17.10.2012 - Ausgabe: 5/2012

“Exerting yourself sensually and voluntarily”

By Dr. Dieter Breithecker, Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft für haltungs- und Bewegungsförderung e. V. (national association for the promotion of posture and exercise)

This “law of nature” first allows the positive support of complex – i.e. physically reciprocal – mental, psychological and emotional development processes.

Over the years each generation has left its mark on the way in which children develop. For millions of years, the person, among others, is “trained” to walk or to climb, and is also trained on different changing postures such as lying or crouching on the floor. This principle of evolution still applies today. For this reason children possess a natural urge to “exert themselves sensually and voluntarily”. They are only able to unfold their complex potential because the environment puts them in a situation to “tackle” a challenging and varied “problem”.

Fig. 1: As many natural areas are frequently no longer accessible, possibilities for exercise which are particularly development-promoting must demand the “laws of nature” (“climbing structure”, Richter Spielgeräte GmbH)

In recent decades, it hasn’t been as easy for children to live out the spontaneous urge to exercise as prescribed by nature. A restrictive change in their social and spatial everyday world, on the one hand; but also hasty, excessive safety measures, standards as well as overprotective parents or guardians frequently hinder or prevent the varied and boundary-pushing physical activities of the children. We have discovered from prevention science, however, that variable and complex patterns of behaviour – as is the case with children if they are able to exercise spontaneously and are not just made to move by adults - stand for healthy physical and mental functions of interaction and, thus, development processes. Children in the first 12 to 13 years of their lives have, as part of their highly-sensitive sensor motor and brain-physiological differentiation phase (“neurogenesis”, “synaptogenesis” / neologism and interconnection of nerve cells) a natural need for diverse and physical challenges.
Empirical studies verify that, in relation to the baseline situation, a physically more-appealing environment (“enriched environment”) requires an interactive inter-relation of physical, mental and social development processes on a sustainable basis and is, thus, encouraging (Ickes et al. 2000). Children perceive their environment in a different way to adults. Children exercise in their own very special, specific world of investigation and experience. “The child is a playful, physically-active creature. Everything that he or she learns, does and understands, is directly associated with his or her ability to approach matters in an exercise-oriented and playful manner and continue to develop through experiences of gameplay and exercise” (Hildebrandt 1995, 75).

Fig. 2: Development fundamentally happens through the child’s own activities in interaction with reasonable requirements (“Rope Parkour”, Corocord Raumnetz GmbH)

Develop requires physical challenges

This important recognition is supposed to be reflected in “meaningful”, (i.e. sensor motor) sophisticated areas of demand. An area which is oriented on the children’s needs, which

• stimulates children’s curiosity-controlled exploratory and discovery behaviour,
• facilitates varied tactile, vestibular, kinaesthetic experiences,
• develops risk competence through their own daring exploits in marginal situations,
• fosters the need to self-plan and design, by means of open spaces, and promotes the children’s self-activity and creativity in appealing conditions,
• comprehensibly promotes the motor development through the experience of complex basics types of activities,
• meets the performance prerequisites thanks to a differentiation of the challenges and a willingness to take calculable risks,
• promotes social learning through problem definitions, which require mutual, coordinated action and planning.

“Along the way” children learn to control their bodies, acquire skills and abilities as well as developing dexterity. In addition, a self-concept in relation to increased exercise skills has a positive effect on the acquisition of fundamental core competences such as self-confidence, self-awareness, self-esteem, risk assessment and risk evaluation as well as the ability to keep oneself safe. Children always need the feeling of having managed it and having overcome their fears. Boring playgrounds are bad for children, according to Ellen Sandseter, psychologist at the Norwegian Queen Maude University College, as they can impede emotional development. Because, according to Sandseter, children need stimulating confrontation with height and speed in order to overcome fears later on.

Fig. 3: Those who aim high need self-confidence, risk assessment and must be able to keep themselves safe (“Stangengestrüpp” (a play structure with poles arranged like jackstraws) Richter Spielgeräte GmbH)

Worrying about our children. Overprotection minimises opportunities to develop

Despite all these insights, everyday exercise seldom appears enchanting. It lacks child-oriented “areas of exploration”, which allow children to discover movement problems without supervision and monitoring and to come up with solutions to these problems. It’s mostly the adults who shape and define the entire environment of the children. “With the number of overcautious parents, there is also an increase in the number of children requiring therapeutic help” (Korczak 2005). Enthusiasm and the risks for playing are all too frequently “victims” to a world of exercise which has been created in a boring way due to standards and analogue constructions. However, standards are not the only requirement. Laying out recommendations appropriately, without endangering the children’s safety, however, requires its own safety in implementing them competently. In the framework of the applicable standard, the risk for playing and injury risk has been re-defined, most recently in the preamble of the European Standard (EN) 1176-1 of 2008: “Our consideration of the characteristics of child’s play and the way in which children can benefit from playing in the playground in respect of their development, children have to learn to cope with risks, and that can also lead to bruises, squashing and even broken limbs.
It is the aim of this standard to prevent accidents, first and foremost, which could lead to disability or death and, secondly, to alleviate serious consequences, which are a result of occasional misfortune, which will inevitably happen if children have set out to improve their level of ability, whether that be socially, mentally or physically”.

Fig. 4: Planning to make the path safer, each to their own abilities (“Rope Parkour”, Corocord Raumnetz GmbH)

Risks in life have to be vivid, perceptible and controllable for children even in terms of standards and the frequently overcautious parents and guardians. Playing with risk is essential. Anyone who is still dubious should refer to a professional, reputable safety expert who will be able to evaluate and advise on the play area in terms of “risk and benefit”. This one-off financial manageable outlay is a wise investment into the children’s development. Because it is too risky to grow up with no risks.

“Those overprotecting children are robbing them of their zest for life, self-confidence and the opportunities of learning to cope with crises” (Korczak 2005). It is only due to prohibitions set by parents and guardians that the children become uncertain and clumsy and then have accidents. Constant regimentation can lead to children relying more on feedback from their environment rather than using their own ideal for evaluation.

Further information:
Dr. Dieter Breithecker
Bundesarbeitsgemeinschaft für haltungs- und Bewegungsförderung e. V. (national association for the promotion of posture and exercise)
65185 Wiesbaden
www.haltungbewegung.de
www.besondersentwicklungsfoerdernd.de