Modern Lifestyles and Classroom Ethos in Early and Middle Childhood Development

Original Editor - Jess Bell based on the course by Tracy Prowse
Top Contributors - Jess Bell, Kim Jackson, Naomi O'Reilly, Cindy John-Chu, Oyemi Sillo and Wanda van Niekerk

This article or area is currently under construction and may only be partially complete. Please come back soon to see the finished work! (4/08/2021)

Introduction to the Modern Day Child

In general, children today are moving less and having more screen time. The average screen time for children aged 0 to 8 years is more than two hours per day and for children aged over 10 years, it is 6 to 7 hours (including screen time at school and for homework). In South Africa, children have an average of 3 hours of screen time and are sedentary for 6 hours. Thus, for 9 hours of the day, they are not moving or exercising.

Children today are also less likely to engage in free play and are more likely to be involved in formal sport. However, 70 percent of children drop out of formal sports by the age of 13 years and the number of children meeting physical activity (PA) guidelines is declining - 81% of adolescents aged 11–17 years are not engaging in enough physical activity.

High drop out rates in sport may be due to:

• Pushy parents and coaches
• Burnout
• Overuse injuries
• Immature bones
• Insufficient rest after an injury
• Poor training or conditioning / muscle strength
• Specialisation in just one sport
• Year-round participation
• Ethos of sport and the “Celebrity of Sport”
• Less play time, more drill time
• General changes in society

Another consideration when looking at activity levels, is the idea of the shrinking backyard. Children have less access to space to play now - they are not playing on the street, at the park, or in the forest. This may be due to real or perceived danger. Thus, there is less unstructured, free play.

Increase in Developmental Difficulties

In the last ten years, the number of children being diagnosed with developmental difficulties has increased by over 17 percent. There are a range of reasons / theories for this change:

• Increased awareness
• Hereditary
• Alcohol consumption during pregnancy
• Higher rates of preterm babies being born / fertility issues
• HIV drugs and ADHD
• Potential for chemical toxicity
• Stress levels in baby and mother
• The time taken to pregnancy

Benefits of Physical Activity

Research has found that:

• Physical activity is related to cognitive performance in school, including perceptual skills, IQ, achievement, verbal and mathematics tests, academic readiness, especially in children aged 4 to 7 years
• 26 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity before school improved reading and maths scores and enhanced executive functioning  in children with ADHD
• 30 to 40 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity improved executive functioning, cognition and brain health for healthy children
• 30 minutes of aerobic activity before school reduces symptoms of ADHD
• Children with ADHD symptoms use motor activity to help focus
• Movement and standing in the classroom promote concentration and focus and burns calories in all children

It is, therefore, apparent that children need movement and exercise to be a normal part of their school day.

The Classroom Ethos

“Children learn to move and play and they MOVE AND PLAY to learn.”

High Five

High Five is a term coined by the educator, Gavin Keller, regarding the ethos and environment of a primary school, particularly in the early years settings. This approach has five key elements:

• Posture
  • If a child's body is aligned, muscles do not need to work so hard to provide stability
  • This leaves more energy for attention and learning
• Place in space
  • Children should feel comfortable with their place in their space in the classroom and on the playground (including activities and equipment)
  • They should be experimenting and exploring both the environment and what they can do physically
  • The more “unknowns” there are in this space, the better it is for brain plasticity and learning
• Communication
  • Essential for children to be able to play and integrate themselves in activities and learning
• Independence
  • The more children choose to participate in activities independently, the more likely they are to be successful at mastering a task
• Skills
  • Important skills include:
    • Emergent literacy and numeracy skills
    • Self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, kindness, self-control (i.e. prosocial skills)

It is essential that the entire school embraces the High Five concept and that the principal drives the ethos, making time for “Wake ‘n Shake" activities. The principal should also:

• Promote alternative ways of setting up the classroom environment
• Encourage movement breaks - consider using a school bell
• Pass on information to parents about encouraging movement and play

Please watch the following video for more information on learning in children.

The Core Domains of Physical Literacy

The Canadian Assessment of Physical Literacy (CAPL) was the first protocol to be developed that can reliably and accurately assess a wide range of skills and abilities that contribute to, and characterise, a child’s physical literacy.

Physical literacy does not just consider fitness, motor skills and motivation in isolation. Because of this, the CAPL has been designed to evaluate the various components of physical literacy, including:

• Daily behaviour
• Motivation and confidence
• Knowledge and understanding
• Physical competence

The following inter-related factors can affect a child's physical literacy:

• Family

• Free-play
• Child
• Community - sports and recreation
• Peers
• School
  • School sport
  • Classroom
• Physical eductation

Who Benefits Most?

The following children will benefit most from organised structured physical activity:

• Children who struggle with coordination, ball skills, jumping, hopping, skipping – i.e. children who are generally clumsy
• Children who tire quickly and frequently try to avoid physical education (PE), unstructured physical activity or formal exercise – these children tend to be unmotivated, have poor self esteem, lack confidence and skills
• Children who are very ‘bendy’ and often seem to have an ache or pain - they also tend to try to avoid PE regularly
• Children who do not do 60 mins of PA per day
• Children who struggle to concentrate, have poor handwriting ability and tend to fidget
• Under 5 year olds (i.e. Grade R, pre-school)