At age 5 years, children’s level of motor skills have typically increased sufficiently to allow them to engage in more frequent and more complex forms of physical play and exercise including cycling, climbing, dance and ball games. Increases in social skills and better relationships with other children facilitate more joint play and exercise such as chasing games, football etc. In addition, most children in Ireland start school around 5 years old and while this increases the opportunity for dedicated periods of physical exercise instruction within school, as well as play with other children, it may also reduce time available for free play of the child’s choosing.
In Ireland, as elsewhere in the world, there are concerns about the sufficiency of time spent on physical play and exercise by young children and the implications this will have on their current and future health, particularly on rates of overweight and obesity. The HSE guidelines for children’s physical activity and play in Ireland are a minimum of 60 minutes every day, with the benefits being “better cardio-respiratory and muscular fitness, stronger bones, better cardiovascular and metabolic health, and healthier body fat composition” (Department of Health and Children/HSE, 2009). An earlier Growing Up in Ireland review (Morgan, Thornton & McCrory, 2014) summarised the research demonstrating the effects of exercise for a wide range of health related outcomes, including cardiovascular health, muscular strength, weight maintenance, bone density, mental health and general well-being.
However the available evidence suggests that most Irish children are not meeting these minimum guidelines on physical activity. The Children’s Sport Participation and Physical Activity Study found that only 19% of primary school children (aged 10–11 years) were participating in the recommended daily 60 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous physical activity per day, and furthermore only 35% were receiving the prescribed minimum of 60 minutes per week of physical education (P.E.) in school (Woods, Tannehill, Quinlan, Moyna & Walsh, 2010). A report card on the physical activity of children and youth in Ireland awarded the country a grade of just ‘D minus’ on overall physical activity levels (Harrington et al., 2014). Furthermore, this report card noted a dearth of information on physical activity among Irish children under 7 years—it is hoped that the Growing Up in Ireland study on 5-year-olds will go some way to addressing this gap.
What is known from the Growing Up in Ireland study so far is that only a quarter of 9-year-olds met the recommended 60 minutes per day of physical activity, and girls were less likely to be doing the minimum amount than were boys (21% compared to 29%; Williams et al. 2010). From earlier waves of the Infant Cohort, it was observed that infants who had failed a measure of gross motor development at 9 months of age achieved their ‘first steps’ milestone at a later age (15.5 months versus 12.9 months) and were less likely to have achieved motor milestones like standing on one leg, throwing a ball and riding a tricycle by age 3 years.
More specific guidelines on physical activity for pre-school children have been published by the (American) National Association for Sport and Physical Education (2002, also cited by Timmons, Naylor & Pfeiffer, 2007). For children aged 3–5 years, they recommend:
Accumulating at least 60 minutes of structured physical activity per day
Unstructured physical activity of at least 60 minutes, and up to several hours per day, with no more than 60 minutes of sedentary activity at a time except while sleeping
The development of movement skills that will provide the foundation for more complex
movement sequences
Access to both outdoor and indoor areas that are safe for large muscle activities (e.g. running and jumping)
Individuals responsible for looking after pre-school children should be aware of the importance of physical activity and promote the development of movement skills
British guidelines for children under 5 years are for a minimum of 3 hours of physical activity per day in a mix of lighter (e.g. walking to the shop) and more energetic play (e.g. running) that exercises all the major muscle groups. They also recommend reducing sedentary time, not just screen time, but time spent sitting in pushchairs and car seats.
In a review of the literature on physical activity and pre-school children, Timmons et al. (2007) note different influences on amount of activity. In terms of the child’s own characteristics, there is some evidence that patterns of activity fluctuate with age, boys are more active than girls, and young children who are overweight are less active. Some studies also find ethnic or racial differences in physical activity but these findings are not consistent. Family and environmental factors include seasonality/weather (i.e. less physical activity during winter), the quality of the play and pre-school environment, and particularly the physical activity levels of the child’s parents. Weather may be a particular concern in the Irish context, tending to be rather wet generally and with the period 2006–2015 being one of the wettest in a historical context (Murphy 2018). According to Early Childhood Ireland, a representative group for childcare practitioners in Ireland, a survey of parents (which they commissioned) found that 88% of children have less outdoor play in winter and 74% do not play outside if it is raining13. Research summarised by the
National Taskforce on Obesity (2005) suggests that accessible and pleasant facilities and spaces are influential in encouraging both adults and children to engage in more physical activity.
The National Taskforce on Obesity (2005) also laid out wide-ranging recommendations for the role of schools and the education sector in the promotion of physical activity among children. This included ensuring at least 30 minutes of physical activity in the school day, exclusive of P.E.; the provision and maintenance of physical activity facilities; and a safe and active journey to school for every child such as via safe walkways and cycle paths.