14 Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana, ISSN 1318-2269  Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
Gustav Bala1*
Boris Popović1 
Erne Sabo2
INFLUENCE OF THE KINDERGARTEN 
PERIOD ON THE DEVELOPMENT 
OF CHILDREN’S PSYCHOSOMATIC 
CHARACTERISTICS
UČINKI PREDŠOLSKEGA OBDOBJA 
NA RAZVOJ OTROKOVIH 
PSIHOSOMATSKIH ZNAČILNOSTI
Abstract
A battery of 11 anthropometric measures, 4 cardio-
respiratory tests, 4 school-readiness tests, and 16 
motor tests was administrated on a sample of 660 
pre-school children (333 boys and 327 girls) just about 
to enrol in the first grade to analyse the influence of 
the kindergarten period on the development of the 
children’s psychosomatic characteristics. The entire 
sample of children was divided into six groups by 
gender and the duration of kindergarten attendance 
(kindergarten period of 8-9 months 3 years and 5 years). 
The results showed that the entire education and motor 
activities in kindergarten contribute significantly to the 
development of children’s psychosomatic characteristics, 
especially in terms of their school readiness and motor 
abilities. The greatest school readiness was found in 
those children who have attended kindergarten for a 
long period, and the worst in those children who have 
attended kindergarten for only one school year or less 
before enrolling in the first grade.
Key words: pre-school children, anthropometric 
characteristics, motor abilities, cardio-respiratory 
abilities, school readiness
1Faculty of Physical Education, University of Novi Sad, 
Serbia
2Preschool Teacher’ Training College, Novi Sad, Serbia
* Corresponding author: 
Faculty of Physical Education
University of Novi Sad
Lovćenska 16, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Tel.: +38121 450 188
Fax: + 38121 450 199
E-mail: gustavbala@yahoo.com
Izvleček
Na vzorcu 660 predšolskih otrok (333 dečkov in 
327 deklic), ki so bili tik pred vstopom v šolo, smo 
uporabili baterijo 11 antropometričnh meritev, 4 
kardio-respiratornih testov, 4 testov pripravljenosti za 
šolo in 16 motoričnih testov, s katerimi smo analizirali 
učinke predšolskega obdobja na razvoj otrokovih 
psihosomatskih značilnosti. Celoten vzorec otrok 
smo razdelili v šest skupin po spolu in po trajanju 
obiskovanja vrtca (trajanje obiskovanja vrtca o d8 
do 9 mesecev, 3 leta in 5 let). Rezultati raziskave so 
pokazali, da celotna vzgoja in motorične aktivnosti 
v vrtcu pomembno prispevajo k razvoju otrokovih 
psihosomatskih značilnosti, predvsem ko govorimo o 
njihovi pripravljenosti za vstop v šolo in motoričnih 
sposobnostih. Najvišja stopnja pripravljenosti za šolo je 
bila ugotovljena pri otrocih, ki so pred vstopom v šolo 
obiskovali vrtec daljše obdobje, manjša stopnja pa pri 
otrocih, ki so pred vstopom v šolo obiskovali vrtec eno 
leto ali manj. 
Ključne besede: predšolski otroci, antropometrične 
značilnosti, motorične sposobnosti, kardio-respiratorne 
sposobnosti, pripravljenost za šolo
Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period 15Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
INTRODUCTION
For most children in Eastern Europe the education process in a pre-school institution occurs 
very early on. Such children spend different amounts of time in pre-school institutions. In 
South-east Europe (the former republics of Yugoslavia), as well as in certain neighbouring 
countries (Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece etc), some children undergo this process 
when they are 18 months old, some at the age of 36 months to 4 years or later prior to enroll-
ing in school. Some children stay in a pre-school institution from the age of 4 until they 
enrol in primary school, whereas others go through this process 9 months before enrolling in 
primary school. Given the varying ages of starting this process or the different times spent at 
pre-school institutions, we may say that different children groups are subjected to different 
forms of education. All groups practice morning and daytime physical activities (callisthenics, 
walking, running, crawling, climbing, passing through obstacles, pulling, jumping, throwing, 
balancing, ball games, various other games), strolling and outings. Models of activity, types of 
exercises along with the intensity, duration and frequency of exercises are, naturally, gradually 
increased in terms of quantity and complexity from baby age to older pre-school age.
