*3.1.3 Fine motor skills*

*Early Childhood Education*

*3.1.2 Fundamental motor skills*

activity settings.

are included. Providing planned movement experiences to allow children to practice these concepts can prove to be valuable to children in both classroom and physical

Finally, the last of the important body management concepts includes an understanding of effort. Within Laban's movement analysis framework, concepts include direct or indirect movement, weight, and time [47, 50]. An example of direct movement would include running from point A to point B. Indirect movement would include moving in a zig-zagged or curvilinear pathway. Within the movement quality of weight, children can learn to explore the use of force. For instance, movements using force or energy including soft vs. hard or light vs. heavy may be implemented in the classrooms or physical activity settings. Likewise, movement activities focusing on the quality of time of movement can also be implemented.

Structured lessons including quick vs. slow movements can be explored.

movement competence during the early childhood years.

that children will learn to execute object or locomotor skills.

skills so they have the requisite skills for a healthy lifestyle.

Fundamental motor skills (FMS) constitute an important component of movement competence in early childhood. FMS play a vital role in promoting children's health, physical activity, cognitive, and social development during the early childhood years [39, 51, 52]. In addition, a lack of FMS is related to higher BMI and lower rates of physical activity for children and adolescents. Ideally, it is important young children begin learning these skills so they have the requisite skills for a healthy lifestyle. FMS generally involve the large muscles of the body and fall into one of two categories. The first category of these skills includes the manipulation, reception, or projection of objects. These skills are known as object control skills. The second category of skills involves the transport of the body through spaces. These skills are known as locomotor skills (i.e., hopping, jumping, running, skipping, galloping, leaping). Both object control and locomotor skills play an important role in achieving

Often, many child caregivers have misconceptions on the ways in which young children learn motor skills. One common perception is that children learn motor skills as part of the maturation process and that children will learn them when they are ready. A second myth is that children who learn motor skills at an early age are athletically gifted. In reality, the only way for young children to become skillful and proficient in motor skills is by receiving instruction, opportunity to practice, and feedback during the learning process. Without purposeful instruction, it is unlikely

The absence of FMS can limit a child's movement participation experiences throughout their childhood years. Lack of FMS can lead children to withdrawal from social opportunities or to avoid participation in physical activities in which these skills are required. Ideally, it is important young children begin learning these

The absence of fundamental skills can limit a child's movement participation experiences throughout their childhood years. Lack of fundamental motor skills can lead children to withdrawal from social opportunities or avoid participation in physical activities in which these skills are required. In addition, young children who have difficulty with FMS generally find themselves socially isolated from their

Moreover, providing young children with modest amounts of instruction can provide positive gains in motor skill proficiency. Several researchers have demonstrated the efficacy of teaching children fundamental motor skills in a relatively short period of time. One researcher demonstrated that parents could effectively teach object control skills to preschool children who were at risk for academic delay in an 8 week

**46**

peers in physical activities.

One of the most overlooked areas of movement competence in early childhood is the development of fine motor skills. Specifically, fine motor skills are used in many classroom activities in early childhood and primary grades. Consequently, children


#### **Table 1.**

*Essential movement components and activities for early childhood.*

who successfully develop fine motor skills are more likely to have success in classroom activities involving coloring, writing, and cutting with scissors.

More significantly, the development of fine motor skills is also related to later academic achievement in young children. Results from a large-scale study using data from two longitudinal databases demonstrate the importance of fine motor skills in academic performance [55]. Specifically, data from the National Longitudinal Youth Study (NLYS) and the British Birth Cohort Study (BCS) examined the relationship on early fine motor skill tasks and later performance in math and reading. The authors from this study concluded children's fine motor performance was positively correlated with future performance on both math and reading.

