Abstract:

In the present age, the technology takes precedence over spending time moving in the open spaces, and as consequence motor and functional abilities of preschool children are declining because they spend their free time mostly in activities that do not require muscular effort. That is the reason why it is important to raise the habit of daily physical exercise in children from their preschool age. Moreover, World Health Organization recommends that children from the age of five should do at least, on a daily basis, 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous intensity, mostly aerobic, physical activity (PA), during the week and also should include vigorous-intensity aerobic activities, as well as those that strengthen muscle and bone, at least 3 days a week. An appropriate level of PA can ensure optimal growth and development of children and preserve their health. In Croatia, there exist general kinesiology activities that are an integral part of institutional integrated learning in early and preschool education in kindergartens, and special kinesiology activities or specialized sports programs for children of preschool age which are carried out in sports schools or sport clubs. Children should be encouraged to be physical active not only in kindergartens but also at home, in their spare time, in transport and participating in different sport schools to achieve optimal physical activity. While engaging in physical activity children of preschool age, it is recommended that they do activities which will develop their coordination, balance, speed and precision. Numerous researches show that preschool children who are involved in additional physical activities achieve better results in tests assessing their motor and functional abilities.

The aim of this research was to establish if there are differences in motor abilities of preschool children concerning their engagement in additional sport activities (ASA). The study was conducted on a sample of 194 examinees, of which 91 girls and 103 boys, aged 5 to 7 years from the kindergarten from Zadar, Croatia. Of the total of 194 examinees, 110 (69 boys and 41 girls) were active in an additional sports program while 84 (34 boys and 50 girls) didn’t do any ASA. To assess children’s balance three tests were used: “Standing on a bench on full foot on one leg with eyes closed”, “Standing on a bench on both feet sideways with eyes closed”, and “Standing on a bench on a full foot with one foot in front of the other with eyes closed”. Also three tests were used to assess children’s coordination: “Walking on all fours”, “Running between stands” and “Step up”. In order to determine whether there were statistically significant differences in the motor skills of children with the regard to their involvement in ASA, the t test for independent samples was used.

The obtained results indicate that boys who attend ASA have better coordination than boys who do not attend any ASA (p<0, 00; p<0, 04). Furthermore, the results show that girls who are involved in ASA have more developed balance (p<0, 00) and better coordination (p<0, 00; p<0, 04) than girls who are not involved in ASA. It can be concluded that ASA could possibly be the reason for children’s better results in tests assessing motor abilities; therefore improvement of motor development can be achieved by children's participation in additional sports activities.

Keywords:

Children, differences, motor performance, physical activity.