The different times spent in pre-school institutions lead to the conclusion that it is impossible 
to realise a complete programme of pre-school education, which raises the question of the 
effects of education on the psychosomatic state of these groups at the time they enrol in 
primary school. By gaining insights into this situation, we can obtain information on those 
characteristics and abilities which are important for enrolling in the school system, i.e. the 
values of education in separate stages of pre-school institutions.
The main idea of this approach is seen in the findings of Bala, Sabo and Popović (2005) on a 
sample of 660 pre-school-children about to enrol in the first grade, where a battery of 16 motor 
tests was applied to analyse the relationship between motor abilities and the school readiness of 
children. The identified relationships showed that in both boys and girls general motor ability 
is positively correlated with general school readiness. The statistical significance and positive 
correlation between the set of motor variables and the set of school-readiness variables, i.e. 
cognitive abilities, pointed to the extreme importance of motor exercising at pre-school age.
The aim of this paper is to analyse the effects of the kindergarten period on the development of 
psychosomatic characteristics (anthropometric characteristics, motor and cognitive abilities) 
in pre-school children about to enrol in the first grade. More specifically, this research’s pur-
pose is to establish the effects of pre-school physical education and children’s other activities 
in kindergarten on morphological characteristics, cardio-respiratory fitness, motor abilities 
and school readiness (cognitive abilities) of pre-school children when they start kindergarten 
at 1.5, 4, and 6 years of age. 
METHOD
Participants
The sample was drawn from a population of children in the city of Novi Sad (Vojvodina, Serbia) 
immediately before enrolling in the first grade. The research was performed on a sample of 
660 pre-school children, with an average age of 6.5 years (SD = 0.17 years), consisting of the 
following six sub-samples:
16 Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006) 
a) 116 boys and 110 girls who had been at kindergarten since they were 1.5 years old, i.e. they 
had spent 5 years at kindergarten – ‘5-year group’,
b) 108 boys and 110 girls who had been at kindergarten since they were 3 years old, i.e. they 
had spent 3 years at kindergarten – ‘3-year group’, and
c) 109 boys and 107 girls who had spent only 8-9 months at kindergarten, i.e., one year before 
enrolling in school – ‘1-year group’.
Instruments
An evaluation of the morphological characteristics of the pre-school children, based on the 
morphological model constructed by Bala (1981), was carried out by means of anthropometric 
measures according to the International Biological Programme (Lohman, Roche, & Martorell, 
1988). The sample consisted of the following measures:
• evaluating body dimensionality: body height, arm length, leg length, biacromial breadth, 
biiliocristal breadth;
• evaluating body voluminosity and subcutaneous fat: body weight, chest girth, forearm girth, 
triceps skinfold, abdominal skinfold, and subscapular skinfold.
The evaluation of the pre-school children’s cardio-respiratory fitness was carried out by apply-
ing the following physiological measures in standard conditions: heart rate, modified Lorenz 
test (Sabo, 2002), lung volume, and 300-metre run.
The school readiness of pre-school children was assessed by means of the POŠ test (Toličič, 
1986), which consists of four sub-tests:
• speech comprehension: t.i., understanding messages, demands, orders, as well as identifying 
and understanding sentences, words and syntax, 
• reasoning: t.i., the ability to conclude and use experience, 
• graphomotor abilities: t.i., fine hand co-ordination, as well as the ability to copy different 
figures as a whole and their parts, and
• understanding amounts: t.i., perceptiveness. 
The battery of 16 motor tests used in this research was selected on the basis of experience with 
adults and some of the tests were modified for small children (Bala, 1999a, 1999b). These tests 
estimate (for adults) the effectiveness of the following functional mechanisms: movement 
structuring, tonus and synergetic regulation, regulation of excitation intensity and regulation 
of excitation duration (Gredelj, Metikoš, Hošek, & Momirović, 1975; Kurelić, Momirović, 
Stojanović, Šturm, Radojević, & Viskić-Štalec, 1975). The motor abilities of the pre-school 
children were estimated according to this motor test battery:
a) Gross body co-ordination: co-ordination with a baton, obstacle course backwards, slalom 
with three balls, 
b) Frequency of simple movements: arm plate tapping, foot tapping, 
c) Flexibility: forward bend on a bench, straddle split,
d) Balance: standing on two legs on a narrow balance beam, across, eyes open, standing on 
one leg on a narrow balance beam, along, eyes open, 
Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period 17Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
e) Explosive strength: standing broad jump, hand grip, 
f) Static strength: bent-arm hang, holding legs on a box, 
g) Dynamic strength: leg-lifting lying on the back, sit-ups, and
h) Sprint (dash): 15-metre dash.