To explain the relationship between academic performance and fine motor skills, it may be first of all important to identify specific fine motor skills that support academic achievement (**Table 1**). For instance, visual motor integration is the ability to coordinate motor actions in response to visual stimuli. When children copy letters, numbers, or print from a chalkboard, they are using visual motor integration. If a child has poor visual motor integration, they will have a difficult time with this skill. Since the learning of math and many other subjects are still highly dependent upon these skills, it is somewhat easy to understand the significance of these skills [56].

Also, the dynamic tripod is a fine motor skill position required for handwriting in children. This is often a difficult skill for children to learn as it takes practice and instruction. In some cases, this is a skill that many public schools in the United States are no longer teaching to young children. If a child struggles with this foundational skill, the ability to perform homework or other writing tasks in class will become more difficult. Fortunately, these skills can be learned with structured lessons that provide children with an understanding of the necessary techniques to excel in handwriting.

#### **4. Conclusion**

In summary, it is important for early childhood educators and caretakers to address current practices and views on how best to prepare young children for school success. Academic preparation, while important, should not drive all curriculum and programmatic decisions. The lack of focus on fundamental children's needs including physical activity and development of motor skills is detrimental to the health and future success of young children.

Early childhood educators and caretakers hold the key to changing the course of potentially lifelong negative health consequences which have their origins in early childhood. From a public health perspective, early childhood is a critical time in which habits for physical activity and motor skills are developed. Examining barriers to physical activity such as space, professional preparation, and available time are important first steps for caretakers and providers. In addition, childcare administrators can assist in ensuring opportunities for unstructured and structured physical activity with guided instruction to learn movement concepts, gross motor skills, and fine motor skills. Finally, looking at opportunities to increase movement through curricular integration can increase movement competence and academic success in early childhood.

Recommendations for policy makers include increasing policies to support physical activity in schools and private day care settings. In addition, policy makers could shape public opinion on the importance of movement to young children by highlighting the issues in their respective communities. Providing clear guidelines through policy for physical activity time in accordance with the suggested amounts of physical activity times provided by the Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE) can increase opportunities for children.

**49**

**Author details**

provided the original work is properly cited.

Michelle Hamilton\* and Jennifer Ahrens

Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas, United States

\*Address all correspondence to: mh42@txstate.edu

© 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium,

*Jack Be Nimble and Jack Be Quick: Increasing Movement Competence in Childcare Settings*

Future researchers can also explore the impact of physical activity and movement interventions on the school readiness of young children. Although preliminary evidence suggests that more active children have better academic outcomes, more evidence-based research is needed. Additionally, further research needs to explore the effects of integrated physical activity and preschool curriculum on both the physical activity levels and the academic outcomes of children. Finally, curriculum development research needs to be conducted to develop, refine, and implement movement lessons for teachers and caretakers without a movement background. By introducing physical activity and movement competence into the early childhood curriculum, the narrative for the future of many children can be rewritten. The narrative may include a brighter future where children have attained a healthy weight status, have developed the motor skills to participate freely in physical activities, and have acquired the necessary fine motor skills to support academic success. However, this future cannot happen without changes to many of our childcare settings as well as revisions to the curriculum and programs.

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.81181*

#### *Jack Be Nimble and Jack Be Quick: Increasing Movement Competence in Childcare Settings DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.81181*

Future researchers can also explore the impact of physical activity and movement interventions on the school readiness of young children. Although preliminary evidence suggests that more active children have better academic outcomes, more evidence-based research is needed. Additionally, further research needs to explore the effects of integrated physical activity and preschool curriculum on both the physical activity levels and the academic outcomes of children. Finally, curriculum development research needs to be conducted to develop, refine, and implement movement lessons for teachers and caretakers without a movement background.

By introducing physical activity and movement competence into the early childhood curriculum, the narrative for the future of many children can be rewritten. The narrative may include a brighter future where children have attained a healthy weight status, have developed the motor skills to participate freely in physical activities, and have acquired the necessary fine motor skills to support academic success. However, this future cannot happen without changes to many of our childcare settings as well as revisions to the curriculum and programs.
