The Global Rundown
Israel plans to pump desalinated water into the Sea of Galilee as the lake drops to its lowest level in a century. National forests in Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico close as wildfires spread in the drought-stricken region. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is expected to finish an environmental study of the Dakota Access pipeline within the next two months. Researchers suggest that climate change played a role in the abrupt die-off of several thousand-year-old African baobab trees. Monsoon rains arrive in Bangladesh, killing 12 people.
“Sodden and unstable hills have collapsed over the weekend, destroying latrines. At lower levels, water from flash floods is washing over latrines, carrying sludge through the camps.” –Sanjeev Kafley, a Red Cross representative, in reference to the deteriorating conditions in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, the temporary home to thousands of Rohingya refugees. The first wave of heavy monsoon rains arrived in Bangladesh on Monday, and has already killed 12 people and hastened the spread of waterborne diseases. Reuters
Latest WaterNews from Circle of Blue
What’s Up With Water – June 11, 2018 – “What’s Up With Water” condenses the need-to-know news on the world’s water into a weekly snapshot. Coverage this week includes: Turkey’s postponement of filling the Ilisu Dam, rising water prices in Egypt, and changes in the speed of tropical cyclones.
Kentucky AG Investigates Rural Water System That Has Been Failing for Decades – State’s top lawyer opens inquiry into the management of the troubled Martin County Water District.
By The Numbers
15 percent Amount that Colorado’s “416” wildfire is contained. The blaze is spreading quickly through the state’s warm, dry forests, prompting the closure of the San Juan National Forest. Drought-stricken National Forests in Arizona and New Mexico have been temporarily closed to visitors as well due to extreme fire danger. NPR
100 cubic metres Amount of desalinated water that Israel plans to pump into the Sea of Galilee annually by 2022. The lake, which once provided a large amount of the region’s freshwater, has dipped to historically low levels. The Guardian
Science, Studies, And Reports
Four of the 13 largest African baobab trees have died unexpectedly in the last decade, according to a recent study. Researchers say that the iconic trees, which store massive amounts of water and can live up to 3,000 years, are very difficult to kill. The team speculates that climate change may be linked to the sudden deaths, but further research is needed to verify why the demise took place. The Guardian
On The Radar
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that its environmental review of the Dakota Access oil pipeline should be completed within the next two months. The Corps recently consulted four American Indian tribes who are fighting the pipeline in court. The New York Times
Kayla Ritter is a recent graduate of Michigan State University, where she studied International Relations and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. She is currently based in Manton, Michigan. Kayla enjoys running, writing, and traveling. Contact Kayla Ritter


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Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, Harry Potter.
Image result for beauxbatons costume. Beauxbatons uniform next to pattern Harry Potter ...
Les Filles de Beauxbatons by Joe Shlabotnik, via Flickr Harry Potter Cosplay, Harry Potter
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Triwizard Spirit Rally in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
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Their travelling outfits (pictured above) are my absolute favorites from the Harry Potter series
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Harry Potter's wardrobe is brimful of secrets
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... Harry Potter on Friday 21st July. Philip Treacy adds the finishing touches
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A Beauxbatons Academy of Magic-Style Hat
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Dressed-up fans at the 2016 opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Hollywood. Photo: Gabriel Olsen/FilmMagic
Beauxbatons Intro - Harry Potter (Goblet of Fire) - Isolated Score Soundtrack
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Durmstrang & Beauxbatons Performances | Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Japan 2015
Harry Potter Triwizard Tournament Beauxbatons T-Shirt
MediaI saw this ad on facebook. I know it's not strictly Potter related but all I see is Beauxbatons.
Image is loading Harry-Potter-Beauxbaton-Academy-of-Magic-Crest-Girls-
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The lovely ladies of the Beauxbatons Academy of Magic...Universal Studios - YouTube
Harry Potter Film on Twitter: "These lovely Beauxbatons steered their way into the Expo at #HPCelebration! @UniversalORL http://t.co/xcPLBTwVrY"
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Who is chosen from Beauxbaton's Academy to compete in the Triwizard Tournament?
Beauxbatons Academy of Magic
harry potter, hogwarts, and witch image
... Harry Potter Party). Well ...
Beauxbatons and Durmstrang performers pass the Hogwarts Castle at Universal Studios Hollywood's new attraction The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

