Outdoor play at many early childhood education centers happens much less frequently than in the past. Sometimes the teachers just don't feel like going outside, but often children simply show up with inadequate or inappropriate clothing: no warm coat, or flip-flops instead of sneakers. These are findings from a new study of children's physical activity in child care center settings.

This research is important because more than half of U.S. children aged 3-6 years go to child care centers. And many of these children will encounter childhood obesity, a growing problem in the United States. Establishing an early pattern of outdoor exercise is vital for children's health.

This is an excellent reminder to all teachers of young children to re-evaluate how well we are doing in encouraging constructive large motor activity in our programs. Some teachers may just need a refresher on the topic and others may need some detailed coaching. Two excellent resources for such discussion and planning are:

• “Why Motor Skills Matter” by Rae Pica in the July 2008 issue of Young Children — this article can be found at http://journal.naeyc.org/btj/200807/pdf/BTJLearningLeapsBounds.pdf
• “Kids More Active When Playground Has Balls, Jump Ropes, Study Shows” — this article can be found at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071211233517.htm

Also see the New York Times article at http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/the-flip-flop-factor-why-day-care-kids-dont-play-outside/

The detailed article by the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (where this study was done) is at http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/about/news/release/2008/barriers-outdoor-5-5-2008.htm