Course:KIN355/2020 Projects/Kicking
Defining the Concept and Its Importance
To begin with, we must first identify the meaning of manipulative skills and the correlation between kicking behaviour. According to Gallahue and Donnelly (2007), manipulative skills are gross body movements in which force is imparted to or received from objects. That being said, fundamental manipulative movements consist of a vast amount of skills that involve the use of an object to facilitate the skill; thus, one of which is kicking (Gallahue & Donnelly, 2007). Kicking is a specialized manipulative skill that involves the use of the foot, in order to strike an object, for instance, a round ball (as cited in Butterfield et al., 2008). Depending on the ball’s positioning in relation to the child, the ball may be kicked with the instep, top, or front toes of the foot (Horvat et al., 2019). Furthermore, a common use of kicking is demonstrated in manipulative movement sports, such as soccer (Gallahue & Donnelly, 2007); which frequently emphasize the use of kicking a soccer ball (Kiddo, 2019).
Interestingly, spontaneous kicking is a style of kicking that has been a part of human development, as early as infancy, and is one of the earliest motor skills to be recorded (as cited in Fry et al., 2019). Kicking is often introduced around the age of three and is expected to be mastered by the age of four (Kiddo, 2019). For this reason, the importance of the manipulative skill of kicking, towards the children's movement experiences can be expressed through their daily physical behaviours. In other words, kicking may be facilitated without the need to be involved in a sport, such as soccer. For instance, children often without realization participate in the development of their kicking fundamentals, including common behaviors such as kicking a pebble on the ground when walking (Gallahue & Donnelly, 2007). Other than expressing that children are exposed to the development of their kicking through non-sport situations, the future participation in both sport and non-sport environments are able to lay the foundation for their kicking style, and will further enhance their ability to kick a moving object and punt an object (Butterfield et al., 2008).
Role in Childhood Development and Contemporary Considerations
Acknowledging the factor that fundamental movement skills such as kicking, provides the foundational process for participating in more complex activities, such as sports. This allows us to further examine the role kicking exhibits towards healthy child development (as cited in Lloyd et al., 2014). Thus, without the competence in locomotor skills such as kicking, children would not be able to participate in a variety of physical activity options, which would facilitate a healthy and active lifestyle for their future development (as cited in Lloyd et al., 2014). To further illustrate, a certain criteria must be followed in order for children to successfully fulfill their kicking performance. According to Kiddo (2019), there are six steps that define the proper application of kicking. Firstly, the eyes must be focused on the ball throughout the kick. Secondly, the arm opposite of the kicking leg must swing forwards and towards the side. Thirdly, the non-kicking foot will be placed beside the ball, and fourthly, the hips and shoulders must rotate forwards. Lastly, the participant will contact the ball with the inside or top of the foot, and the kicking leg will follow through towards the target area as the final step. A better understanding of the kicking criteria may be visualized through the following figure (Figure 1). File:IMG 7282.heic.pdf
An underlying issue towards children’s motor development, is the factor that we are composed of a technology-based environment, where importance has shifted towards improving our technological skills, as opposed to improving our physical skills. In particular, children have greatly relied on the need for technology as an alternative solution to provide them with the opportunity to engage in play (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2019). Although, such behavior have caused children to become less physically energized and limits their ability to develop motor skills, such as kicking (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2019). Therefore, individuals participating in the development of children’s movement, should be aware of this component and incorporate further education on the importance of staying physically literate. According to Kiddo (2019), kicking with the toe, having the non-kicking leg behind the ball, and not using the opposite arm for balance, are all common issues that children encounter when facilitating their kicking behaviour. Thus, such errors may cause children to wrongfully facilitate a kick and increase their chances of becoming injured through such execution. With this intention, educators must be aware of these situations and further re-construct an individual’s kicking style, through proper practice and education.
Practical Applications
It is essential for children to develop motor control and muscle memory at a young age. Kicking is identified as a manipulative skill involving gross body movements in which force is imparted to or received from an object (Donnelly, 2007). Movements of the foot are some of the first motions learned by the child and therefore, kicking comes as a natural maneuver. There are many practical applications of kicking during the life span that can be strengthened with games and activities designed to develop the skill during childhood. The following two games are activities that can develop the skill in a fun and engaging way for children
Monkey in the Middle
Purpose: The purpose of this game is to prepare elementary school age children with basic manipulative skills and to introduce them to the fundamentals of kicking the ball within a confined parameter. Passing the ball to each other is one of the most commonly played games among children when they become active. This game engages the child in a physical activity that integrate the use of the muscles of lower and upper leg to kick the ball. Furthermore, this game stimulates the muscle memory where the child will occasionally pass the ball around without properly seeing the person that they are passing the ball to.