domain: hobby


text:
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An English jazz pianist living in Rome witnesses the brutal hatchet murder of a renowned psychic and is quickly drawn into the savage crime. With the help of a tenacious female reporter, the pair track a twisted trail of deranged clues and relentless violence towards a shocking climax that has ripped screams from the throats of audiences for more than 35 years!
DEEP RED stars David Hemmings (GLADIATOR, BLOW-UP) and Daria Nicolodi (PHENOMENA, SHOCK), and is widely considered by both fans and critics alike to be Dario Argento's true masterpiece. Now this classic shocker has been newly transferred in stunning High Definition from its original camera negative, and is presented in both the Uncensored English Version and Full-Length Italian Director's Cut for the first time ever!
Interviews with Co-Writer/Director Dario Argento, Co-Writer Bernardino Zapponi and Goblin (Claudio Simonetti, Massimo Morante, Fabio Pignatelli & Agostino Marangolo)
Goblin Music Video - "Profondo Rosso" (2010)
Daemonia Music Video - "Profondo Rosso" (Directed by Sergio Stivaletti)
Let's skip over the fact that this is Argento's greatest work and possibly one of the best Giallo films ever made.
I can see how people feel either way on this, it does make the pacing of the film slightly faster, but I think it you lose some character development.
Like Hitchcock's Vertigo, the logic of many of these films' narrative plot were secondary to the emotional mood and visual poetry on display.
Blue Underground Blue Ray - An excellently sharp picture and my favorite Argento flick (I like it that Argento gives you all the clues and if you are sharper than the protagonist,... Read morePublished 8 days ago by James
Dario Argento's Deep Red is a thinking man's slasher movie. He has an
obvious flair for the dramatic, and his visual style is a lot more polished
than what... Read more
Brief review for Anchor Bay Blu Ray:
Picture quality is good for a film this old. Every now and then I felt like the film grain was "flashing" for lack of a... Read more
Argento's best (next to Susperia, of course, but this film is my personal favorite.) So glad to finally having the uncut English language version on Blu-ray! Read morePublished 5 months ago by Daniel R. West
Deep Red is an incredibly well directed horror/mystery film by Dario Argento. The soundtrack is AMAZING and elevates the film to another level. Read morePublished 5 months ago by Patrick Tor Johnson
My favorite Argento film beside Phenomena. A great giallo with a great soundtrack by Goblin. I'm not so sure why this is "uncensored" as every version I've seen has the... Read morePublished 6 months ago by Alan Sessler
|Topic||From this Discussion|
|Different from Arrow Release?||
Don't hold your breath! Blue Underground blu rays in the past only had one, maybe three special features. It is suppose to be both version of the film (even though its suppose to be one disc). Inferno too is to be released by blue underground. I am very glad I paid extra from Amazon UK to get the... Read More
Feb 25, 2011 by Monty Britton | See all 16 posts
|Arrow vs. Blue Underground||Be the first to reply|
|Is it the dubbing or is this film as cheesy as it seem(ed)?||Be the first to reply|

domain: artistic


text:
You Are My Baby : Garden Board book
The latest titles in Chronicle's newest series of board books that feature an innovative two-books-in-one format.
A little book is bound with a larger book, so that the pages can turn separately.
One with an ocean theme, the other a garden theme.
- Format: Board book
- Pages: 10 pages
- Publisher: Chronicle Books
- Publication Date: 03/02/2014
- Category: Baby books
- ISBN: 9781452126494

