110 Global Education Review 5(2) Global Education Review is a publication of The School of Education at Mercy College, New York. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported License, permitting all non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Citation: Becker, Derek. R., Grist, Cathy L., Caudle, Lori A., & Watson, Myra K. (2018). Complex physical activity, outdoor play, and school readiness among preschoolers. Global Education Review, 5 (2), 110-122. Complex Physical Activity, Outdoor Play, and School Readiness Among Preschoolers Derek R. Becker Western Carolina University Cathy L. Grist Western Carolina University Lori A. Caudle Western Carolina University Myra K. Watson Western Carolina University Abstract High quality educational settings play a crucial role in preparing a child to enter kindergarten, but little work has explored how outdoor play and complex physical activity outside school and childcare settings promote school readiness among preschoolers. To address this gap, the present study explored connections among school readiness with outdoor play and participation in complex physical activity. Parents (N = 107) reported the extent and frequency of time their child spent in outdoor play during a typical week, and what complex activities (e.g., soccer, biking, basketball) the child played over the last year. School readiness was assessed with parent reports on the Preschool Behavior and Emotional Rating Scale. Results showed participating in complex activities significantly moderated the relationship between time in outdoor play with school readiness, with time in outdoor play positively related to school readiness for children who participated in two or less complex activities. For children who participated in three complex activities, time in outdoor play was not related to school readiness. Findings offer support that encouraging both outdoor play and participation in complex physical activities could promote school readiness, particularly when opportunities for outdoor playtime are limited. Keywords Complex physical activities, outdoor play, school readiness, preschoolers Introduction While the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) endorses a multi-dimensional view of school readiness (NAEYC, 2004), little research has focused on whether preschoolers’ participation in complex physical activities and outdoor ____________________________ Corresponding Author: Derek R. Becker, Western Carolina University, 1 University Drive, Cullowhee, NC 28723. E-mail: drbecker@wcu.edu Complex physical activity, outdoor play, and school readiness 111 play promote the development of early academic skills. Early childhood is a crucial time for motor and cognitive skill development (Myer et al., 2015), and evidence suggests preschool children who engage in active forms of play have better memory and attention (Becker, McClelland, Loprinzi, & Trost, 2014; Diamond & Lee, 2011). However, in a typical school day, preschoolers engage in many forms of play and other learning experiences, yet it is not clear how specific types of activities and play outside of educational settings promote school readiness. Therefore, the present study examines the direct and moderated relationship between parent reports of child outdoor play and participation in complex physical activities (e.g., soccer, basketball, dance, gymnastics) on school readiness. Complex physical activities can occur both during spontaneous indoor/outdoor play and within organized team sports, with the former being more likely among preschoolers. Following evidence with older samples that participating in complex physical activity (i.e., sports) is associated with academic achievement (Becker, 2016), and that children who engage in active play have better memory and attention (Becker et al., 2014), it was predicted that participating in a greater number of complex physical activities and spending more time in outdoor play would be related to school readiness. We also examined if participating in complex physical activities moderated the relationship between time in outdoor play with school readiness, such that for children who participate in less complex physical activities, the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play will positively relate to school readiness. School Readiness and Academic Achievement School readiness is a multidimensional construct that includes domain general skills related to intellectual and social development (Duncan et al., 2007; Romano, Babchishin, Pagani, & Kohen, 2010). Cognitive skills that promote school readiness often involve executive function, which are cognitive processes involved in the control of goal-directed cognition and behavior (Koziol, Budding, & Chidekel, 2012; Miyake, Friedman, Emerson, Witzki, & Howerter, 2000). Executive function is involved in the development of abstract thought and the formation of rules involved in the learning process (Kharitonova & Munakata, 2011; Snyder & Munakata, 2010), and can predict short and long-term academic development. For example, executive function measured in the fall of both prekindergarten and kindergarten predict change in math in spring of the respective academic year (McClelland et al., 2014). Along with executive function, prosocial behaviors that include the ability to understand self and others, cooperate with peers, and regulate emotions are also related to short and long-term academic outcomes. For boys, high levels of aggressive behavior and low levels of prosocial behaviors in prekindergarten are linked to low concurrent emergent literacy scores, with solitary play related to low emergent literacy for boys and girls (Doctoroff, Greer, & Arnold, 2006). Children who display more prosocial behavior in kindergarten are also found to have higher math and