Target age: This game can be played by a wide range of ages and abilities. From professional soccer players to children just learning to play ball in a group, there can be many beneficial aspects for a variety of people. However, our target audience is children between the age of 7 to 12. This demographic has a moderate ability of motor control and muscle memories. This game may not be appropriate for children younger than 5 years since they may not have the social discipline to uphold the game or the muscle memory to kick the ball at the correct target.
Apparatus/Equipment Needed and Environmental Space/set-up: 4 red plastic visibility cones to identify a parameter of play. One regular size soccer ball. Mini soccer ball could also be used depending on the height and abilities of the participants. This game can be played indoors and outdoor, however outdoor is preferred since there is more room to run around.
Instructions:
1) 3 children form a large triangle in the field with a minimum of 4 meters apart from each other.
2) 1 child will be chosen randomly to be the monkey in the middle.
3) The children forming the triangle will pass the ball to each other with the monkey in the middle trying to intercept the ball.
4) If the child in the middle manages to get the ball, the last child who touched the ball will go to the middle to be the middle monkey.
Modifications:
Modification #1: The size of the triangle can be increased or decreased based on the children’s age and their running and passing abilities.
Modification #2: the coaches or the teachers can add one more player to form a square or parallelogram shape to include more players in one game.
Modification #3: more balls and more monkeys in the middle to add more fun and entertainment to the game.
Modification #4: Children can be asked to pass the ball to each other in the air rather then on the ground.
Modification #5: Different kinds of ball like basketball or volleyball can also be used instead of the soccer ball to make the passes easier or harder.
Hit the circle on the wall
Purpose: The purpose of this game is to increase muscular strength in the lower body and to strengthen neuromuscular coordination. This game is a fun and engaging play that helps children learn and practice precise kicks. This game will require the child to use the toe more often than the side of the foot to kick the ball.
Target age: Children between the age of 7 to 12. This demographic is most appropriate for this game since many children in this age range start getting involved in sports and other more professionally organized and coached activities.
Apparatus/equipment needed and environmental space/set-up: It would be more ideal to play this game in an indoor setting since you would need a flat surface and a wall. Tuck tape needed to create circle shapes tape on the wall. Make a Column of 4 circle shapes vertically with a height difference of 75 cm one above another on the wall. Make as many columns as the number of participants. One soccer ball is needed per participant. Red plastic visibility cones are needed to mark the distance from the wall and children
Instructions:
1) The instructor will Assign each column on the wall to one child.
2) All children will stand 10 meters away from the wall to begin kicking and shooting the ball.
3) Each circle on the wall has 5 points making the top circle worth 20 points.
4) Children will be given a ball and asked to hit the highest circle in their assigned column
Modifications:
modification #1: Depending on the child’s ability, the distance from the wall and the children can be modified.
· Lower difficulty level modification #1: bring the red plastic visibility cones close to the wall
· Higher difficulty level modification: bring the red plastic visibility away from the original position
· Higher difficulty level: Ask the child to kick the ball with one leg movement.
The length between the circles can also be adjusted to make it easier or more difficult.
· Lower difficulty level modification #1: Draw the tuck tape circles closer to each other.
· Lower difficulty level modification #2: Use red tuck tape instead of grey to make the circles easier to identify
· Higher difficulty level modification #1: Draw the tuck tapes further away from each other.
Modification #2: Children can be alternatively be asked to hit their target circle at an angle.
Modification #3: Children can be asked to hit the target on the wall a number of times within a limited time period.
Modification #4: Children can be asked to use their non-dominant leg to kick the ball.
Modification #5: Alternatively, heavier ball like basketball can be used to make the kicking and hitting the target more difficult.
Summary
Insert video vignette...as per Section 4 requirements.
References
Butterfield, S. A., Loovis, E. M., & Lee, J. (2008). Kicking Development by Children
in Grades K-8: A Multicohort Longitudinal Study. J Res Health, Phys Edu Recreation, Sport Dance, 3, 29-33.
Fry, K. E., Chen, Y., & Howard, A. (2019). Discriminative models of spontaneous
kicking movement patterns for term and preterm infants: A pilot study. IEEE Access, 7, 51357-51368. doi:10.1109/access.2019.2911450
Gallahue, D. L., & Donnelly, F. C. (2003). Developmental physical education for all
children (4th ed.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Horvat, M. A., Eichstaedt, C. B., & Taylor & Francis eBooks A-Z. (2019).
Developmental and adapted physical education: Making ability count (Sixth ed.). New York; London: Routledge.
Kiddo. (2019) The University of Western Australia. Retrieved from
https://kiddo.edu.au/skills/kicking-soccer
Lloyd, M., Saunders, T. J., Bremer, E., & Tremblay, M. S. (2014). Long-term
importance of fundamental motor skills: A 20-year follow-up study. Adapted Physical Activity Quarterly, 31(1), 67-78. doi:10.1123/apaq.2013-0048
Public Health Agency of Canada. (2019). Mind: Screen Time. Retrieved from
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/healthy-living/screen-time-nobodys-perfect.html