Activités ludiques et développement de la motricité globale chez les enfants de 2-5 ans.

Abstract

The development of gross motor skills is a preoccupation for researchers, who are working hard to propose strategies that will enable young children to develop this area well. This issue has been the subject of a great deal of research, which has emphasized the learning of sport (E.P.S.) in schools as the main factor in the development of gross motor skills, but very little research has been done on the contribution of play activities to the development of gross motor skills, especially in the Cameroonian context. Despite the measures taken, we have observed that children are not always able to produce certain movements, which poses the problem of the difficulty of developing gross motor skills in children aged 2 to 5. The aim of the present research is to determine the relationship between play activities and the development of gross motor skills. To carry out our research, we asked ourselves the question: "What relationship exists between play activities and the development of gross motor skills in children aged 2 to 5? Based on Ferland's (2003) play model, the operationalization of the variables we had previously carried out enabled us to formulate the following hypothesis: "play activities promote the development of gross motor skills in children aged 2 to 5". An observation grid composed of two scales (Bariol and Garitte, 2008 and Ferland, 1998), a structured observation and items measuring socio-demographic characteristics were developed and administered to 30 children from the Toche bilingual school complex in the village of Guientsing I in the Ombessa district, selected using the simple random sampling technique. The data collected through the observation grid and processed by descriptive and inferential analysis confirmed the existence of a significant relationship between play activities and the development of gross motor skills. Thus, chasing favors gross motor development in children aged 2 to 5 (B=0.577 ; P=0.000) with a percentage of 5.77% (R2aj); hide-and-seek favors gross motor development in children aged 2 To a 5 (B=0.449; P=0.000) with a percentage of 4.49% (R2aj); and ball play promotes gross motor development in children aged 2 to 5 (B=0.620; P=0.000) with a percentage of 6.20% (R2aj). These results could be obtained both in a comparative and qualitative study, by applying other theories such as Vygotsky's socio-constructivist theory and (Dennis, 1960)'s theory of experience. In addition, this study could provide support for the State, educational partners and school heads who work and reflect on a daily basis on the strategies to be implemented to better stimulate motor behavior and harmoniously develop gross motor skills.