Animal Fun: Supporting the motor development of Italian preschoolers

Abstract

The present literature supports the importance of physical activity from a very early age. However, there is a lack of information about evidence-based motor programs suitable for supporting preschoolers' development in Italy. The Animal Fun program, developed in Australia, might be a valuable tool to promote children's development. The aim of this study was to use Animal Fun to verify the motor improvements in balance, aiming and catching, and the manual skills of Italian preschoolers. One hundred nineteen preschool children (3- to 6-year- olds) from three Italian kindergartens were recruited. The kindergartens were randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. The Movement Assessment Battery for Children - 2 (MABC-2) was administered to all children at the baseline and one-month follow-up. The kindergarten assigned to the control group followed the standard curriculum, involving general physical activity; the kindergartens assigned to the Animal Fun group followed the Animal Fun program activities (thirty minutes, three times a week). Data demonstrated the statistical differences between the scores of the two groups in each domain and total score of the MABC-2 (aiming and catching, balance, and manual dexterity). The results of this study suggest that Animal Fun can support the motor improvements of Italian preschoolers and that it is applicable in the Italian context, where there is a lack of movement programs supporting the development of young children with and without motor difficulties.