Three year follow-up of an early childhood intervention: is movement skill sustained?

Abstract

BackgroundMovement skill competence (e.g. the ability to throw, run and kick) is a potentially important physical activity determinant. However, little is known about the long-term impact of interventions to improve movement skills in early childhood. This study aimed to determine whether intervention preschool children were still more skill proficient than controls three years after a 10 month movement skill focused intervention: ‘Tooty Fruity Vegie in Preschools’.MethodsChildren from 18 intervention and 13 control preschools in NSW, Australia were assessed at ages four (Time1), five (T2) and eight years (T3) for locomotor (run, gallop, hop, leap, horizontal jump, slide) and object control proficiency (strike, bounce, catch, kick, overhand throw, underhand roll) using the Test of Gross Motor Development-2. Multi-level object control and locomotor regression models were fitted with variables time, intervention (yes/no) and a time*intervention interaction. Both models added sex of child and retained if significant, in which case interactions of sex of child with other variables were modelled and retained. SPSS (Version 17.0) was used.ResultsOverall follow-up rate was 29% (163/560). Of the 137 students used in the regression models, 53% were female (n = 73). Intervention girls maintained their object control skill advantage in comparison to controls at T3 (p = .002), but intervention boys did not (p = .591). At T3, there were no longer intervention/control differences in locomotor skill (p = .801).ConclusionEarly childhood settings should implement movement skill interventions and more intensively target girls and object control skills.

Motor Competence and its Effect on Positive Developmental Trajectories of Health

“…Thus, the expression of different phases of physical, cognitive, social, and psychological development across childhood (which for the purposes of this paper will be generally defined as early childhood [2-5 years], middle childhood [6-9 years], late childhood [10-13 years], and adolescence [14-18 years]) can be ambiguous and are relative to the development of an individual child. It is also important to understand that the development and learning of MC is a process that ultimately results in a relatively permanent change in an individual's behavioral capability [26][27][28][29]. This is in contrast to PA level, HRF, and weight status, which are more adaptable and/or transient outcomes.…”

“…Work from Robinson et al [29,33,34] also notes that the instructional approach used to teach motor skills along with basic learning principles and the amount and context of experiences influence the stability of MC. Thus, it is important to foster continued learning and development of MC through practice and participation in developmentally appropriate activities that demand more advanced movement patterns and higher levels of performance in a variety of movement contexts [21,[27][28][29].…”

Australian children lack the basic movement skills to be active and healthy

“…We have good available evidence-based programs targetting FMS development that are efficacious, translatable and scalable for the early childhood sector to integrate. Examples include Tooty Fruity Vegie in Preschools, 21,22 found to have long-term beneficial outcomes 23,24 and translated successfully across NSW as Munch and Move 25 and also Jump Start, 26 currently being translated in childcare settings in Tasmania.…”

A Focus on Motor Competence as Alternative Strategy for Weight Management

“…Given that motor competence has been considered a sustainable outcome, it could induce relatively permanent change of an individual's behavioral capability along with changes in behavioral preferences including higher physical activity levels [57,70,71].…”