a serious threat to the health of our nation, children these days have little to none outdoors activities. Lack of physical activity found to be a significant factor in contributing to childhood obesity. It is very probable that the only outdoors activity that children have now is a P.E. class at school if the school offers it. It doesn’t help that most schools in the United States have had physical activities and recess programs removed from the school. In the article Physical activity and childhood obesity: strategies and solutions for schools and parents the author states, “During active class time, physical educators can look to the teachable moment in which they can talk to an entire class concerning individual differences. Just as the teaching of good sportsmanship should be an essential component of all elementary physical education programs, the recognition of obese and overweight children should be taught so that children become sensitive to the thoughts and feelings of others”.
With more technology to feel the gap of physical labor for humans and poor nutrition, obesity is rising and people are not living up to their potential. Children have been spending more time indoors with a screen in their face and a controller in their hand. Lack of physical activity not only causes obesity, but lack of brain power and achievement. Children and their families need to be taught the proper ways of how to be healthy in physical education classes to maintain their health across their life span. By incorporating in more lifelong knowledge about health into our physical education systems, obesity rates will drop and students will do much better in school.
Play gives the opportunities for children to develop both individual gross and fine muscle strength. Many people experiencing health problems from being overweight, we have a responsibility to encourage physical activity in young children.
“Children who exercise regularly have higher levels of self-esteem.” (Brown, W.J. & Brown P.R., 1996, p19). Teaching Physical Education can have immediate health benefits as it helps normalise body weight and body composition. Physical activity also promotes positive mental health. Both immediate outcomes may be useful in motivating physical activity practices so that they have long term benefits. One of the main benefits of physical activity is that “it keeps children involved and that it invariably makes you feel good.” (Brown, W.J. & Brown P.R., 1996, p19). Getting the correct amount of Physical activity in school hours will decrease the rates of obesity and will reduce the risk of diabetes, asthma, heart disease and other health related illness’. Regular exercise for children also helps their cardiovascular health and bone development. There is also evidence that Physical Activity has a positive effect on mental health in children, including reducing anxiety and depression and improving their mood. However, there is some evidence that for children who don’t enjoy Physical Education it can have a negative impact on their self-esteem and
Physical development also supports a child’s personal social and emotional development. If a child can participate in physical activity they learn about the environment around them. By being able to participate in team sports a child can increase in confidence and control (Nurse, 2009).
Establishing healthy eating habits from a young age is crucial in order to educate children how to eat healthily and furthermore, to prevent the growing number of children who are obese. In the above statement, Purvis emphasises how unhealthy children are today. Obesity is a massive health issue amongst children, not just in Scotland but also in the rest of the United Kingdom. In Scotland, 22.6% of children in primary 1 are at risk of being overweight or obese (Information