Staying active in the digital playground
About this resource
This article invites parents, carers, and educators to promote children’s participation in physical activities using the PLAYback strategy. PLAYback sees trusted adults video recording children participating in physical activities then co-viewing the footage with children to reinforce, support, and build skill development.
Age range for this resource
For parents, carers, and educators of children aged 3 to 5 years.
Goal of this resource
To encourage young children to be physically active by inspiring excitement about moving their bodies.
To provide opportunities for young children to engage in physical activities based on their media interests.
To support young children’s physical development relating to bone and muscle strength, heart and lung health, and coordination skills.
How might educators use this resource?
Share this article with colleagues. Use it as a conversation starter to brainstorm ideas about how PLAYback could be useful at your service. What are some fun popular videos that could motivate children’s physical play and extend their skills? Choose a suitable video to co-view with children and then help to video record children trying the physical activity for themselves. After that, start to ‘playback’ or watch what they have been doing. When children playback their own physical activity, they can review and improve their skills and enjoy receiving encouragement from valued adults and peers.
How might families use this resource?
Read this article then select a fun video that could motivate your child’s physical play. Co-view the video with your child and then help to video record your child trying the physical skill for themselves. After that, together start to ‘playback’ or watch what they have been doing. When children playback their own physical activity, they can review and improve their skills and enjoy receiving encouragement from valued adults, peers, and siblings.
How might organisations use this resource?
Provide a link to this article in your newsletter or regular communication with educators or families. Highlight how the Early Childhood Australia (2018) Statement on Young Children and Digital Technologies encourages adults to consider how digital technology can be used in dynamic ways to support children’s physical activity. Explain that children’s screen viewing interests can be turned into fun physical activity using the simple strategy called PLAYback described in this article.
What learning might we see?
Parents, carers, and educators engaging in active discussions with young children around a physical skill showcased on a screen, then using digital technologies to encourage children to demonstrate this skill.
Young children extending their own interests in a physical skill viewed on a screen by making decisions about planning and designing their own versions of demonstrating that skill.
Practice
Reinforcing
Children and trusted adults record children participating in physical activity and re-play footage to support and build skill development and receive encouragement from others for physical activity.
Area
Health and Wellbeing
The way that young children interact, engage with, and experience digital technologies can have implications for health and wellbeing. This includes their physical activity, posture, vision, sleep, and emotions.
Connection to relevant standards
Belonging, Being, and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia V2.0 (Australian Government Department of Education, 2022)
Outcome 1: Children have a strong sense of identity
Children feel safe, secure, and supported (e.g., Children confidently explore and engage with social and physical environments through relationships and play).
Children develop their emerging autonomy, inter-dependence, resilience, and agency (e.g., Educators support children’s effort, assisting and encouraging as appropriate).
Children learn to interact in relation to others with care, empathy, and respect (e.g., Children co-use and collaborate with others when using digital technologies).
Outcome 2: Children are connected with and contribute to their world
Children develop a sense of connectedness to groups and communities and an understanding of their reciprocal rights and responsibilities as active and informed citizens (e.g., Educators support and build children’s skills to participate and contribute to group play and projects).
Outcome 3: Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
Children become strong in their social, emotional, and mental wellbeing (e.g., Educators collaborate with children to document their achievements and share their successes with their families; Educators challenge and support children to engage in and persevere at tasks and play; Educators investigate how physical movement, exercise, and healthy lifestyles assist children with mental wellbeing; Educators discuss and model appropriate use of digital technologies and discuss how to keep children safe online with children and families).
Children become strong in their physical learning and mental wellbeing (e.g., Children participate in physical play, dance, drama; Educators plan for and participate in energetic physical activity with children, including dance, drama, fundamental movement skills, and games; Educators provide a wide range of tools and materials to resource children’s fine and gross motor skills; Educators provide ample opportunities and resources for gross motor and movement experiences in both indoor and outdoor learning environments).