domain: library


text:
As far as we know, no creature, human or extraterrestrial, has fallen victim to a black hole and lived to tell the tale — until now.
An Italian man was viewing artist Anish Kapoor’s work in a museum in Porto, Portugal, on Aug. 13 when he accidentally descended into Descent Into Limbo, an art installation that is a pit painted black. According to the Times of London, the 60-year-old unnamed man fell into the 8-foot hole despite caution signs and security set up around the installation and was taken to the hospital.
To be fair, the black hole is rather convincing. The artwork is on view at the Fundação de Serralves in a free-standing 20-foot concrete cube, which helps create the optical illusion. Depending on the angle you are viewing the installation from, it appears as an infinite void or just a black circle painted on the ground.
Unfortunately for this man, he must have had the perspective of the black circle on the ground, and he fell for it like Wile E. Coyote.
According to ArtNet, the man has left the hospital and is recovering from his fall. The exhibit featuring the black hole is set to reopen in a couple of days, with new safety measures to ensure that this type of accident doesn’t happen again.
gonna throw myself into the descent into limbo
— 𝑳𝑬 𝑪𝑶𝑹𝑩𝑼𝑺𝑺𝒀 🌞 (@qr_ce) August 21, 2018
While Kapoor owns the exclusive rights to make art with Vantablack, a material that absorbs 99.9 percent of light and is considered the blackest substance currently known to humanity, he did not use it for Descent Into Limbo, which was made more than two decades ago.
After somebody fell in to Descent into Limbo I am now 100% ok with Kapoor licensing vantablack and look forward to the many injuries to gallery visitors to come.
— Stuart W (@StuTheLimey) August 21, 2018
Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle:
- Pop duo Matt and Kim kept their relationship secret for years. When they finally told the world, something amazing happened.
- Aaron Hernandez’s suicide notes revealed in new book: Here’s why that’s a problem
- Jennifer Lopez called A-Rod her ‘twin soul’ at the VMAs

domain: news


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Get up to speed with today's breaking business news...
Centra has announced plans to hire 460 staff as it opens 20 new stores this year.
The convenience store chain is ploughing €20 million into the business.
It recorded sales of €1.59 billion last year, a 3% increase on the previous year's performance.
The company already employs nearly 11,000 people around the country.
Ryanair's net profits fell by almost 8% in its third quarter, as overcapacity continues to depress ticket prices in Europe.
The airline made a net profit of €94.7 million, down from €102.7m for the same period a year previous.
Sales of €1.35 billion made for a 1% year-on-year improvement but fell short of expectations.
Ryanair did, however, carry 16% more passengers in the quarter.
Chief executive Michael O'Leary said:
"We expect the uncertainty post Brexit, weaker sterling and the switch of charter capacity from Turkey, Egypt and North Africa into Spain and Portugal will continue to put downward pressure on pricing for the remainder of this year.
"Our prices are falling faster than we initially planned."
Concern is growing among Irish retailers following a disappointing Christmas period.
The latest IBEC retail monitor shows a downturn in performance during the second half of 2016.
Total sales fell by 0.1% when compared with the festive season the previous year.
The group cites softening consumer sentiment and a further move towards online shopping as key reasons for weak results in the sector.
Retail Ireland Director Thomas Burke says 2016 was a year of two halves:
"In the first half we saw a steady incremental growth over the first six months of the year. But certainly in the second half of the year, growth slowed significantly. There are a number of factors we would put that down to.
"Certainly there has been a softening in consumer sentiment among Irish consumers and they're less likely to spend as freely as they were in the first half of last year."
The number of cars taken on UK and Irish ferries rose by 2% last year.
Discover Ferries thinks growth was driven by a 5% increase in domestic trips, with markets in Western Scotland, the Isle of Man and the Isle of Wight doing well.
The Industry body says 8.8 million cars were carried by operators in the UK and Ireland in 2016, up from 8.6 million the previous year.


