Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare how the organization of a movement session as partly structured play or free play influenced the physical activity engagement in 4–5 years old pre-schoolers. The partly structured playgroup consisted of 46 children and the free playgroup consisted of 33 children. The playground activities consisted of 10 sessions each lasting 1 h, executed once per week in the period Mars to May 2017 at a specific playground setting. The partly structured playgroup conducted a movement activity session that included a combination of both structured- and free play activities. The free playgroup engaged in unstructured play, only. To detect the intensity of the physical activity each child carried an accelerometer 1 h the first week and last week of the intervention. Results indicate a significant difference in physical activity level between the two groups for the 5-year-old in the favor of the partly structured playgroup. There was a significant difference between the four-and 5-year-old in relation to physical activity level. No significant difference between the activity in March and May for the whole group was found.
Highlights
Engagement in physical activity from a young age is recognized as a critically important factor for good physical and mental health
To gain the maximum benefits associated with physical activity, recommendations have been generated regarding the amount of physical activity needed daily in this population. These 24-h movement guidelines have accredited that the whole day matters and individual movement behaviors like physical activity, sedentary behavior and sleep must be considered in relation to each other when exploring their associations to health indicators and developmental outcomes [5, 6]
Two kindergartens participated in the partly structured playgroup conducting a movement activity session that included both structured and free play activities at the playground consisting of 19 children aged 4 years (4 boys and 15 girls; mean age 4.53 ± 2.7) and 27 children aged 5 years (15 boys and 12 girls, mean age 5.63 ± 0.3)
Summary
Engagement in physical activity from a young age is recognized as a critically important factor for good physical and mental health. To gain the maximum benefits associated with physical activity, recommendations have been generated regarding the amount of physical activity needed daily in this population These 24-h movement guidelines have accredited that the whole day matters and individual movement behaviors like physical activity, sedentary behavior and sleep must be considered in relation to each other when exploring their associations to health indicators and developmental outcomes [5, 6]. Guidelines recommend that preschoolers (accumulate at least 180 min of daily physical activity at any intensity, which at least 60 min is energetic play (e.g., moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity) Children at this age should not be restrained for more than 1 h at a time or sit for extended periods of time and sedentary screen time should be no more than 1 h [5, 6]. Given that healthy habits and behavior, including physical activity and sedentary behavior, acquired in childhood typically track into later life [9, 10], these recommendations are especially important for health outcomes across the lifespan [11]
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