A short description of the motor tests:
Co-ordination with a baton
The child stands in the middle of a mat holding a wooden stick in front of them. On the 
command their task is to turn around 1800, sit, lie on their back, pull both legs through over 
the stick between their hands, and stand up in the starting position. The score is the length 
of time required to complete the task, measured in tenths of seconds.
Obstacle course backwards
The child has to walk backwards on all fours and cover a distance of 10 m, climb to the box 
top and go through one section of the box. The score is the length of time required to complete 
the task, measured in tenths of seconds.
Slalom with three balls
On the command the child rolls three balls between cones and covers a distance of 10 m. 
After they pass the last of the five cones, the child turns around it and continues rolling the 
balls around the cones towards the starting line. The task is completed when the child rolls 
all three balls over the starting line. The score is the length of time required to complete the 
task, measured in tenths of seconds.
Arm plate tapping 
For fifteen seconds the child has to alternately tap, in a sitting position, two plates on a tapping 
board with their dominant hand, while holding the other hand between the two plates. The 
score is the number of alternate double hits completed in 15 seconds. 
Foot tapping
For twenty seconds the child, sitting on a chair, has to lift their preferred foot over the perpen-
dicular partition of the board for foot tapping and tap the board on the other side. The score 
is the number of cycles completed in 20 seconds.
Forward bend on a bench 
The child stands on a bench and bows down as deep as possible. A straight-angle ruler which 
points down with a 40 cm mark at the child’s feet, and 40 cm below it, is located next to them. 
The score is the depth of the reach measured in cm. 
Straddle split
The child stands on a wooden plate, with one side to the wall, and with their foot touching the 
wall. The task is to move their other leg as far as possible to the other side over the wooden 
plate. The score is the horizontal distance from the wall to the outside distance of the subject’s 
foot, measured in centimetres.
Standing on two legs on a narrow balance beam, across, eyes open
18 Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006) 
The child balances on a wooden balance rail standing with both legs with the long axis of 
the rail perpendicular to the long axis of their feet, with their hands on their hips. When the 
child feels they have their balance they say ‘Go!’, and the tester starts a stop watch. The time 
ends when the child touches the floor with any part of their body, or when they remove either 
hand from their hips. The score is the time they held their balance, measured in tenths of 
seconds.
Standing on one leg on a narrow balance beam, along, eyes open 
This task is similar to the previous one, except that the child balances on a wooden balance rail 
standing with their preferred leg with the long axis of the rail parallel to the long axis of their 
feet, with their hands on their hips. The score is the time they held their balance, measured 
in tenths of seconds. 
Standing broad jump 
The child jumps with both feet from the reverse side of a Reuter bounce board onto a carpet 
which is marked in cm. The score is the length of the jump in cm. The task is performed three 
times without rest and the final result is the longest jump.
Hand grip
Using their stronger hand, on command the child squeezes the dynamometer once, sharply, as 
hard as they can. The score is the best of three squeezes repeated with a rest of at least thirty 
seconds between attempts.
Bent-arm hang
The child under-grips the bar and holds a pull-up as long as they can (with their chin above 
the bar). The score is the time of the hold, measured in tenths of seconds. 
Holding legs on a box
The child lies flat on their stomach on a wooden box with their legs in a horizontal position 
over the floor. The task is to hold that position for as long as they can. The score is the time of 
the hold measured in tenths of seconds.
Leg-lifting, lying on the back
The child lies flat on their back, hands behind their neck, their partner holds their elbows 
down to the floor. After the signal the child raises their legs until they are vertical and then 
returns them to the floor. The score is the number of times the legs are elevated to a vertical 
position in twenty seconds.
Sit-ups
The child lies on their back with their knees bent and arms crossed over to the opposite 
shoulders. They rise into a sitting position and return to the starting position. The instructor’s 
assistant holds the child’s feet. The score is the number of correctly executed rises to the sitting 
position (no longer than 60 seconds). 
15-metre dash
On the command the child who is standing behind the starting line has to run 15 m as fast 
as they can to the end of track (15 m). The score is the time of the run, measured in tenths of 
seconds.
Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period 19Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
Procedure
The measuring and testing of the performance of all children was carried out at the time 
of school enrolment (in the same school year). The children’s parents were asked to give 
their permission for their child’s participation in the research study and to provide necessary 
information about their children. School readiness was tested by psychologists whereas the 
anthropometric measurements, cardio-respiratory fitness and motor abilities were tested by 
senior students from the Faculty of Physical Education and the Pre-school Teachers’ Training 
College in Novi Sad. All measurements and tests were performed in standard conditions, using 
standard apparatuses and under the supervision of the authors of this paper. 
Two-factorial multivariate and univariate analyses of variance (MANOVA/ANOVA) were 
used to check the effects of interaction on the groups of children classified according to their 
kindergarten period and gender. The significance of differences between boys and girls at the 
time of enrolling in school was established by means of one-factorial multivariate (MANOVA) 
and univariate analyses of variance (ANOVA). The same statistical methods were used to 
establish the effects of the kindergarten period on the analysed psychosomatic characteristics 
of children at the time of enrolling in school.
RESULTS
The results of two-factorial multivariate and univariate analyses of variance show that there 
were no statistically significant differences in children in terms of the interaction of gender 
and kindergarten period (P = 0.59; the results are not shown for space reasons). This finding 
points out that these two factors did not produce effects which could hide the true effects 
of the kindergarten period or real differences between boys and girls. This situation is very 
convenient because it provides a good basis for a real analysis of differences between boys 
and girls, as well as for a real analysis of the effects of the kindergarten period on children’s 
psychosomatic characteristics at the time of enrolling in school.
The values of means (M) and standard deviations (SD) of the analysed variables in boys and 
girls, as well the statistical tests for univariate (f and p) and multivariate (F and P) analyses of 
variance, are presented in Table 1.
As the whole system of variables was statistically significant in its discrimination between 
boys and girls (P = 0.00), it was generally determined that the longitudinal and transversal 
anthropometric characteristics and chest girth of boys had statistically higher values. The 
boys and girls had practically the same body weight and forearm girth, but the skinfolds were 
statistically more significant in girls.
Boys had lower but statistically significant better values cardio-respiratory variables (heart 
rate and lung volume) in comparison to girls. The analyses of the school-readiness variables 
reveals there were no statistically significant differences between the boys and girls.
Boys were significantly better with those motor tests which evaluated gross body co-ordination 
(obstacle course backwards), explosive strength (standing broad jump and hand grip), and static 
strength (bent-arm hang). Girls were more successful with those motor tests used for assessing 
the frequency of simple movements (foot tapping), flexibility (forward bend on a bench), and 
balance (standing on one leg on a narrow balance beam, along, eyes open).
20 Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006) 
Table 1: Results of the MANOVA and ANOVA of the psychosomatic variables of boys and 
girls
V A R I A B L E S B O Y S G I R L SM SD M SD f p
Anthropometric variables
Body height (mm) 1238.9 55.0 1228.1 58.0 6.06 0.01
Arm length (mm) 539.5 30.4 527.7 31.2 24.15 0.00
Leg length (mm) 715.5 42.8 709.0 43.8 3.69 0.05
Biacromial breadth (mm) 267.7 16.6 263.8 15.6 9.83 0.00
Biiliocristal breadth (mm) 192.8 16.3 188.7 16.3 10.39 0.00
Body weight (mm) 264.2 48.7 257.8 47.3 2.93 0.08
Chest girth (mm) 603.3 43.3 587.7 46.0 19.86 0.00
