Coaching Children an Introduction

FUNdamentals and Physical Literacy

Workshop Outcomes

• Introduce you to the LISPA framework• Develop a basic understanding of the first 3 Phases• Examine Physical Literacy and FUNdamental Movement

Skills • Identify benefits of FUNdamental Movement Skills• Review current situation Irish Children and Physical

activity• Examine the implication for Coaching• Examine the implication for Coaches

Children's Coaches Contribute significantly to:

• Life long involvement in Sport and Physical Activity

• Children becoming healthy and happy adults

• Child development • Sport which is participant focused• Better performance at the highest level

Lifelong Involvement in Sport and Physical Activity (LISPA)

LISPA

• Regular physical activity is an essential element of a healthy lifestyle

• Creating an environment that ensures everyone learns the FUNdamentals of movement -pathway

• Skill + positive attitude = Involvement for life

LISPA

There are five main objectives of the framework:

• Positive Health benefits for participants throughout their lives

• The development of a positive attitude to sport and physical activity

• Development of Physical Literacy • Clear phases of development for participants and

performers• Provide a framework for the planning and resourcing of

sport

Active Start

• Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers (0-6)• Providing opportunities for daily physical activities• Unstructured physical activity and active play are

recommended for several hours a day for Toddlers and Preschoolers

• Frequent short bursts of physical activity• Not inactive for more that one hour (unless

sleeping)• www.sparc.org.nz An activity guide for under

fives (16 fact sheets)

FUNdamentalsObjectives of this Phase (B 6-9 & G 6-8)• Learn FUNdamental Movement Skills• Provides opportunities to learn important

life skills such as cooperation, leadership, creativity and self control

• Lay the Foundations of Physical Literacy• Involves participation in a wide range of

sports and activities

Learn to Play and Practice

Objectives of this Phase (B 9-12 & G 8-11)• Is to learn overall sports skills and specialised

movement skills through a positive fun, multi- sport approach

• Developing or refining skills, playing a wide range of sports and becoming familiar with the habit of practice

• Specialised movement skills are best developed after fundamental skills have been acquired

Physical Literacy

• “the development of fundamental movement skills and fundamental sports skills that permit a child to move confidently and with control, in a wide range of physical activity, rhythmic (dance) and sports situations. Physicality Literacy also includes the ability to ‘read’ what is going on around them in an activity setting and react appropriately to those events” (Higgs, Balyi, Way, Cardinal, Norris & Bluechardt, 2008 )

• Physical Literacy simplifiedAbility to do fundamental movement skillsand then fundamental sport skills…

FUNdamental Movement Skills

The FUNdamental Movement Skills are also often grouped into types of movement

• Locomotor Skills

• Object Control Skills

• Body Control Skills

FUNdamental Movement SkillsLocomotor

Skills Object Control Skills BodyControl

WalkingRunningJumps

1 to 1 (hop)1 to 1 (leap)1 to 22 to 2(high)2 to 2(long)

SkippingDodgingLeapingSide GallopSide StepSwimmingClimbingSwinging Hands?

CatchingThrowPassingKickingStriking with implementStriking with handsControlBounceDribble

HandsFeetStick/Racquet

Agility (FOM)Balance(FOM)Co-ordination(FOM)RotationLandingTwistingTurningStopping

Why Gymnastics ??

• Previous slide• What does a handstand, or a somersault, have to do with

football training? There’s a philosophy behind it. These days, football players need to have more and more athletic skills”.

Wormhoudt Ajax Football Coach

• It would be a huge advantage for all our young cricketers to have taken part in Gymnastics activity at a young age, as this would give them the key movement and balance skills that underpin our sport

Pete Ackerley- Head of Development British Cricket

Resources

• http://ppds.ie/index.php?option=com_con tent&task=view&id=275&Itemid=415

• http://www.sparc.org.nz/en-nz/young- people/Ages-5-12-Years/Developing- Fundamental-Skills/

• Examples of Programmes• Buntus Start/Play• Be Active ASAP• NGB specific

When Should Children Learn the FMS

• Children do not develop or learn at the same rate• Sequence in which they learn the FMS is similar for most children• All children should aim to learn the FMS at the appropriate stage of

development, thus increasing the likelihood of an active lifestyle • Much of the research suggests that the best time for a child to learn

fundamental skills is in the first 8 years• This time line has been extended by many organisations working

with young people (YST 7to12)• If FMS are not learned at primary school age, the variety of

opportunities decrease

When should a child learn FMS

Windows of Opportunity/ Critical Periods ?

• A Critical Period– If missed a skill can Never be Learned

• A Sensitive period– An optimal time to learn

Slide from Richard Way & Dr. Colin Higgs

FUNdamental Sports Skills Example

Kicking skills:• In the Fundamental Movement Skill stage, children learn the basic

kicking action, with each foot. They kick a wide variety of balls and try different things – kicking as far as they can, kicking to hit a target, kicking to keep the ball on the ground, kicking the ball as high in the air as they can.

• In the Fundamental Sport Skill stage (e.g. soccer), the child learns to kick a soccer ball, without touching the ball with the hands. They learn how hard they have to kick the ball to get it to another team member, and how to kick the ball with the inside of the foot to increase passing accuracy.