reading scores in the third grade (Romano et al., 2010). Given the above connections between school readiness with academic achievement, it is important to examine factors such as outdoor play and complex physical activities that could promote school readiness. Outdoor Play, Complex Physical Activities, and School Readiness The connection between the cognitive and social components of school readiness with outdoor play and sport participation can be found in the 112 Global Education Review 5(2) aerobic activity that could be achieved during play, the complexity of participating in a complex task that taps executive function, and in the social skills that could be developed when interacting with peers. For the former, evidence suggests that children who spend more time in outdoor play are more physically active and physically fit (Cleland et al., 2008), with physical activity and physical fitness linked to higher executive function. For example, in a non- experimental study with children between 9 and 10, higher fit youth showed better executive function and greater activity in brain regions associated with attention and memory (Chaddock, Erickson, Prakesh, Chaddock, Erickson, Parkash, Van Patter, et al., 2010). Higher physically fit children are better able to control their behavior (Chaddock-Heyman et al., 2013), and show greater prefrontal and parietal activation (Chaddock et al., 2012). In preschool samples, active outdoor play is linked to better executive function (Becker et al., 2014), with physical fitness also predicting working memory and attention (Niederer et al., 2011). Evidence also suggests the combination of exercise and cognitive engagement enhance the relationship with executive function (Curlik Ii & Shors, 2013; Koutsandréou, Wegner, Niemann, & Budde, 2016), with sports such as soccer, baseball, and wrestling associated with higher executive function (Memmert, 2009; Nakamoto & Mori, 2012; Williams & Ford, 2008). Although the majority of work examining the cognitive benefits of sport participation are with older samples, exposure to the perceptual and cognitive demands of a sport such as soccer, gymnastics, or dance, or sport type activity such as riding a bike, is associated with change in executive function, the retention of motor skills, and increased activation in brain areas involved in executive function (Lin et al., 2013; Saemi, Porter et al., 2012). In work with kindergarten age children, following eight weeks of soccer skills training, improvements in executive function were found for children in both a high and low training group (Chang, Tsai, Chen, & Hung, 2013). Similar to Chang, after participating in a 6-month soccer intervention, children between age 7 and 9 showed improvement in executive function relative to a non-exercise control group (Alesi, Bianco, Luppina, Palma, & Pepi, 2016). At the same time, both complex physical activities and natural outdoor play often involve peer interactions that could be linked to the development of social skills (Bailey, 2006; Gould & Carson, 2008). For example, in a study with shy children, participation in complex physical activity was linked to a reduction in anxiety and better socials skills (Findlay & Coplan, 2008). Children who participate in sport-type activities also show higher levels of social competence and lower levels of social anxiety (Dimech & Seiler, 2010; Haugen, Säfvenbom, & Ommundsen, 2013). Finally, when comparing both outdoor and indoor play, outdoor play was linked to more peer- based interactive dramatic play (Shim, Herwig, & Shelley, 2001). Together, the above evidence suggests that an outdoor environment that encourages the child to be physically active, promotes activities that include a combination of aerobic movement and complex motor skills such as kicking, throwing, or riding a bike, and allows for social interactions could be associated with school readiness. In the present study, we examine if children who spend more time in outdoor play, participate in more sport activities, or some combination of the two have higher school readiness in the fall of the prekindergarten year. The Moderating Role of Complex Physical Activity with Outdoor Play and School Readiness Although evidence points to a direct relationship between outdoor play and participation in complex physical activity with school readiness, Complex physical activity, outdoor play, and school readiness 113 it’s also possible that the relationship between outdoor play with school readiness could vary based on the number of complex physical activities a child plays. For example, in work with older children, evidence suggests that if a child plays a high number of complex sports, such that require attention and are played in a shifting environment (e.g., soccer, volleyball), the physical activity required to play the sport (assessed as metabolic intensity), is less related to executive function (Becker, 2016). However, when a child plays repetitive sports that require less attention (e.g., running, swimming), the level of physical activity required to play the sport (metabolic intensity) is positively related to executive function. For children in the present study that participate in fewer complex physical activities, it is possible they could achieve a similar level of school readiness if they spend more time in outdoor play. Given that motor skills are developing in preschoolers, participating in complex physical activity at a young age could promote school readiness (Chang et al., 2013). However, for children who participate in fewer of these activities, it is possible that spending more time in outdoor play could improve school readiness through spending more time being physically active (Becker et al., 2014; Cleland et al., 2008). Thus, it is possible for preschoolers who participate in multiple complex activities, the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play could be less related to school readiness. Summary and Hypothesis High quality early childhood educational settings play a crucial role in promoting academic skills (Vandell, Belsky, Burchinal, Steinberg, & Vandergrift, 2010), yet little work has focused on how outdoor play and complex physical activities, both at home and preschool, could promote academic skill development. