Exercise and Inhibitory Control in Preschoolers

The preschool years are a critical period for developing physical, motor, and cognitive skills. These skills are interconnected, forming the basis for success in school, social relationships, and lifelong health. Recent research highlights the importance of physical activity in fostering motor competence and cognitive processes such as inhibitory control—a key component of executive functioning. Learn more about how specific types of exercise impact motor skills and inhibitory control in preschoolers, providing actionable insights for educators, therapists, and parents.

What Motor Skills Are Important in Preschool?

Motor skills are essential for preschoolers as they underpin physical health, cognitive development, and social participation. These skills can be categorized into gross motor skills and fine motor skills:

  • Gross Motor Skills: Activities like running, jumping, and balancing help children develop strength, coordination, and endurance. Specific examples include:
    • Hopping on One Foot: Builds balance and core stability.
    • Galloping: Improves rhythm and bilateral coordination.
    • Side-Stepping: Develops lateral movement and agility.
    • Climbing and Crawling: Supports coordination and motor planning.
  • Fine Motor Skills: Precision tasks, such as drawing, cutting, and threading beads, enhance hand-eye coordination and prepare children for academic tasks like writing.

Motor competence is directly linked to physical fitness and executive functions, including inhibitory control. Developing these skills in preschool supports school readiness and healthy habits.

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Types of Exercise to Help Preschoolers – What Does the Research Say?

Research shows that structured physical activity, especially coordinative exercises, promotes motor skill development and inhibitory control in young children. A recent study explored an eight-week intervention involving playful, structured activities. The program focused on locomotor skills, balance, and integrative exercises designed to engage both motor and cognitive systems.

Locomotor Activities

These activities involve whole-body movement and are critical for developing gross motor skills:

  • Obstacle Courses: Running, crawling, and jumping over barriers.
  • Bear Walks: Crawling on hands and feet to build strength and coordination.
  • Jumping Sideways: Encourages dynamic balance and rhythm.

Balance and Stability Activities

Balance activities not only support physical coordination but also require cognitive engagement, promoting inhibitory control:

  • Walking on a Line or Beam: Enhances focus and body awareness.
  • Flamingo Pose: Standing on one leg challenges static balance and attention.

Integrated Motor and Cognitive Exercises

These activities engage children’s problem-solving and decision-making skills alongside physical movement:

  • Throwing and Catching: Improves hand-eye coordination and reaction times.
  • Simon Says with Movement Tasks: Simon Says requires children to inhibit impulsive actions, enhancing inhibitory control.

Physical Fitness and Inhibitory Control: Key Findings from Research

The study emphasized the need to design programs that combine physical challenges with cognitive engagement to foster holistic development.

  • Motor Competence Gains: The exercise group showed significant improvements in skills such as jumping sideways and eye-hand coordination compared to the control group.
  • Physical Fitness Improvements: Agility and both static and dynamic balance increased significantly in the exercise group.
  • Impact on Inhibitory Control: While the research did not find significant changes in inhibitory control, it aligns with broader findings suggesting that activities combining cognitive and motor challenges are key to improving inhibitory control. Examples include games requiring children to alternate between “go” and “no-go” tasks, such as stop-and-go running games.

Key Points to Help Preschoolers with Physical Activity

  1. Integrate Play-Based Movement: Activities like obstacle courses and animal walks engage children physically and cognitively.
  2. Encourage Consistency: Provide regular, structured sessions, such as 30-minute play-based activities twice a week.
  3. Create Cognitive-Motor Challenges: Use games like “Red Light, Green Light” or “Simon Says” to strengthen inhibitory control alongside motor skills.
  4. Focus on Balance and Coordination: Simple tasks like balancing on one foot or catching a ball promote core stability and attention.
  5. Incorporate Social Interaction: Group activities such as relay races or cooperative games promote teamwork, communication, and social-emotional development while keeping children physically active.

Research on exercise and inhibitory control in preschoolers highlights the interconnectedness of physical activity, motor skill development, and cognitive processes. Structured, play-based activities, such as balance exercises and games that require attention and self-regulation, have shown potential for improving physical fitness and motor competence. While the direct impact on inhibitory control is less conclusive, evidence suggests that activities combining physical and cognitive challenges may enhance this critical executive function.

More Helpful Resources

For additional ideas to support preschoolers’ physical activity and motor skill development, explore the following:

Reference

Şendil, A. M., Canlı, U., Sheeha, B. B., Alkhamees, N. H., Batrakoulis, A., & Al-Mhanna, S. B. (2024). The effects of structured coordinative exercise protocol on physical fitness, motor competence and inhibitory control in preschool children. Scientific Reports, 14(1), 28462.

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