Early childhood is the most intensive period for the development of physical skills. Writing progress depends largely on the development of fine motor skills involving small muscle movements of the hand. Young children need to participate in a variety of developmentally appropriate activities intentionally designed to promote fine motor control.…

This article begins with a personal anecdote from the author, for whom childhood P.E. classes were exercises in frustration and humiliation largely because she could not master the coordination needed to catch, throw, or hit a ball. She could not keep her eye on the ball despite well-meaning instruction from coaches, friends, and family members.…

Effective teacher educators reflect and upon reflection, make important changes to lessons, units, and instructional strategies. But have they ever considered the importance reflection has for students or what bearing "their" reflections have on them as their teachers? During the first six weeks of the (introductory) Child Development…

Based on Maryland's 2017-2018 Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) results, nearly half of all entering kindergarten children show foundational skills indicating they are fully ready for kindergarten, more than a third are approaching readiness, and 18% have emerging readiness skills. Results for the 2017-2018 school year show a slight increase…

This article presents warm-ups that are designed to physiologically and psychologically prepare students for vigorous physical activity. An active movement warm-up routine is made up of three parts: (1) active warm-up movement exercises, (2) general preparation, and (3) the energy system. These warm-up routines can be used with all grade levels…

While maps and globes continue to be an important part of the geography and social studies curricula, there has been some debate about the ability of young children to engage in maps in a meaningful way. Some researchers have argued that children younger than seven do not have the spatial-cognitive abilities to truly understand the perspective and…

Task cards are instructional tools that combine a picture of a skill with written instructions about how to perform the skill. This article provides practical guidelines for developing research-based task cards for use in physical education classes. Fitness-related motor skills are used as examples to clarify design principles for task cards. The…

Infant/toddler teachers take a child-centered, emergent approach, meaning that they observe the children at play, ask themselves what they are interested in learning, and design developmentally appropriate curricula to meet and extend those interests. This curriculum development technique leads to "possibilities for the child to develop deeper…

NAEYC, the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, and the US Department of Health and Human Services all recommend that preschool programs offer physical education. There are many reasons why. First, young children form healthy habits early in life. Before entering elementary school they learn to brush their teeth, bathe…

Karate can contribute to learning in all three domains (psychomotor, cognitive, and affective), even in elementary-age children. Nevertheless, physical education teachers receive minimal or no training in teaching karate in school settings and are skeptical about doing so. The purpose of this article is to enable physical educators to teach…

Background: In the last few decades, conceptions about teaching and learning in physical education have evolved from a teacher-centred approach to a more student-centred approach where learners are encouraged to develop problem-solving skills, critical thinking and autonomy of thought. A popular model advocating this approach in physical…

Within the UK, physical education finds itself, as a curriculum subject, in a contested space with felt pressures from competing discourses and policy areas. This paper contests that over time within this nexus, physical education has become disconnected in four specific ways: from the wider movement culture, from other curriculum subjects, within…

Some of the characteristics and behaviors of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), such as difficulty with social interactions and sensory integration, make physical education instruction difficult. Children with ASD also encounter movement difficulties, such as motor-planning and anticipatory deficits. One way to enhance the ability of…

The development of fundamental movement skills in physical education is an important contributor toward children's' lifetime interest and participation in physical activity. Physical education teachers and their curricula follow national and state standards to provide learning experiences and instruction that support the acquisition of…

Written for parents and professionals who want to positively affect the development of infants, this book provides guidance to families for detecting early signs of preautism in their infant or toddler. The Cowden Preautism Observation Inventory (CPAOI) will help parents to establish a baseline of behaviors and skills, along with the use of…