Forearm girth (mm) 179.3 13.9 178.2 13.9 1.11 0.29
Triceps skinfold (mm) 10.2 3.8 11.3 3.7 13.91 0.00
Abdominal skinfold (mm) 5.7 3.4 6.4 3.9 6.42 0.01
Subscapular skinfold (mm) 6.8 3.3 7.7 3.6 9.17 0.00
Cardio-respiratory variables
Heart rate (freq.) 96.3 8.6 97.9 8.6 5.58 0.01
Modified Lorenz test (s) 50.4 13.3 51.5 13.9 1.08 0.29
Lung volume (ccm) 1309.9 247.1 1227.7 226.6 19.77 0.00
300-m run (s) 91.4 39.6 92.3 12.6 0.15 0.69
School-readiness variables
Speech comprehension (point) 11.7 2.6 12.0 2.4 1.40 0.23
Reasoning (point) 8.1 3.4 8.3 3.3 0.24 0.62
Graphomotor abilities (point) 12.1 5.5 11.9 5.4 0.08 0.77
Understanding the amounts (point) 7.7 2.6 7.4 2.9 2.46 0.11
Motor variables
Co-ordination with a baton (0.1s) 50.9 30.7 51.5 28.9 .0729 0.78
Obstacle course backwards (0.1s) 311.9 94.7 356.7 119.7 28.40 0.00
Slalom with three balls (0.1s) 755.1 245.2 783.1 235.0 2.23 0.13
Arm plate tapping (freq.) 13.9 1.9 14.2 1.8 2.04 0.15
Foot tapping (freq.) 26.3 3.1 27.1 3.1 9.01 0.00
Forward bend on a bench (cm) 42.8 5.5 43.9 5.5 5.71 0.01
Straddle split (cm) 112.3 9.2 111.5 10.7 0.99 0.31
Standing on two legs on a narrow balance 
beam, across, eyes open (0.1s) 89.4 79.9 95.3 79.2 0.92 0.33
Standing on one leg on a narrow balance
beam, along, eyes open (0.1s) 76.9 80.6 95.4 104.4 6.44 0.01
Standing broad jump (cm) 118.3 17.1 108.7 16.4 53.94 0.00
Hand grip (kp) 12.4 2.4 11.2 2.0 48.60 0.00
Bent-arm hang (0.1s) 77.5 65.7 65.3 58.1 6.35 0.01
Holding legs on a box (0,1s) 219.6 185.2 209.8 185.9 0.46 0.49
Leg-lifting, lying on the back (freq.) 17.4 10.1 16.2 8.4 2.79 0.09
Sit-ups (freq.) 9.4 8.8 9.1 8.4 0.17 0.68
15-m dash (0.1s) 41.2 4.9 41.7 3.7 2.73 0.09
F = 8.10 P = 0.00
Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period 21Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
Table 2: Results of the MANOVA and ANOVA of the psychosomatic variables of the three 
groups of children
V A R I A B L E S 5-YEAR 3-YEAR 1-YEARM SD M SD M SD f p
Anthropometric variables
Body height (mm) 1241.2 50.8 1241.6 56.4 1233.8 58.0 0.69 0.50
Arm length (mm) 539.2 29.0 539.8 32.2 539.4 30.1 0.00 0.99
Leg length (mm) 717.5 37.5 717.2 43.0 711.3 47.7 0.65 0.52
Biacromial breadth (mm) 266.4 16.9 268.5 15.5 268.3 17.5 0.55 0.57
Biiliocristal breadth (mm) 194.0 16.9 192.3 15.2 192.0 16.7 0.48 0.61
Body weight (mm) 265.5 50.9 262.5 44.6 264.2 50.4 0.11 0.89
Chest girth (mm) 604.4 40.5 604.3 39.2 600.9 49.8 0.23 0.79
Forearm girth (mm) 178.8 14.3 179.3 12.9 179.7 14.5 0.11 0.89
Triceps skinfold (mm) 103.0 41.7 102.6 32.0 100.4 38.9 0.15 0.85
Abdominal skinfold (mm) 59.5 38.6 55.4 31.4 56.0 32.9 0.46 0.62
Subscapular skinfold (mm) 70.7 35.3 66.3 27.8 68.3 35.9 0.48 0.61
Cardio-respiratory variables
Heart rate (freq.) 95.6 9.2 96.0 8.3 97.3 8.2 1.26 0.28
Modified Lorenz test (s) 51.1 13.8 50.4 12.9 49.6 13.0 0.32 0.72
Lung volume (ccm) 1287.1 238.3 1333.8 256.9 1310.5 246.2 1.00 0.36
300-m run (s) 89.2 14.0 88.6 15.1 96.6 65.9 1.40 0.24
School-readiness variables
Speech comprehension (point) 12.7 2.0 12.3 1.9 10.1 3.0 37.19 0.00
Reasoning (point) 9.1 2.7 8.9 2.9 6.2 3.6 30.64 0.00
Graphomotor abilities (point) 14.3 4.4 13.0 4.8 8.7 5.6 38.20 0.00
Understanding the amounts (point) 8.5 1.7 8.2 1.9 6.4 3.3 23.78 0.00
Motor variables
Co-ordination with a baton (0.1s) 49.3 30.3 49.1 27.4 54.4 33.8 1.03 0.35
Obstacle course backwards (0.1s) 297.0 80.6 296.1 74.1 343.3 117.2 9.39 0.00
Slalom with three medicine balls (0.1s) 723.7 223.1 736.4 255.0 806.8 251.5 3.75 0.04
Arm plate tapping (freq.) 14.1 1.8 14.1 2.0 13.5 1.9 4.26 0.01
Foot tapping (freq.) 26.7 2.9 26.4 3.1 25.7 3.3 2.99 0.05
Forward bend and touch on a bench (cm) 43.6 4.8 42.9 4.9 42.0 6.4 2.40 0.09
Straddle split (cm) 114.6 8.6 113.0 9.7 109.0 8.4 11.67 0.00
Standing on two legs on a narrow balance 
beam, across, eyes open (0.1s) 93.5 94.4 89.8 69.0 84.5 73.2 0.36 0.69
Standing on one leg on a narrow balance 
beam, along, eyes open (0.1s) 82.3 84.8 87.7 91.0 60.5 60.4 3.55 0.02
Standing broad jump (cm) 122.1 15.1 118.1 15.3 114.4 19.6 5.77 0.00
Hand grip (kp) 12.5 2.1 12.5 2.6 12.2 2.3 0.70 0.49
Bent-arm hang (0.1s) 78.6 63.4 84.1 68.4 69.6 65.2 1.33 0.26