Children are aware of and develop strategies to support their own mental and physical health and personal safety (e.g., Educators engage children in experiences, conversations, and routines that promote healthy lifestyles and good nutrition; Educators discuss aspects of posture, and other health related age-appropriate digital practices with children).
Outcome 4: Children are confident and involved learners
Children develop a growth mindset and learning dispositions such as curiosity, cooperation, confidence, creativity, commitment, enthusiasm, persistence, imagination, and reflexivity (e.g., Educators provide opportunities for children to revisit their ideas and extend their thinking).
Children develop a range of learning and thinking skills and processes such as problem solving, inquiry, experimentation, hypothesising, researching, and investigating (e.g., Educators ensure documentation of learning is visible to encourage the revisiting of ideas and concepts; Educators model the use of digital technologies and media to assist children to investigate and document their findings).
Children transfer and adapt what they have learned from one context to another (e.g., Educators scaffold children’s understanding of how skills and ideas can be transferred to other activities through conversation and questions).
Children resource their own learning through connecting with people, place, technologies, and natural and processed materials (e.g., Children explore the purpose and function of a range of tools, media, sounds, and graphics).
Outcome 5: Children are effective communicators
Children use digital technologies and media to access information, investigate ideas, and represent their thinking (e.g., Children engage with technologies and media for fun and social connection; Educators encourage collaborative learning about and through technologies between children, and children and educators; Educators provide opportunities for children to have access to different forms of communication technologies; Educators integrate technologies across the curriculum and into children’s multimodal play experiences and projects).
National Quality Standard (Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority, 2019)
Quality Area 1: Educational program and practice (e.g., Educators are deliberate, purposeful, and thoughtful in their decisions and actions; Educators respond to children’s ideas and play and extend children’s learning through open-ended questions, interactions, and feedback; Each child’s agency is promoted, enabling them to make choices and decisions that influence events and their world).
Quality Area 2: Children’s health and safety (e.g., Each child’s wellbeing and comfort is provided for, including appropriate opportunities to meet each child’s need for sleep, rest, and relaxation; Healthy eating and physical activity are promoted and appropriate for each child).
Quality Area 3: Physical Environment (e.g., Resources, materials, and equipment allow for multiple uses, are sufficient in number, and enable every child to engage in play-based learning).
Quality Area 5: Relationships with children (e.g., Responsive and meaningful interactions build trusting relationships which engage and support each child to feel secure, confident, and included).
National Principles for Child Safe Organisations (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2018)
Principle 3: Families and communities are informed and involved in promoting child safety and wellbeing.
Principle 5: People working with children and young people are suitable and supported to reflect child safety and wellbeing values in practice.
Principle 8: Physical and online environments promote safety and wellbeing while minimising the opportunity for children and young people to be harmed.
Explore More
If these ideas are new to you, explore these related resources:
Physical activity: Getting children involved
This Raising Children Network article discusses ideas for getting children involved in physical activity.
This Raising Children Network article discusses why child-led play is good for children, what you need, how to follow a child’s lead, and adapting for different children.
For more ideas, explore these related resources:
Using digital technology with children: Tips
This Raising Children Network article offers useful tips on using digital technologies with your child.
Treasure hunt: Activity for children 3–6 years
This Raising Children Network article guides parents and carers with setting up an outdoor treasure hunt for young children and provides ideas for extending this play activity.
If you would like to read some research, explore these related resources:
Chacón-Cuberos, R., Zurita-Ortega, F., Ramírez-Granizo, I., & Castro-Sánchez, M. (2020). Physical activity and academic performance in children and preadolescents: A systematic review. Physical Education and Sports Notes, 139, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.5672/apunts.2014-0983.es.(2020/1).139.01
Hale, G. E., Colquhoun, L., Lancastle, D., Lewis, N., & Tyson, P. J. (2023). Physical activity interventions for the mental health of children: A systematic review. Child: Care, Health & Development, 49(2), 211–229. https://doi.org/10.1111/cch.13048