The Importance of Fundamental Skill Development & Assessment

Fundamental skill development is key for young children to have because it sets the building blocks for future use of motor, cognitive and affective skills. With fundamental skill development and assessment being so important for the learning child, us as physical educators must make it a top priority to ensure proper development of children's skills. The specific lessons, behaviors, and experiences that are taught to developing children should always be influenced by the fundamental skills that the children already know and/or need to learn. There are genetic and environmental factors that physical educators need to take into consideration when teaching fundamental skills to children. By doing this we ensure the best possible development of fundamental skills. The present as well as future health of our students depends on a proper physical education program.

All of the NASPE standards play a factor in proper fundamental skill development but I feel there are three specific ones associated to this particular topic:

• I. Demonstrates competency in many movement forms & proficiency in a few movement forms
• II. Applies movement concepts & principles to the learning and development of motor skills
• VI. Demonstrates understanding & respect for differences amount people in physical activity settings
• [ www.aahperd.org/naspe ]

By abiding by these standards, it is possible for a physical educator to teach the proper lessons to children in order for them to develop fundamental skills no matter the individual skill level of each child. 

In conclusion, fundamental skill development and assessment are so important to our profession and the health of our students because it is imperative for young children to properly learn and perform these motor,  cognitive and affective skills. If we can help students successfully develop these basic movement skills they are more likely to live a healthier and more active lifestyle.