Leigh M. Vanderloo|Patricia Tucker|Andrew M. Johnson|Shauna M. Burke|Jennifer D. Irwin
Environmental Influences on Preschoolers' Physical Activity Levels in Various Early-Learning Facilities
Western University|Western University|Western University|Western University|Western University
study aimed compare physical activity pa levels ie moderatetovigorous pa mvpa total pa tpa preschoolers 3 different earlylearning environments centerbased childcare homebased childcare fullday kindergarten fdk b assess characteristics eg play equipment policies etc settings influenced preschoolers patwentyseven facilities 9 centers 10 homes 8 fdk participated study participants aged 255 years n 297 fitted actical accelerometers 5 consecutive days childcareschool hours assess pa environment policy assessment observation epao tool used objectively examine pa environment participating facilities finally demographic questionnaires administered preschoolers parentsguardianspreschoolers fdk accumulated significantly mvpa p 05 333 minhr center 158 minhr homebased 175 minhr childcare accumulated significantly tpa p 05 2031 minhr centerbased childcare 1836 minhr fdk active opportunities sedentary opportunities sedentary environment fixed play environment subscales epao significantly impacted mvpa tpa centerbased childcare sedentary environment subscale found impact mvpa tpa subscales influenced childrens mvpa tpa homebased childcarethis research underscores need encouragesupport preschoolers active behaviors earlylearning settings particularly center homebased childcare furthermore article highlights environmental staff characteristics future pa programming focus