Department of Medical Science, University of Trieste, Italy.
Azienda Sanitaria Universitaria Giuliano Isontina, Italy.
Acta Psychol (Amst). 2022 Oct;230:103772. doi: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103772. Epub 2022 Oct 14.
The present literature supports the importance of physical activity from a very early age. However, there is a lack of information about evidence-based motor programs suitable for supporting preschoolers' development in Italy. The Animal Fun program, developed in Australia, might be a valuable tool to promote children's development. The aim of this study was to use Animal Fun to verify the motor improvements in balance, aiming and catching, and the manual skills of Italian preschoolers. One hundred nineteen preschool children (3- to 6-year- olds) from three Italian kindergartens were recruited. The kindergartens were randomly allocated to intervention and control groups. The Movement Assessment Battery for Children - 2 (MABC-2) was administered to all children at the baseline and one-month follow-up. The kindergarten assigned to the control group followed the standard curriculum, involving general physical activity; the kindergartens assigned to the Animal Fun group followed the Animal Fun program activities (thirty minutes, three times a week). Data demonstrated the statistical differences between the scores of the two groups in each domain and total score of the MABC-2 (aiming and catching, balance, and manual dexterity). The results of this study suggest that Animal Fun can support the motor improvements of Italian preschoolers and that it is applicable in the Italian context, where there is a lack of movement programs supporting the development of young children with and without motor difficulties.
目前的文献支持从很小的时候就进行身体活动的重要性。然而，在意大利，缺乏适合支持学龄前儿童发展的基于证据的运动项目的信息。在澳大利亚开发的“动物乐趣”项目可能是促进儿童发展的一个有价值的工具。本研究的目的是使用“动物乐趣”来验证意大利学龄前儿童在平衡、瞄准和接球以及手部技能方面的运动改善。从意大利的三所幼儿园招募了 119 名学龄前儿童（3 至 6 岁）。幼儿园被随机分配到干预组和对照组。所有儿童在基线和一个月随访时都进行了儿童运动评估测试-2（MABC-2）。被分配到对照组的幼儿园遵循标准课程，包括一般体育活动；被分配到“动物乐趣”组的幼儿园遵循“动物乐趣”项目活动（每周三次，每次 30 分钟）。数据表明，两组在 MABC-2 的每个领域和总分（瞄准和接球、平衡和手部灵巧度）中的得分存在统计学差异。这项研究的结果表明，“动物乐趣”可以支持意大利学龄前儿童的运动改善，并且它适用于意大利的情况，在那里缺乏支持有和没有运动困难的幼儿发展的运动项目。
