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Parent Handbook:
Parent Handbook:
Early Physical Development,
Health and Safety
Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education

Early Childhood Section Parent Handbook: Early Physical Development, Health and Safety
3
lease join us in helping your child get off to the best possible
start in life by guiding his physical development and teaching
him about health and safety. You are your childs rst and most
important teacher. Preschool-age children love to imitate adults. You teach
your child both by your own behavior and by telling him what you want
him to learn.
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education,
along with a broad-based group of individuals whose backgrounds are
representative of the early childhood community in Missouri, developed a
set of standards of what most children should know and be able to do by
the time they enter kindergarten. The standards are intended to be used in
a variety of early childhood settings by a variety of people: parents, Parents
as Teachers parent educators, child care providers, Head Start and public/
private school teachers, etc. They are consistent with current research and
recommendations from other state and national initiatives.
Not all children learn at the same rate. Just as we recognize that adults
are individually different, we also recognize that variability in children is
normal. The standards are not intended to be used to determine if a child
is ready to enter kindergarten but are goals for adults to use in supporting
the development of preschool children.
Helping your child achieve optimal physical development, health and
safety contribute to school readiness in all areas. Current research conrms
that movement and sensory experiences during the early years of life are
critical for healthy brain development. In addition, physical activity has
been shown to reduce stress. Excess stress can negatively affect learning and
memory, so it is important to teach your child healthy ways to manage it.
Physical development includes large-muscle (gross motor) and small-
muscle (ne motor) movements as well as the unconscious ability to
organize both types of movements in response to sensory input. Large-
muscle movements include such skills as running, jumping and climbing.
Small-muscle movements are those used in abilities such as drawing, cutting
and tying. Your child needs many opportunities to exercise both types of
muscles in order to develop body competence, control and coordination.
The fundamental movement patterns formed during the preschool
years are the foundation for more complex skills needed in elementary
school. Running and jumping are prerequisites for sport, dance and exercise
activities. Squeezing play dough and stringing beads build muscles and
pathways in the brain for handwriting and the use of everyday tools and
equipment such as writing instruments, keyboards and eating utensils.
This handbook provides suggestions for helping you support your childs
physical development, health and safety.
P
Introduction
The Missouri Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education
appreciates the cooperation of the
Parents as Teachers National Center
in developing this booklet.
For additional copies of this handbook, contact the Missouri
Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Early
Childhood Section, at (573) 751-2095 or visit the DESE Web
site at dese.mo.gov. You may also contact the Parents as Teachers
National Center at 1-866-PAT4YOU or 1-866-728-4968 or
visit their Web site at www.patnc.org. 4
Parent Handbook: Early Physical Development, Health and Safety
Parent Handbook: Early Physical Development, Health and Safety
5
Look for
your
child to ...
Move from
one point to
another.
Your child may ...
Walk, run, jump, gallop and hop on one foot.
You can support your child ...
Give your child plenty of opportunities to play outdoors. The National
Association for Sport and Physical Education recommends at least two
hours of daily outdoor play about half of that time should be spent
doing unstructured activities.
Pre-K
Physical Development
Standards (Goals)
Physical development is the ability to use your body with increasing purpose,
control and skill. Movement is essential to your childs development. She
needs plenty of opportunities to learn what her body can do and to practice
those skills. She should engage in planned and unplanned physical activities.
Not all children progress at the same rate. Their progress in physical
development depends on many factors, including opportunities to practice,
inherited skill, maturity and interest. To learn new skills, your child needs to
both see the skill demonstrated and hear instructions on how to do it. With
practice, her movements will become smooth, efcient and coordinated.
Physical activities are most helpful to preschoolers when they are short
and simple and follow the childs interests and abilities. Young children tire
easily and need to rest between times of intense activity. Enthusiasm for an
activity is more important than skill level. If you or other adults put too
much emphasis on skill level and competition, your child may begin to
develop a negative self-image, especially if she is less coordinated or t than
others. She may even begin to avoid physical activities. If your childs early
experiences with movement are successful, condence-building and fun, she
will be motivated to remain physically active throughout life.
Standard (Goal):
Uses gross motor skills with
purpose and coordination.
Motor skills are movements performed when
the brain, nervous system and muscles work
together. Gross motor skills are movements
that use the large muscles in the arms, legs,
torso and feet.
B
Physical Development,
Health and Safety
Standards (Goals)
for the Preschool Years
elow are the Standards (Goals) for Pre-K Physical Development,
Health and Safety as identied by the Missouri Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education, Early Childhood Section.
Physical development and coordination Uses gross motor skills with purpose and coordination. Uses fine motor skills with purpose and control. Responds to sensory input to function in the environment.
Health Practices healthy behaviors.
Safety Practices safe behaviors. 6
Parent Handbook: Early Physical Development, Health and Safety
Parent Handbook: Early Physical Development, Health and Safety
7
Look for
your
child to ...
Move from
one point to
another.
(continued)
You can support your child ...
Use chalk or masking tape to create straight, zigzag and wiggly lines on
the ground. With your child, take turns walking along the lines. Then
try running, jumping, galloping and hopping on the lines.
Play Mother, May I? with your child. Stand about 15 feet away from her
and call out directions such as: Take ve giant steps. Have your child
respond by asking, Mother, may I? and waiting for you to say, Yes,
you may before following the command. Continue calling out various
ways of moving (e.g., three small steps, four big jumps, two hops
backward) until your child reaches you. Take turns playing the mother.
Play hopscotch with your child.
Have a parade with your child. March around using an oatmeal box as
a drum or your hands as cymbals. Take turns being the leader, and try
different ways of moving (e.g., fast, slow, forward, backward, jumping,
hopping, galloping, skipping).
Lay a towel on the oor. With your child, pretend the towel is a river.
Take turns jumping over the river.
Look for
your
child to ...
Control body
movements.
Your child may ...
Bend, stretch, turn and twist body parts.
Roll her body in one direction.
Stop or freeze then change directions while playing a game.
Balance on one foot (on a balance beam or variety of surfaces).
You can support your child ...
Play Simon Says, and create a variety of body motions for your child to
try. Take turns being the leader.
Play some lively music, and dance around the room with your child.
Encourage your child to bend, twist, stretch and spin around.
Work out with your child to a childrens exercise video.
Have your child help you with physical chores such as raking leaves,
shoveling snow, sweeping oors and making beds.
Have your child bend over and place both hands on the oor. While
keeping her feet in place, have her walk her hands forward as far as
possible. Then tell her to keep both hands in place while moving her
feet forward as close to her hands as she can.
Play body bowling with your child. Stand cardboard boxes or plastic
2-liter soda bottles in a line. Take turns lying on the oor and doing a
log roll (or a somersault) toward the bowling pins.
Look for
your
child to ...
Control body
movements.
(continued)
You can support your child ...
Play a game of tag with your child. Run after her, and when you tag
her, have her stop, turn and chase you.
Create a narrow path using two strips of masking tape about 6 inches
apart. With your child, take turns walking along the path, both forward
and backward.
Put a dab of peanut butter on your childs knee. Have her bring her
knee to her mouth and lick off the peanut butter.
Look for
your
child t