Project On Health And Physical Education

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Project on Health and Physical Education Part 1 What are the benefits of physical education for young children? There are many benefits of physical activity for young children. Physical activity equals ‘Health, Safety and Nutrition’ (Marotz, p7). Health and physical activity for young children is essential to growth and development. Physical fitness is stimulating to the body and mind. It promotes ‘sufficient energy to enjoy life and avoid fatigue, and to meet unforseen emergencies’ (Landy, p17). A positive attitude to health and fitness needs to be developed in young children that will stay with them throughout life. Fitness raises our health levels by improving ‘cardio fitness, flexibility, muscular strength and muscular endurance’ (Landy, p19). Our heart is the most important organ in our bodies and without our heart, we die. Our heart and lungs work together to move oxygen throughout our body. As fitness improves, so does our heart, lungs and muscle strength. Flexibility allows our joints to stretch and provides the body with more movement. An injury will prevent flexibility for a time and daily stretches will be required to stretch ‘shortened’ muscles again. Flexibility provides balance. Muscular strength provides the body with power. A child can climb, pull and push with enthusiasm. Muscular endurance provides agility which is one of the main components of fitness. ‘Agility is the ability to quickly and accurately change direction of your body movement in general space’ (Landy, p29). Another five components of fitness are balance, coordination, power, speed and reaction. As children grow and move, all these components improve and develop. Gross motor skills are ‘fundamental movement skills’ (Landy, p37). They use large muscles like legs, feet, arms, heads and hands. Activity in infants and toddlers allows them to use their gross motor skills so

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