The importance of movement and activity for children

JUNE 1, 2022       

COMMUNITY EDUCATION NEWS — June is Sports America Kids Month. The goal of Sports America Kids Month is to encourage the importance of an active and healthy lifestyle among kids by encouraging their participation in sport or an outdoor activity.

Hans van der Mars and Pamela Hodges Kulinna, professors of physical education teacher education at Arizona State University (ASU), discuss the importance of activity and movement for children.

Movement is foundational

Movement is a key foundation to human life. When kids get older and have other things to focus on such as technology and social media, they tend to become more sedentary. Another factor that has become a barrier for many children is their busy schedules. Their day-to-day schedule is filled with a variety of activities. As a society, we need to encourage and set aside time for them to move and play. “We were born to move and play,” explained van der Mars. “It is critical that we create opportunities for kids to continue to be active. Free, active and recreational play is an essential component of growing up.”

One good way to encourage movement and activity is to make it fun and enjoyable. “It goes back to helping kids recognize that moving can be a joyful way to spend time,” explained van der Mars. It is not enough to just encourage kids to play or partake in sports, though. We must make sure they have success in their sports. If a child joins the world of sport and they are unsuccessful or not given the access to try and continue sport, it can discourage them from playing. “Being successful, especially early on in the learning of new activities and sports, serves as an essential reinforcer for continuing to participate in the activity” said van der Mars. Instead of one child getting a chance to shoot a ball at the basket or goal, coaches need to ensure that they engage all kids. “Too often still, I see team practices where coaches line up all their players; let one player perform at a time while the rest of the group gets to watch,” furthered van der Mars.

Encouraging children from all backgrounds and interests

If you have a child who does not seem particularly interested in exercise or sport, there are still ways to promote activity and movement. “Encourage them to walk,” explained Kulinna. Movement and exercise do not have to be complicated. Rather than, or in addition to, searching for an outlet through organized sport, parents can take their child on a hike, take them to walk around the zoo, go swimming, play catch at the park, or go on bike rides.

Families who live near their schools can look at making getting to and from school an active part of the day. “Actively commute to and from school if you can do so safely,” suggested Kulinna. By building movement into your routine, it will seem like a part of everyday life.

Another important factor to consider when examining how best to get children active is the access they have to such activities. “In the United States, youth sports generally are exclusionary,” explained van der Mars. If a child does not make the team, it is important to make sure they still have access to those opportunities for movement and activity. On school campuses, before-school programs, lunchtime programs, and after-school programs can provide ample movement opportunities that are recreational in nature and are no-cut programs. This way, a child is not discouraged from movement or provided less opportunities for movement just because they may appear less athletically inclined than some of their peers. “We should also remember that children and youth do not develop physically at the same rate. Some mature a little earlier while some start later. Imagine the number of children and youth who have been left behind unnecessarily because when they tried out for the sport team they might not yet have developed physically and emotionally as much as their peers,” explained van der Mars.  

From kindergarten through 12th grade, students spend over 16,000 hours in school. Thus, schools and school districts have a responsibility to not only support students’ academic development, but they are also responsible for supporting their students’ physical development and creating opportunities to ensure that children and youth can reach the nationally recommended 60 minutes of health-enhancing physical activity each day.

Benefits of exercise and movement

There are many different benefits of exercise and movement. Being active can reduce anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Specifically, sports can have a variety of positive effects. “If delivered appropriately, sport can contribute to those physical and mental benefits,” explained van der Mars. With sport, children can reap the physical benefits of being active, such as regulating body weight, reducing body fat, improving blood pressure, improving aerobic fitness, and building strong muscles and bones. Children in sport can also learn organization and time management as they must learn how to be organized and handle more than one thing at a time. If implemented correctly, sports can benefit children by decreasing or even preventing mental health problem (e.g., anxiety, depression).  Some studies show a correlation between physical activity (such as sports involvement) and improved attention and memory. Children in sports can gain friendships, learn how to build strong connections, and learn how to play fair and work with others.

Sport is not for everyone and that is okay. Not everyone likes to compete or play organized games. “Any kind of physical activity that includes a moderate level of intensity has health benefits,” explained van der Mars. Going on a brisk walk or doing something to break a sweat is very good for kids and doing this together with a friend or family member adds an important social component.

Other important factors to consider  

Another important topic of discussion relating to children and their activity levels is how we can best encourage them. “We are battling an adult-based model of gaining fitness,” said van der Mars. Kids are different than adults so we should handle their exercise plans differently. “Kids like to be active intermittently,” explained Kulinna. “Exercising in three or four 10-minute bursts increases health.” It does not have to be one 40-minute session of exercise. We can let kids play, take timeouts, do questions and answers, give them a little time to recover, and get back out there.       

Education on the importance of movement and activity also increases the likelihood children and adolescents will stay active into adulthood. In a 2018 study by Kulinna, Charles B. Corbin, and Hyeonho Yu, researchers examined the impact that understanding conceptual healthy behavior knowledge plays in continued physical activity. A group of high schoolers participated in a traditional physical education class in addition to a classroom session where they learned about the benefits of physical education. They learned concepts like how much activity is enough, muscle strength versus endurance, how to decipher healthy products from unhealthy products, how to create a physical education plan, nutrition, and aerobic versus anerobic fitness. “We followed up with them 20 years later at their high school reunion and found that they were less likely to be inactive and more likely to be moderately active than peers from a national sample of age equivalent youth,” revealed Kulinna. Knowing the “why” to the importance of movement and how our bodies work really has an impact on if children will continue to make movement a priority as they age.  

Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that obesity and overweight are among the most concerning health problems among children in the United States. These trends have made promoting children’s physical activity a national health priority.  Exercise is so important because of the harms of physical inactivity. “Being sedentary is as dangerous as smoking,” emphasized Kulinna. It has taken almost six decades to significantly reduce the prevalence of smoking from the time the first surgeon general’s report on the dangers of smoking was released in 1964. It would not be surprising if a similar reduction in the levels of overweight and obesity will take just as long. “A likely reason for this is that the consequences of smoking and more sedentary lifestyles do not appear until years later…they are so delayed,” explained van der Mars.

It is essential to encourage all children and youth to be active because it is what is best for their health in the present, but it is also crucial to their future. It is important to instill the skills, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors that lead to an active lifestyle from an early age because it will directly impact their habits as adults. “We know that physical activity tracks into adulthood and sedentary childhood tracks into adulthood even more,” explained Kulinna. Encouraging an active and healthy lifestyle while children are young will greatly impact their future quality of life.

Kulinna earned her Bachelor of Science in Physical Education Teaching and Coaching, Master of Science in Physical Education and Human Movement (both from the University of Oregon), and PhD in Kinesiology and Sport Pedagogy from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has been teaching at ASU since 2003. Her research is focused on changing the culture of schools to better help kids be healthier and more active. 

Van der Mars earned his Ph.D. in Physical Education Teacher Education and Sport Pedagogy from The Ohio State University, his Master of Science degree in Physical Education from Ithaca College, and his Physical Education Teaching Diploma from the Christelijke Academie voor Lichamelijke Opvoeding in Arnhem, The Netherlands.

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