Motor skill competence and moderate- and vigorous-intensity physical activity: a linear and non-linear cross-sectional analysis of eight pooled trials.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined the relationship between motor skill competence and device-measured physical activity in large samples and none have used non-linear modelling. This study assessed the linear and non-linear associations between motor skill competence and physical activity in children using pooled data from eight studies. METHODS: Cross-sectional ActiGraph accelerometer and motor skills competence data from 988 children (50.8% boys) aged 3-11 years were included. Total, object control and locomotor skill competence were assessed using the Test of Gross Motor Skill Development. Linear mixed models were fitted to examine linear associations between motor skill competence and physical activity. Then, restricted cubic splines models were used to assess potential non-linear relationships. Interactions by sex and age were assessed. RESULTS: There was evidence of positive linear associations between total skill, and object control and locomotor skills, with moderate- and vigorous-intensity physical activity; however, the associations with total skill competence and object control better fitted a non-linear model. Non-linear models indicated associations were positive but relatively weak in the low to mid ranges of TGMD/object control scores but at high ranges (~ > 70 out of 100/ and ~ 35 out of 50) the association strength increased for both moderate- and vigorous-intensity physical activity. There were sex interactions for locomotor skills only, specifically for vigorous activity with boys having a stronger positive association than girls. CONCLUSIONS: There appears to be a threshold for object control skill proficiency that children need to reach to enhance their physical activity levels which provides support for a motor skill "proficiency barrier". This provides a tangible benchmark for children to achieve in motor competence programs.

A peer coach intervention in childcare centres enhances early childhood physical activity: The Active Early Learning (AEL) cluster randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: As numbers of children and time spent in childcare centres increase, so does the potential influence of these centres on early childhood physical activity (PA). However, previous reports indicate little success of interventions aimed at improving PA. The Active Early Learning (AEL) program is a multi-component pragmatic intervention designed to imbed PA into the daily curriculum. Delivered by childcare centre staff, it is directed and supported by a peer coach who works across a network of centres. The objective of the study is to investigate the effect of the AEL program on children's PA. METHODS: Fifteen childcare centres (8 intervention, 7 control centres; 314 children, 180 boys, 4.3y ± 0.4) participated in a 22-week stratified cluster randomised controlled trial. To be eligible to participate, centres needed to have ≥15 preschool children aged 3 to 5-years. The primary outcome was PA measured by accelerometer (Actigraph GT3X) during childcare centre hours over a 3-day period, calculated in min/h of Total PA and moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA). The effect of the intervention was evaluated using linear mixed models adjusted for age, sex, accelerometer wear time and centre clustering. RESULTS: There was an intervention effect for Total PA (+ 4.06 min/h, 95% CI [2.66 to 5.47], p < .001) and MVPA (+ 2.33 min/h, 95% CI [1.31 to 3.34] p < .001). On average, a child taking part in the intervention attending a childcare centre from 8 am to 3 pm performed 28 min more Total PA and 16 min more MVPA per day than children receiving usual practice care. CONCLUSION: In contrast with the findings of previous pragmatic trials in early childcare centres, this study shows that a peer-coach facilitated program, focussed on integrating PA into the daily childcare routine, can elicit increases in preschool children's PA of practical as well as statistical significance. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials registry: ACTRN12619000638134 . Registered 30/04/2019.

Does physical education influence eye-hand coordination? The Lifestyles of our Kids intervention study.

In Australian government-funded primary schools, the responsibility for physical education (PE) falls mainly on general classroom teachers, many of whom possess limited PE training. This study sought to examine the impact of specialist-taught PE on eye-hand coordination (EHC) development. In this 4-year cluster-randomized intervention, participants were 187 boys and 172 girls initially in grade 2 in 29 primary schools, where no school employed university-trained specialist PE teachers. In 13 (intervention) schools, specialist PE teachers conducted 268 PE classes (two 45-minute sessions/wk) from grade 2 to grade 6. The intervention was based on traditional PE educational objectives, including fundamental motor skills, but did not specifically focus on EHC. The remaining 16 (control) schools continued with common-practice PE taught by general classroom teachers (30-60 min/wk). EHC was measured by a ball throw and wall-rebound catch test and recorded at ages 8, 10, and 12 (SD 0.3) at ends of grades 2, 4, and 6, respectively. There was steady yearly improvement of EHC in both groups, but no evidence of any intervention effect in boys (P=.88) or girls (P=.20). The introduction of specialist-taught PE during 4 years of primary school did not influence EHC development. Considering evidence that classroom teachers make little contribution to PE in this jurisdiction, together with the steady progression of EHC over the 4 years, other influences such as organized sport, after-school activities, natural development, and parental instruction are conceivably more influential factors in EHC development during primary school years.

Psychological distress leads to reduced physical activity and fitness in children: the Australian longitudinal LOOK study.

Stress and depression can affect an individual's level of physical activity and fitness, which may place them at risk of developing cardiovascular disease. This study investigates the longitudinal effects of stress and depression on physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness among youth. Six hundred and seventy-six children, initially aged 8 years, from the LOOK study completed a modified version of the Children's Depression Inventory, the Children's Stress Questionnaire, and objective physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness assessments on three occasions, every 4 years. Depressive symptoms had a direct effect (longitudinal) on the cardiorespiratory fitness of girls, with a similar trend for boys. In cross-sectional analyses, a child who identified with more symptoms of depression and stress was likely to be less fit and less physically active, which in girls extended to less moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Our findings, that both physical activity and fitness are impacted by depression and stress may contribute to strategies directed towards achieving enhanced physical activity and reductions in obesity.

Benefits of early development of eye-hand coordination: evidence from the LOOK longitudinal study.

We investigated longitudinal and cross-sectional relationships between eye-hand coordination (EHC) and cardiorespiratory fitness (multistage run), physical activity (pedometers), percent body fat (%BF, dual energy x-ray absorptiometry), body image, and organized sport participation (questionnaires) in 406 boys and 384 girls at 8 and 10 years of age. EHC was measured by a throw and wall-rebound catch test involving 40 attempts of increasing difficulty. Median EHC improved during two years from 18 to 32 (boys) and 9 to 24 (girls), and gender differences and improvements were both significant (P < 0.001). Cross-sectional analyses showed that boys and girls with better EHC were fitter (P < 0.001), and a longitudinal relationship showed that girls who improved their EHC over the two years became fitter (P < 0.001). There was also evidence that children with better EHC possessed a more positive body image (P = 0.05 for combined sex data), but there was no evidence of any relationships between EHC and %BF or PA (both P > 0.3). Finally, even at age 8 years, boys and girls participating in organized sport possessed better EHC than non-participants. These data provide evidence for the premise that early acquisition of this single motor skill promotes the development of a child's fitness, body image, and participation in sport.