Implementing outdoor activities appropriate to children

During early childhood it is critical to offer adapted physical activity that favors motor development and physical fitness. Outdoor activities with the children can be considered as effective situations that could achieve these outcomes. Indeed, the time spent outdoor is associated with the level of physical activity (Sallis, 2000). Moreover, it has been demonstrated that outdoor activities in a natural and affording environment influence physical activity play and motor development in children (Fjortoft, 2004). Implementing such outdoor activities appropriated to preschool children is presently investigated at the CEReKi.

The CEReKi is an association of the University of Liège that organizes sport days for children aged from 3 to 8. It has a long experience about how to adapt indoor facilities and how to use equipment in order to meet children needs and to favour motor development and physical activity. For different reasons (reduction in the gym availability; interest in the development of interdisciplinary activities; affording natural environment next to the sport centrum), it has been decided to implement outdoor activities at the CEReKi and a reflexive approach has been engaged in order to start them during the spring of 2018.

The presentation will focus on the global reflexive approach: determination of the aim of the new outdoor activities ; analysis of the opportunities and risks of the natural environment ; the arrangements that needs to be done in order to adapted the playscape to the children ; the opportunities to develop interdisciplinary activities where both physical activity and nature discovery are achieve at the same time ; precautions to take with children in order to make activities possible during most of the weathers conditions. A preliminary critical analysis of the implemented outdoor activities will be presented.

References

Sallis, J. F., Prochaska, J. J., & Taylor, W. C. (2000). A review of correlates of physical activity of children and adolescents. Medicine & science in sports & exercise, 32(5), 963-975.

Fjørtoft, Ingunn. (2004). “Landscape as Playscape: The Effects of Natural Environments on Children’s Play and Motor Development.” Children, Youth and Environments 14(2): 21-44.