A growing body of research suggests that fine motor skills (FMS) are associated with language development. In this study, we examined 76 children aged 3-6 years assessing the link between language and FMS. Specific measures included receptive and expressive vocabulary, oral narrative skills, and various fine motor tasks. Hierarchical linear…

Fundamental movement skills (FMS)-oriented school-based intervention allows children to be more competent and interested to participate in a wider range of physical activities. This study aimed to determine the physical activity and fundamental motor skills outcome from a school-based intervention programme among rural pre-schoolers in Kuching. It…

In Hong Kong, the Education Bureau (EDB) is responsible for the quality assurance of kindergarten education services. EDB inspectors regularly conduct school visits to monitor kindergartens' performance and publish a Quality Review (QR) report for each kindergarten. Given the limited research on pedagogical practices pertaining to physical…

This study aimed to determine the motor creativity of preschoolers, to develop a music education programme suitable for the interests and needs of children, and to investigate whether music education is effective in motor creativity. A quasi-experimental design was used to test the effect of music education programme on children's motor…

Teachers play a crucial role in promoting motor development in early childhood. A series of focus-group discussions was conducted with kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong to co-design movement activities. This paper reports the process and implications to teachers' professional development.

We investigated performance levels on conducting continuous two-footed jumping of preschool children (4 years old) to high school students (16 years old) to clarify the developmental progression and sex differences in motor coordination and agility. In total, 450 children (boys: 227; girls: 223) participated in this study. We set 10 obstacles to…

Fundamental motor skill development is crucial in preventing preschool children from early adoption of obesogenic lifestyles. This study aims to determine the motor skill level in preschool children and its gender differences in rural of Sarawak. This was a cross sectional study with a total of 153 children from 9 kindergartens. Children in this…

Schools have been postulated as ideal environments to encourage physical activity (PA). This study aimed to assess the relationship between PA in school hours, motor competence, and screen time in a sample of Spanish preschool children. Fifty-seven 4-5-year-old preschoolers (n = 32 girls) participated. The Garmin Vivofit wristband was used to…

Background/Context: The COVID-19 pandemic challenged the way we conduct research. For some modes of data collection, such as interviews, there was a ready (if not perfect) analog: face-to-face became phone-based; paper and pen surveys moved online. Others, such as direct assessments of child development, proved more challenging. Despite the…

The purpose of the present study was to clarify comprehensively how and to what extent inhibition, spatial working memory (WM), and auditory WM influence agility, balance, and dexterity of motor coordination and comprehensive physical ability in kindergarteners. Participants were 43 children between the ages of 4 and 5 years old. The children…

The purpose of this pilot study was to explore cognitive performance and visual motor integration, and investigate the relationship between them in preschool children in a community. Forty-nine participants were selected by stratified random sampling from a local community school and community child development center in Thailand. The instruments…

Research shows that executive functions (EF) and fine motor skills (FMS) contribute to early academic skills, possibly in overlapping ways. We examine whether and how EF and FMS interact in the concurrent prediction of maths, reading and spelling skills at the start of kindergarten. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) on data from 1248…

This study examines the effectiveness of a simultaneous intervention in kindergarten and home to improve ball skills in children. Two kindergartens in Ibaraki, Japan, were divided into intervention (N = 98, mean age = 5.5 [0.6] years) and control groups (N = 88, mean age = 5.6 [0.6] years). The intervention was for 4 weeks. Parents received emails…

Historically, Finnish early childhood education has been largely based on Friedrich Froebel's pedagogy. However, Froebelian pedagogy is no longer as well known in Finland as it once was. We at the Kindergarten Museum in Helsinki wanted to increase awareness of the Froebelian tradition. Together with artist Alexander Reichstein, we came up with the…

Fifty-one 23-to-55-month-old-infants faced two apparatuses that required the use of a rigid (box apparatus) or flexible (hose apparatus) stick-like tool to retrieve a toy stuck inside. Before attempting the extraction, however, they had to pick the only one tool (of three) on display that had the appropriate rigidity/flexibility to be effective.…