Holding legs on a vaulting box (0.1s) 225.8 193.8 243.8 204.2 189.1 150.2 2.48 0.08
Leg-lifting, lying on the back (freq.) 18.4 7.9 18.7 11.2 15.1 10.7 4.50 0.01
Sit-ups (freq.) 8.4 5.6 8.9 7.5 10.8 12.0 2.30 0.10
15-m dash (0.1s) 40.6 3.4 40.1 3.8 42.7 6.7 8.46 0.00
F = 5.53, P = 0.00
22 Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006) 
The information needed to address the problem of this research is presented in Table 2. The 
system of applied variables was statistically significant in discriminating between three groups 
of children (P = 0.00). 
It was easy to ascertain that the kindergarten period did not produce significant differences 
in the physical (morphological) growth and development of the subjects, as well as in their 
cardio-respiratory fitness (cardio-respiratory variables). However, analyses of all school-readi-
ness and motor variables showed statistically significant better results in those subjects who 
had attended kindergarten for more years than the third group. This conclusion emerges from 
the ANOVA and the gradation of quantitative values in these variables within the groups, i.e. 
the best and similar results were recorded by children in the 5- and 3-year groups, while the 
poorest results were those of children in the 1-year group.
DISCUSSION
The results show that longitudinal and transversal anthropometric characteristics and chest 
girth are more developed in boys, while average body weight and forearm girth are same 
in both boys and girls. They also reveal that the amount of subcutaneous fat is statistically 
greater in the girls than the boys. These significant differences in the amount of subcutaneous 
fat can be explained by the specific female body structure and the influence of external factors 
(primarily the influence of physical exercising and nutrition). The nutrition of boys and girls 
in kindergartens, and even at home, is mostly the same in volume and quality terms. For 
the reason of the imbalance between nutrition and motor activity, this adequate nutrition 
is unlikely to be followed by adequate motor activity, however, with the same nutrition boys 
are more active. This situation holds a special value over a relatively long period of practicing 
activities beyond kindergarten.
The cardio-respiratory variables of the analysed children showed that the boys had a signifi-
cantly lower heart rate and a bigger lung volume than the girls. This can probably be explained 
by the more intensive activation of those organs and organ functions which contribute to 
the better visceral development and better aerobic-anaerobic abilities of boys. Boys are more 
interested in activities which involve several types of motion (walking, running and jumping), 
while girls prefer less intensive and calmer activities. This difference in the activity of a child’s 
organism during a longer period is reflected more on the development of boys’ abilities.
As for the analysis of school-readiness variables, it was impossible to find statistically significant 
differences between the boys and girls. This finding demonstrates that mental development, 
i.e. cognitive functioning, is practically the same in the boys and girls.
The boys were significantly better in performing motor tests for the prediction of gross co-
ordination and explosive strength, while the girls were better in the frequency of simple move-
ments, flexibility and balance. This finding is in line with the results of Bala (2003) on a sample 
of 367 children (223 boys and 144 girls), 4-7 years of age, subjected to three anthropometric 
measures and seven motor tests. After the partialisation of the motor test variables according 
to the children’s ages and body composition variables, the results point to the existence of 
‘motor potential capacity’. With such a motor factor the quantitative differences show that the 
boys have significantly better results in motor tests used for estimating explosive strength and 
Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period 23Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006)
the gross body co-ordination of primary motor abilities, whereas the girls performed better 
in flexibility tests.