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between time spent in outdoor play and participating in complex physical activities with school readiness. Research question one investigated if children who spend more time in outdoor play and/or participate in more complex physical activities have higher school readiness? Drawing on research suggesting participating in outdoor play and complex physical activities are linked to the cognitive and social components of school readiness (Becker et al., 2014; Chang et al., 2013; Shim et al., 2001), it was predicted that the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play and participating in more types of complex physical activities would be positively associated with school readiness. Research question two assessed if participation in complex physical activities moderated the relationship between time spent in outdoor play with school readiness? Following evidence from Becker, (2016), which suggests if a child plays multiple complex sports, the physical activity required to play each sport is less related to executive function, it was predicted the relationship between outdoor play with school readiness would be moderated by the number of complex physical activities a child played; such that for children who participated in less complex physical activities, time spent in outdoor play would be positively related to higher school readiness. Method Participants Participants included 107 children attending preschool in a child development center in Western North Carolina. Children were sampled from a single center with multiple classrooms (n = 6). Data was collected in the fall of the prekindergarten year through packets sent home with parents. The average age at the beginning of the study was 50.94 months (range = 36.03 – 114 Global Education Review 5(2) 60.11 months). A total of 54 of the children were female, and 55 were male. The average yearly income of the sample was 45,060 (range = 0 - 161,710). Measures Outdoor Play The extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play was measured by asking parents, “On a typical week, how many hours is your child outside playing?” The average number of hours of outside play reported by parents was 8.00 (range = 0 - 25). Complex Physical Activity Participation in complex physical activities was measured by asking parents on a typical week, if the child participated in any of 8 complex physical activities (see Table 1). The average number of complex physical activities which children participated in was 2 (range 0 - 8), with 83 of the children participating in at least one complex physical activity. The complex physical activity variable was a count of the number of activities in which the child participated in, outside of the formal early childhood educational setting. Given that over a third (78.49%) of the sample participated in 3 or fewer sports, children who participated in 4 or more sports were aggregated into one group (see Table 1). School Readiness The Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scales (PreBERS) is a standard, norm- referenced assessment, which measures the behavioral and emotional strengths of preschool children, particularly 3-5 years of age. The scale includes 42 items, which rate on a 4-point Likert scale (0=not all like the child; 1=not much like the child; 2=like the child; 3=very much like the child). The PreBERS includes 4 subscales: Emotional Regulation (13 items), School Readiness (13 items), Social Confidence (9 items), and Family Involvement (7 items). The school readiness subscale was used in the present analysis. The internal consistency reliability for the School Readiness subscale, coefficients averaged .94 for males, and .95 for females (Epstein & Synhorst, 2009). Table 1 Complex Physical Activities N = 93 Activity Played Sport n Did not Play Sport n Sports Sport Groups n Soccer 23 70 No Sport 11 Basketball 21 72 One Sport 27 T-Ball 17 76 Two Sports 18 Football 13 80 Three Sports 19 Dance 33 60 Four or More 18 Gymnastics 22 71 Bike 59 34 Scooter 33 60 Note: Played Sport = The number of children who played each individual sport. Did not Play Sport = The number of children who did not play each individual sport 115 Global Education Review 5(2) Analytic Plan Direct and moderated connections were examined between complex physical activity, outdoor play, and school readiness. Pearson bivariate correlations were conducted on complex physical activity, extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play (hours), and school readiness, as measured by the PreBERS. A multiple regression was computed to examine the connection among complex physical activities and hours of outdoor play on school readiness. The main effect of complex physical activity and outdoor play was examined in model one, with the interaction between physical activity and outdoor play added in model two. All analyses were completed using Stata 13.1 (StataCorp, 2013). The percent of missing data ranged from < .02% to .18%, with Full Information Maximum Likelihood estimation (FIML) used to address the issue of missing data (Schafer & Graham, 2002). FIML utilizes all available information and has been shown to produce less biased estimates than listwise deletion (Acock, 2012; Enders, 2001). Outliers were classified as values which were greater or lesser than 3.3 standard