Made for any occasion and any level of experience
MTB HOPPER LITE 2020
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With the kicker on your back, you can make any environment into a bike park! Created for small and medium jumps, but will the right skills and a bit of creativity can be used for very thrilling tricks.
Makes it possible to clear up to 4-6 m gaps!
FOLDS TO A BACKPACK
Very convenient to carry around with your bike. Dimensions folded: 520 x 380 x 120 mm
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There are only 5 parts, therefore it is assembled in less than 2 minutes.
The design allows you to change the angles & height of the kicker, which makes it versatile - suitable for any terrain & surfaces.
It can be used for both high and long jumps depending on the angle of the kicker and environment that you choose.
Perfect for both urban and nature riding - your boring environment can be made into an exciting trail! It can be used in different environments - adaptive legs change the character & overall feel of the product.
Adjustable legs make the ramp stable on various surfaces. The height can be adjusted from 440 to 500 mm.
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When designing MTB HOPPER, we aimed for balance between strength and weight, between easy assembly and reliability, between attractiveness and safety.
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6 Pages Posted: 8 Jun 2016
Date Written: June 5, 2016
The future of communal settlements is discussed, in terms of economic calculation models. Cooperative communities will regain socio-economic significance, especially in our very critical time of deep economic crisis and psychological uncertainty. However, we should build our communal projects on the time-tested experience of Oppenheimers' circumspection, that is a transformative formula for human economic co-operation. The research direction of emancipatory economics is a reform tool to achieve higher living standards and self esteem for the majority of working people in capitalist societies.
Keywords: communal settlements, transformation law, cooperative economics, calculation models, deep economic crisis
JEL Classification: B41
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

domain: sociology


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Name: South Fork of the Boise River
This review covers an area below Anderson Ranch Dam and outlines the camping opportunities along the South Fork of the Boise River. The river is flowing through a deep valley here with forest in the shaded areas and sagebrush everywhere else. Away from the river this is a dry place during the summer. Watch for snakes as rattlesnakes live here. However, you are far more likely to see a bull snake.
Campsites: Camping areas are scattered along the river and are generally labeled with the road #121 and a letter. Each camping area is different, most are primitive.
Host on Site: There are no hosts.
Garbage Services: No.
Electricity Available: No.
Restroom: There is a vault style outhouse at Tailwaters, another at 121i and another at 121o.
Firewood: You will need to provide your own firewood. Be careful with your fires as weeds grow right up to many of the stone fire rings.
Pets: No restrictions posted.
Picnic Area: Picnicking is allowed anywhere through this area.
Recreation: Trophy trout fishing is the main attraction here but some do go four-wheeling, hiking, or just camping. There are some beautiful vistas for a photographer as well.
Fishing: The South Fork of the Boise River is a trophy rainbow trout stream. Whitefish are also caught here. Check the regulation as special regulations are enforced here.
Boating: Drift boats are very popular and there are several river access points. Tailwaters has a boat ramp while 121i and 121o have gravel access points. I didn't drive all the way to Danskin but there is a river access point there also.
Swimming: Could and do people swim here? Sure, but fishing is the draw to this area.
Wildlife: Deer are common, bear do live here as well as snakes and birds.
Additional Camping Opportunities: We have reviews for the following nearby campgrounds; Anderson Ranch Reservoir Area, Little Camas Reservoir, Little Wilson Creek Campground, Evans Creek Campground, Castle Creek Campground (BNF), Pine Recreation Site, Deer Creek Recreation Site and Curlew Creek Boat Ramp Campground.
Phone service: None.
Nearby Services: Mountain Home is the location for your nearest services such as gas, food, propane and pop. Be sure you have what you need before you come. If you are driving up the north side of Anderson Ranch Reservoir, you will find services including food and beverages at Fall Creek Resort. I did see it listed for sale so I don't know what it's status is now.
RV Dumping Site: According to RV Dumps.com there is one in Mountain Home on E 12th St S, no charge. Take I-84 Bus to E 12th St, turn north. The dump is down a block on your left. Potable water is also available.
Location/Driving instructions: Follow this GoogleMap from Mountain Home, Idaho.
Elevation: 3881 Feet
Reviewed Date: June 2011
Fees And Reservations: No reservations available. This is a first come first serve area. The camping here is free and there are no day use fees.
This information is accurate as of the date of the review.
|High: 67°F||High: 71°F||High: 73°F||High: 74°F||High: 77°F||High: 77°F||High: 77°F|
|Drizzle in the evening.||Partly cloudy throughout the day.||Partly cloudy throughout the day.||Clear throughout the day.||Clear throughout the day.||Clear throughout the day.||Clear throughout the day.|
|77% chance of rain||No precipation during the day||No precipation during the day||No precipation during the day||No precipation during the day||No precipation during the day||No precipation during the day|
|Low: 44°F||Low: 40°F||Low: 42°F||Low: 42°F||Low: 43°F||Low: 43°F||Low: 42°F|

