Kaizen Kids Carnival.

Physical literacy is the development of fundamental movement skills that are needed for daily activities, physical activity, sport and movement. Physical literacy is essential for children’s optimal growth and development. It sets the path for a life-long relationship with physical activity, learning new skills, and good physical and mental health. Although physical literacy can be developed at any stage in life, it is best to start early because intensive brain development forming the critical neural connections occurs in the first five years of life.

Fundamental movement skills are basic movements on land, in the air, in the water and on ice or snow that involve various body parts. These movement skills form the basis of physical literacy and need to be learned and practised by children to build competence in their movements and confidence in their abilities.

Fundamental movement skills include:

• Locomotion skills are the foundation of human movement. As we improve these skills, our bodies develop strength and gain stability, and our ability to move efficiently in different ways is improved. Locomotor skills enable moving through space, such as walking, running, jumping, hopping, skipping, swimming, skating and climbing.
• Balance skills are required for all forms of movement. Static Balance is the ability to hold a position without moving. Dynamic Balance is the ability to maintain balance while in motion. 
• Object manipulation skills are skills that involve using an object such as a ball, a ring, a racket etc. As well as developing hand-eye and foot-eye coordination, object manipulation skills develop a sense of timing and spatial awareness, helpful for activities such as throwing, catching, hitting, kicking and dribbling. 

Only 62 percent of the three to four-year-olds and only 35 percent of the 5 to 17-year-olds meet the physical activity recommendations of the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines, and only 36 percent of eight to 12 year-olds meet or exceed the minimum level recommended for physical literacy ( The 2018 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical Activity).

Due to increased screen time and lack of physical activity, there is an increase in obesity, a decrease in fitness in children and an increase in the risk for chronic diseases later in life, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, some cancers, osteoporosis and depression.

With physical literacy, children will have the competence and confidence to participate in a variety of physical activities and settings. They will progress to more complex skills used in sports, leisure activities and vocations, and continue to be active throughout their life. Also, they are more likely to make healthy lifestyle choices.

Physical benefits include reduced risk of injury and illness, emotional benefits could be the increase of self-esteem and happiness, and lastly a cognitive benefit of enhanced engagement at school. Not only do the benefits of the program affect the individuals participating, they also have an impact on the community. According to the Aspen Institute, being physically active throughout one’s life can lead to a greater annual income as an adult (Aspen Institute 2015), which in the long term would be an economic benefit not only for the participant in our program but also for the community.

As a parent:

• Be positive role models.
• Provide opportunities for children to develop and practice fundamental movement skills, including the use of nature and outdoor play.
• Encourage children to move and positively reinforce their efforts. Allow children to guide activities based on their interests and building on their ideas.
• Ensure children have ample rest between activities.
• Facilitate activities that use a wide variety of fundamental movement skills.
• Model and encourage determination as they learn new and challenging movements.
• Promote the building of children’s resilience and critical thinking by facilitating the use of learned skills in new and exciting environments.
• Modify activities for children of differing developmental abilities.
• Foster an environment that supports learning through practice and ensures children can regulate their emotions, behaviour and attention in order to cope with the demands of their situation.
• Support children in learning self-regulation during play so they can improve their ability to self-regulate in more challenging environments.