deviations from the mean. There was 1 outlier for outdoor play and 2 for family income. Both outliers were recoded to the next closest valid value for that measure within +/- 3.3 standard deviations. One outlier was also found for child age. Child gender, child age, and family income were used as control variables for each model. To assess if school readiness was stronger for children who spent more time in outdoor play, participated in more complex physical activities, or if the connection with school readiness varied by complex physical activities, model one regressed outdoor play and sport participation on school readiness. The interaction between outdoor play with sport participation on school readiness was added in model two. Results Descriptive information for complex physical activity participation can be found in Table 1, and descriptive statistics (including correlations) for all variables included in the current analyses can be found in Table 2. Results for model one showed that the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play was not significantly associated with school readiness (B = .09. p = .374) after controlling for child gender, child age, and family income. However, participating in complex physical activities was positively and significantly associated with school readiness (B = 1.07, p = .015), with children who participated in more complex physical activities showing higher scores on the measure of school readiness (see Table 3). 116 Global Education Review 5(2) Table 2 Descriptive Statistics and Bivariate Pairwise Correlations Between Variables. Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 1. Outdoor Play - - - - - - 2. Sport Activity .32** - - - - - 3. School Readiness .17† .26* - - - - 4. Gender -.11 -.05 -.18† - - - 5. Child Age -.02 -.02 .26* .06 - - 6. Family Income .01 .02 .13 .09 -.02 - N 93 93 91 107 107 95 Mean 8.01 2.41 32.07 51.19 45,060 SD 5.88 1.98 5.89 6.84 35,271 Min 0 0 1 0 36.3 0 Max 25 8 39 1 60.11 161,710 †p < .10. *p < .05. **p < .01 Table 3 Regression Model Results: Main Effects Outdoor Play, Complex Physical Activity, and the Interaction Between Outdoor Play and Complex Physical Activity with School Readiness. School Readinessa Model 1 Model 2 Variables B SE ß B SE ß Outdoor Playb .09 .09 .09 .47** .18 .46 Complex PAC 1.07* .44 .24 2.47** .71 .55 Gender -2.01† 1.11 -.17 -2.03† 1.08 -.17 Child Age .26** .08 .30 .27** .08 .32 Family Income .00 .00 .08 .00 .00 .03 Outdoor Play* Sports – – – -.17* .07 -.59 Note. B = Unstandardized Estimate.  = Standardized Estimate. SE = Standard Error. †p < .10. *p < .05 **p < .01 aThe Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scales bThe extent and frequency of time in outdoor play is measured in hours. C PA = Complex Physical Activity 117 Global Education Review 5(2) Results for model two revealed a significant interaction between the number of complex physical activities a child played with the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play on children’s school readiness (B = -.17, p = .015) (see Table 3). A test of the regions of significance (Preacher, Curran, & Bauer, 2006) to identify the number of complex physical activities within which time in outdoor play was linked with children’s school readiness showed the region of significance fell between 2.57 and 3.06. This suggests that for children who played two sports, more time spent in outdoor play predicted higher school readiness. The extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play was also positively related to school readiness for children who played no sports. However, for children who played 3 sports, time in outdoor play did not predict higher school readiness (see Figure 1). Based on a reviewer suggestion, post hoc analysis were conducted that included an average of the number of hours’ parents reported their child spent playing each complex physical activity (Mean = .45, range 0 - 2.25). This was done to control for overlap for parents who might have reported the extent and frequency of time in outdoor play as being time the child spent participating in complex physical activity. Results did not differ when including this variable in either model. Figure 1. Interaction Between Extent and Frequency of Time in Outdoor Play and Complex Physical Activity Participation with School Readiness. Note: Slopes represent the relationship between hours in outdoor play with school readiness for children who participated in 0, 2, and 3 complex physical activities. The extent and frequency of time in outdoor play is measured in hours. 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 Sc h o o l R e ad in e ss Extent and Frequency of Time in Outdoor Play 3 Activities 2 Activities No Activities 118 Global Education Review 5(2) Discussion There is a need to understand the role of outdoor learning environments and activities that occur within such environments in the development of academic skills. Prior studies have found that cognitive components of school readiness are linked to physical activity (Becker et al., 2014; Davis et al., 2011) and participating in sports (Chang et al., 2013), but the cognitive and academic benefits of outdoor play and complex physical activity are not fully understood in prekindergarten children. