Physical Activity and Sport During the First Ten Years of Life

Evidence suggests that the first 10 or so years of life create the foundation for subsequent participation in recreational and health-related physical activity. This book brings together researchers and practitioners with expertise in issues related to physical activity, physical education, and sport during the primary/elementary phase of schooling, to explore these important issues. Combining inter-disciplinary perspectives, the book addresses the inherent complexity of researching with young children. It looks at the evidence on development during the first 10 years and how that evidence relates to physical activity and to sport, in pre-school, school and out of school. Finally, the book offers a series of national case studies, from Asia, Europe and Africa, demonstrating the importance of age-appropriate sport and physical activity. This is important reading for any student, researcher, educator or policy maker with an interest in physical activity and health, education in the early years or at primary/elementary level, paediatric exercise science, or youth sport.

Jennifer P. Agans is Assistant Professor in the Department of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Management at the Pennsylvania State University, USA. Richard Bailey is an independent writer and researcher based in Berlin, Germany. Jean Côté is Professor and Director in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies at Queen's University in Kingston, Canada. Andy Daly-Smith is Senior Lecturer in Physical Activity and Behaviour Science at Leeds Beckett University, UK. Phillip Tomporowski is Professor in the Department of Kinesiology, and Director of the Cognition and Skill Acquisition Laboratory, at the University of Georgia, USA.

Introduction Part One: Researching Physical Activity in the First 10 Years Chapter 1: Researching Children's Physical Activity: The Importance of Theory for Research Methods Jennifer P. Agans and Ross Budziszewski Chapter 2: Population Measurement of Physical Activity Among Children Aged Under 10 Years Louise L Hardy and Sjaan R Gomersall Chapter 3: Movement as Relations: Preverbal, Conscious and Affected? Gunn Engelsrud Part Two: Physical Activity and Child Development Chapter 4: Physical Exercise and Cognitive Development: Influence of Training Modalities and Characteristics David Moreau Chapter 5: Cognitive and Motor Performance: Shared Processes During the First 10 Years of Life Claudia M. Roebers Chapter 6: Exercise, Cognitive Function, and Obesity in Children Tai-Fen Song, Chien-Heng Chu and Yu-Kai Chang Part Three: Sport Chapter 7: Organized Sport for Toddlers and Preschoolers Meghan Harlow and Jessica Fraser-Thomas Chapter 8: Mental Health and Childhood Participation in Organised Sport Stewart A. Vella, Jordan Sutcliffe, Matthew J. Schweickle, Sarah K. Liddle and Christian Swann Chapter 9: Navigating Relative Age and Birthplace Effects to Ensure Equal Participation in Youth Sport David J. Hancock Chapter 10: The Child's Right to an Open Sporting Future Richard Bailey Part Four: Physical Activity Chapter 11: Acute Cognitively Challenging Physical Activity to Promote Children's Cognition Mirko Schmidt, Fabienne Egger, Sofia Anzeneder and Valentin Benzing Chapter 12: Investment for Family and Community Physical Activity Interventions Victoria Archbold and Paul Collings Part Five: Education Chapter 13: The Active School Concept Claude Scheuer and Richard Bailey Chapter 14: Developing a Movement Culture in the First 10 Years Ben Langdown Chapter 15: Physically Active Play in the Early Years Arja Sääkslahti Part Six: Case Studies Chapter 16: Physical Activity and Sport in the First 10 Years in South Africa Anita E Pienaar Chapter 17: The Development of Physical Activities and Sport in China's Kindergartens in the 21st Century Jinxia Dong and Yijing Zhong Chapter 18: Sport and Physical Activity During the First 10 Years of Life in Ireland and the UK Kristy Howells and Tara Coppinger