Children who lack FUNdamental Movement Skills• Relegated to a life of exclusion from organised and free play

experiences of their peers, and subsequently, to a lifetime of inactivity because of their frustrations in early movement behaviour

• Are likely to experience frustration and difficulty learning more advanced skills, thereby reducing their enjoyment of sport and physical activity

• Children tell us that not having the skills to play is one major reason they drop out of sport and physical activity ‘negative self- perception of motor ability is a major barrier to participation’

• Downward Spiral

Benefits of FUNdamental movement Skills• Mastery of fundamental movement skills can have a direct effect

on the health of children and young people– Strong evidence for a positive association between FMS and physical

activity in children and adolescents (Okley et al 2010)– Have higher aerobic fitness (Okely et al, 2001)

– Have self esteem (Ulrich, 1987)– Are less likely to be overweight (Okely et al 2004)

– Positive relationship between FMS competency and CRF– Development of fundamental movement skill will contribute

significantly to future athletic development – Participation in physical activity has also been found “to reduce rule-

breaking behaviour, to improve attention span and class room behaviour” (CSPPA Study 2010 )

Sports Coach UK-A Curriculum for Coaching Children• Early experiences of sport have been shown to greatly

influence an individuals future involvement and engagement

• The development of FMS in early childhood has a significant effect in the level and quality of physical competence attained in maturity

• Sport has been identified as a very important vehicle for the development of skills in children that go beyond the track, pitch or gym (i.e. social, personal and interpersonal skills, self confidence, self worth, community cohesion, health, lifestyle etc.)

Children and Physical Activity• The World Health Organization and The National

Guidelines on Physical Activity for Ireland recommend that all children and young people should be active at a moderate to vigorous intensity for at least 60 minutes every day

• The Canadian guidelines suggest 90 minutes

• In Finland they recommend that under 13 –should engage in physical activity appropriate for their age for at least two hours every day

Irish Children and Physical Activity

Key physical activity findings from The Children’s Sports participation and physical activity study (2010)

• 19% of primary and 12% of post-primary school children • These proportions have not improved since 2004 • Girls were less likely than boys to meet the physical

activity recommendations• The likelihood of meeting the physical activity

recommendations decreased with increasing age• Socio- economic status did not influence the proportion

of children meeting the physical activity guidelines

Irish Children and Physical Activity

• Children who met recommendation of at least 60 minutes of MVPA daily had the best health profile of all children.

• The number of days per week that primary children reached the required 60 minutes daily of MVPA increased significantly if they took part in extra-school sport or physical activity, or if they actively commuted to school.

• Active commuting to school and minutes of physical education were also a significant determinant of participation for females.

Irish Children and Physical Activity

• Obesity has reached epidemic levels in Ireland. In Feb 2010 figures show that 300,000 children are overweight, with the number set to grow by 10,000 every year

Irish Independent 10th Nov 2011

Physical Literacy does not happen by accident

Home

Community Recreation

Sports Clubs

School PE

Physical Literacy

Implications for Sport for Young People

• Many nations are currently re-examining their approach to coaching children– Sports Coach UK have developed a Coaching Children Curriculum– New Zealand (SPARC) have developed have a Fundamental Skills

Programme & (Movemporve)– Youth Sport Trust have developed a multi sports clubs – In Canada some NGB’s are starting to change the way the think about

Physical Literacy. “ Groups of sports lead by the “on-ice” sports (Multi-sport programmes)

• All of these programmes have been designed to develop physical literacy and recognise the need to develop ‘ a specialised workforce’ to work on child centred programmes

Implications for Coaching

• “nearly 80% of coaches in the UK coach children”

• In Northern Ireland found that ‘club coaches accounted for 84% of the coaching workforce

• Ireland 66% to 80% of our coaches work with Children

• 2005 we are also aware that coaches attend their first coach education course nearly three years after they start coaching.

Implications for Coaching

Implications for Coaching• Develop appropriate Generic/ and or Sports specific education for children’s

coaches (all of which is child centred)

• Continuous Professional Development for Coaches in the area of Coaching Children- Coaching Pathways

• Strong Links between NGB coaching awards and populations (Developmentally Appropriate Coaching)

• Mentoring Programme for those involved in Coaching Children

• Further development of the Coach Development model from Intro to Level 4 Coach of Children (purple arrow in figure 7)

• Develop education for parents, in relation to Physical Literacy and Children’s health

Implications for Coaching

• Establish a group with representative from the four pillars in Figure 6 ( Home, School, Sport, and Community Recreation) to further develop the thinking on the development and implementation of physical literacy strategies

• Research on the motivations and needs of Irish Coaches

• Highlight the role played by children’s Coaches-Raise the profile

• Provide comprehensive on line resource for children’s Coaches

Implications for Coaches1. Become more informed of FUNndamental Movement Skills and sports skills

as they relate to the sport they coach

2. Learn more about the growth and development of children (emotional/social, cognitive and physical), and how this can impact on the sport/physical activity programme they deliver

3. Develop their coaching skills to plan, organise and deliver programmes appropriate to the development stage and ability levels of the children you coach

4. Be able to observe, analyse and give feedback on fundamental movement and sports skills

5. Within the sports club, link with other coaches both on the sport/physical activity programme for children and the development of coaching skills

Implications for Coaches6. Cooperate with others in the community on the provision of the National

Physical Activity recommendations for children

7. Inform parents on the revised emphasis of the sport/physical activity programme for children in the club and the role they can play at home

8. Ensure an appropriate emphasis is put on competition and winning

9. Ensure all the children in the club are assisted in their development

10. Coaches should reflect on how well the programme for children in the clubs is going; as well as their own and other coaches inputs to it

I need a Coach who

specialises in my needs

Workshop Outcomes

• Introduce you to the LISPA framework• Develop an basic understanding of the first 3 Phases• Examine Physical Literacy and FUNdamental Movement

Skills• Identify benefits of FUNdamental Movement Skills• Review Current situation Irish Children and Physical

activity• Examine the implication for Coaching• Examine the implication for Coaches

• Questions & Answers

• Feedback