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess if the extent and frequency of time spent in outdoor play, the number of complex physical activities a child plays, or some combination of the two is linked to school readiness. Results supported the hypothesis that participating in complex physical activities would moderate the association between outdoor play with school readiness, with a positive association found between school readiness with time spent in outdoor play for children who played two or fewer complex activities. For children who participated in 3 complex activities, time in outdoor play was not related to school readiness, although children in this group showed the highest level of school readiness. Results offer support that early care settings that offer children the opportunity to participate in complex physical activities could promote school readiness, but also suggests that a similar connection could be found if children are given time to play outdoors. Outdoor Environments and the Interaction Between Sports and Outdoor Play Results in the present study showed that complex physical activity significantly moderated the connection between the extent and frequency of time a child spends in outdoor play with school readiness. The nature of the interaction points to a positive connection between outdoor play with school readiness for children who participate in fewer complex activities. This result is somewhat consistent with past work that examined coordinative exercise, team games requiring physical activity, and interventions involving training in a sport skill, such as soccer (Chang et al., 2013; Koutsandréou et al., 2016; Schmidt, Jäger, Egger, Roebers, & Conzelmann, 2015). Evidence from these studies show the perceptual and cognitive demands of a sport and the shifting game context require attention that could be leading to improved cognitive performance following prolonged exposure. However, the interaction also suggests, as participation in complex physical activities increase (e.g., moving from two to three activities), the association between outdoor play with school readiness becomes flat. This suggests, for children who participate in one, two, or no complex activities, their school readiness scores increase when they spend more time in outdoor play. At a practical level, time spent playing outside likely means that the child is not engaged in screen time. High levels of screen time are linked to lower vocabulary scores, poor interpersonal skills, and lower levels of physical activity (Carson, Rahman, & Wiebe, 2017; Hinkley, Salmon, Okely, Crawford, & Hesketh, 2012; Hinkley, Timperio, Salmon, & Hesketh, 2017). It is possible that children in the present study who spend more time in outdoor play are engaging in less screen time and spending more time being physically active. Non-organized physical activity is also linked to higher vocabulary scores (Carson et al., 2017), and this is consistent with the connection between outdoor play and school readiness found in the present study. At the same time, children who participated in three or more complex physical activities showed the highest school readiness scores, with school readiness unrelated to the amount of time in outdoor play for these Complex physical activity, outdoor play, and school readiness 119 children. This is consistent with results from Becker (2016), who found, for children who played more complex sports (e.g., soccer, volleyball), the physical intensity needed to play the sport was negatively related to executive function. Further, the highest executive function was found for children who played multiple complex sports at a low physical intensity. It is likely if a child is participating in three or more sports, they are spending time being physically active and interacting with peers, both of which are connected with school readiness. The present study is unique in that it examined multiple complex activities (i.e., sport type activities) in a population where motor and cognitive skills are starting to develop. Although the complex physical activities assessed in the present study varied in the level of focus and attention needed to perform the activity (e.g., riding a bike or scooter vs kicking a soccer ball to a friend), they all required motor learning to some degree. As motor skills are developing within this age group (Myer et al., 2015), it is possible that learning to ride a bike or scooter, or throw, kick, or catch a ball could be taxing attention and inhibitory control, and improve the cognitive component of school readiness. Neuroanatomical connections support this proposal, with the cerebellum, a brain region central for coordination and motor control (Marr, 1969), connected to cortical systems involved in executive function (Diamond, 2000; Stoodley & Schmahmann, 2009). Participation in sport-type activities is also linked to higher levels of social competence and lower levels of social anxiety (Dimech & Seiler, 2010; Haugen et al., 2013). As prosocial behaviors are linked to higher math and reading scores (Romano et al., 2010), it is possible that skills involved in positive social interactions could be developing as children interact with peers both during outdoor play and participation in complex physical activity. Together, the intersection among sensory-motor experience, social engagement, and the physical and embodied representation of information could suggest that participating in complex physical activities (i.e., sport type activities) is helping to prepare children for school. Limitations and Future Directions This study revealed connections among outdoor play and participating in complex physical activity with school readiness, but there were also a number of limitations. First, given that this was a concurrent study it was not possible to assess the directionality between outdoor play and participating in complex physical activity with school readiness. It is entirely possible that children with better school readiness select to spend more time playing outdoors or participating in complex physical activity. Future work should assess longitudinal connections among school readiness, outdoor play, and participating in complex physical activity (i.e., sports). Second, outdoor play, participating in complex physical activity, and school readiness were all derived