As the entire system of variables was statistically significant in discriminating three sample 
groups (P = 0.00), the ANOVA results show that the kindergarten period had no impact on 
differences in morphological growth and development, and cardio-respiratory abilities. But 
all the variables for predicting school readiness, and more than half of the applied motor 
variables, were significantly better in those children who had attended kindergarten for a 
longer period (the 5- and 3-year groups). As has been previously analysed, boys are generally 
better in performing motor tests whereas school-readiness tests are solved with equal success 
by boys and girls.
The performance of a pre-school child is associated with certain factors closely related to 
their overall motor, emotional, social and intellectual development (Ismail & Gruber, 1971). 
Bala, Sabo and Popović (2005) analysed the relationships between motor abilities and school 
readiness on a sample of 660 pre-school-children (333 boys and 327 girls) at the time of 
enrolling in the first grade by applying a 16 motor test battery. The obtained relationships 
showed that the general motor ability of boys and girls positively correlates with their general 
school readiness. Owing to the statistical significance and positive correlation between the set 
of motor variables and the set of school-readiness variables, it must be pointed out that motor 
exercising in pre-school age is of the utmost importance.
Within the structure of the general school-readiness factor in boys, the most important ones 
are graphomotor abilities and speech, while reasoning and understanding results were less 
important. In girls, this general factor was mostly manifested by understanding amounts and 
grapho-motor abilities, then by speech and reasoning. It is obvious that grapho-motor abilities 
in pre-school children are very important, as indicated by some other complex researches in 
this field (e.g., Del Giudice, Grossi, Angelini, Crisanti, Latte, Fragassi, & Trojano, 2000). The 
established relationship shows that general motor ability is in a positive correlation with gen-
eral school readiness in boys and girls. This conclusion is in agreement with other researches 
(Dolenec, Pistotnik, & Pinter, 2002; Pistotnik, Dolenec, & Pinter, 2002; Planinšec, 2002), which 
pointed to the positive and significant associations of motor and cognitive abilities for boys 
and girls alike. According to the same results, the motor dimensions that are most strongly 
associated with cognitive abilities are co-ordination and the speed of movement. Of course, all 
of this points to the importance and need for the development of pre-school children. Children 
with better motor abilities can adapt better to different problem situations, activities and tasks 
at the beginning of and during their schooling.
Oja and Jurimae (2002) studied the relationships between physical activity, motor ability 
and school readiness in 294 healthy 6-year-old children from Tartu (161 boys and 133 girls). 
The physical activity of the children was reported by parents and teachers using Harro’s 
questionnaire. The motor ability of children was evaluated using various tests from the Eurofit 
test battery as well as the 3-minute shuttle-run test. The Controlled Drawing Observation test 
was used as a predictor of school readiness and the development of mental abilities. Indoor 
physical activities predicted 19-25% of total variance in the motor scores of these pre-school 
children. Motor ability tests, which demand children’s total attention and concentration, seem 
to be related to the particular school-readiness measures that are chosen.
24 Psychosomatic development in kindergarten period Kinesiologia Slovenica, 12, 1, 14–25 (2006) 
Krombholz (1997) analysed the relationships between the physical performance of pre-school 
children and primary school pupils (N = 2309, age 61 to 108 months) and characteristics of 
physical growth and cognitive performance and ecological variables. Correlations between 
measures of physical growth and physical performance and between physical and cognitive 
performance were positive and significant. The results of the measurement of physical fitness 
and body co-ordination increased across ages. Significant differences were found between 
boys and girls; however, boys exceeded in some items, girls in others. Children of higher 
socio-economic status performed better than children of lower status, while those children 
who participated in sports outside school outperformed those who did not.
The results point to the conclusion that the entire education and motor activities in kinder-
gartens contribute significantly to the development of the psychosomatic characteristics of 
children, especially school readiness and motor abilities. The degree of this development 
depends on how long children attend kindergartens. This means that the best school readiness 
is found in children who attend kindergartens for a long period, and the worst in children who 
attend kindergarten for only one school year (9 months) before they enrol in school.
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