from parent reports. We therefore could not objectively determine the amount of time a child spent participating in outdoor play or complex physical activity, and future work should objectively assess both. It was also not possible to determine if parents’ responses ignored the time spent by children playing outside when attending childcare. However, given that little research has examined how participating in outdoor play and complex physical activity could relate to school readiness, this study is a starting point for future work in this area. Results can also only be generalized to the eight complex activities analyzed in the present analysis. Further, school readiness is a complex construct that not only includes children's readiness for school, but also the schools' readiness for the child along with the families and communities' readiness for school (Britto, 2012; Dockett & Perry, 2009; 2014). Future work should examine if similar connections are found with other less traditional sport activities and use a multidimensional assessment of school readiness. Future work should also assess parents' and teachers' 120 Global Education Review 5(2) attitudes, perceptions, and beliefs related to the role of physical activity in cognitive development. Finally, assessing connections among engagement in dialogic book reading, motor skills, and physical activity are also important avenues for future research given there connection to early school readiness (Becker, Miao, Duncan, & McClelland, 2014; MacDonald et al., 2016; Mol, Bus, de Jong, & Smeets, 2008). Conclusion and Implications Several important applications can be taken from the present results and applied to work within early care settings. First, educating parents and teachers about the cognitive and health benefits of physical activity could promote school readiness by demonstrating the need to create more opportunities for children to play outdoors. Programs aimed at encouraging parents and teachers to get active could also alter attitudes and beliefs about the benefits of outdoor play and increase the overall level of physical activity for both adults and children. Children who are given the opportunity to play outside are also likely to engage in less screen time and be more physically active (Hinkley et al., 2012). Thus, programs with limited sport resources might realize academic benefits by allowing children time to play outdoors. Second, offering children the opportunity to participate in complex physical activities (i.e., sport type activities) might also promote school readiness. This could be accomplished by providing informal opportunities for a child to ride a bike, or kick, throw, and catch a ball, or through formal sport instruction. Third, the combination of outdoor play and participating in complex physical activity could act in an additive manner to improve school readiness, with programs that integrate both possibly seeing the strongest benefits in preparing children for school. Acknowledgment The authors acknowledge the support of a School University Teacher Education Partnership Grant from the College of Education and Allied Professions at Western Carolina University, without which this work would not have been possible. References Acock, A. C. (2012). What to do about missing values. In H. Cooper, P. M. Camic, D. L. Long, A. T. Panter, D. Rindskopf & K. J. Sher (Eds.), APA handbook of research methods in psychology, vol 3: Data analysis and research publication (pp. 27-50). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association. 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College Station, TX: StataCorp LP. Stoodley, C. J., & Schmahmann, J. D. (2009). Functional topography in the human cerebellum: a meta- analysis of neuroimaging studies. Neuroimage, 44(2), 489-501. Vandell, D. L., Belsky, J., Burchinal, M., Steinberg, L., & Vandergrift, N. (2010). Do effects of early child care extend to age 15 years? Results from the NICHD study of early child care and youth development. Child Development, 81(3), 737-756. Williams, A. M., & Ford, P. R. (2008). Expertise and expert performance in sport. International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 1(1), 4-18. About the Author(s) Derek R. Becker, Ph.D., is an assistant professor in the Birth-Kindergarten program at Western Carolina University. He teaches a range of early childhood research methods courses, along with math, science and curriculum. His research focuses on connections among play, physical activity, and sport participation with executive function and early learning. Cathy Grist, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor and Director of the Birth-Kindergarten Program at Western Carolina University. She has taught courses in assessment and intervention for young children with disabilities in a fully online program for the last 10 years. She is a licensed clinical psychologist who provides psychological and behavioral assessments, as well as interventions for preschool age children in private practice. Research interests include preschool personality, assessment, social-emotional competence in young children, behavioral issues, and online teaching strategies and methods. Lori Caudle, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Birth- Kindergarten program at Western Carolina University. She teaches a range of early childhood methods courses, including authentic assessment, literacy, environments, and curriculum. Her research focuses on the professional development of in-service and pre-service early childhood teachers, with a particular focus on the use of digital tools and/or collaboration to enhance learning. Myra Watson, MAEd, NBCT, is an instructor in the Birth-Kindergarten Program at Western Carolina University. She is a former prekindergarten and kindergarten teacher.