domain: geography


SpaceX is planning to take people around the moon in the years to come as a holiday excursion (of sorts). On the first flight of the SpaceX moon voyage will be Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese billionaire. But he has bought two tickets and is looking for a “female partner” to join him on this historic trip. On his website he is promoting a campaign that sells the opportunity in a ‘Bachelor’ style contest, and also makes it clear that he is looking for a significant other, not just a travel companion.
According to the site he has a long-held dream of going to space, and adds that “he wants to visit such a special place together with a special someone.”
Of course, this whole process will be documented in a reality show called “Full Moon Lovers” that is set to air on Japanese television. The entry criteria isn’t too specific, simply stating that is it open to single women over the age of twenty, that want to enjoy life to the fullest and have bright personalities, and want world peace. O, and needs to be interested in going to space.
We don’t know how much he paid back in September 2018 for the privilege of being the first person on this journey around the moon (but doesn’t land on the moon), but it was “sizeable.” According to Elon Musk, SpaceX CEO, the amount was enough to partially pay for the development of the vehicle, saying at the time: “He puts his money where his mouth is. He’s legit.”
The vehicle is called Starship and can carry 6-8 people, depending on the layout that is ultimately chosen. It is expected to start flying in Q1 2020, according to Musk. The Starship needs a separate booster rocket, called the Super Heavy, to get the vehicle to deep space. And there’s still a fair share of details SpaceX needs to sort out in order to make sure Starship can keep people safe during space voyages.


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The importance of early language learning for the development of language and literacy in later years is frequently emphasised in the literature (see, for example, Aukrust, 2005; Kuhl, 2011; Rogde et al., 2016). The specific importance of speech-, oro- or verbal-motor skills for language development is widely accepted (Dodd & McIntosh, 2010; Hotulainen et al., 2010; Nip, et al., 2011). However, the need for a deeper understanding of the relationship between general motor skills and language skills has been highlighted in the literature (Iverson, 2010; Leonard & Hill, 2014; Son & Meisels, 2006). We agree with Iverson’s (2010) characterization of the relations between motor and language development as ‘complex and multi-faceted rather than simple and directional’ (p. 258).
This study aims to examine the relations between motor-life skills and language skills in a group of children at ages 2 years and 9 months (2;9, T1) and 4 years and 9 months (4;9, T2) and to explore how the level of motor skills in toddlers is related to language skills in preschool. Beyond that, we provide a more in-depth investigation by scrutinising various subdimensions that constitute the motor and language domain. Our particular focus is the opportunity for staff in Early Childhood Education and Care institutions (ECECs) to assess children’s motor and language development from a functional angle by applying structured observation tools implemented by the staff at these institutions.
The relations between motor and language skills
There is some evidence that motor skills and experiences from motor activities are related to language already at an early age (Cameron et al., 2012; Dodd & McIntosh, 2010; Leonard & Hill, 2014; Oja & Jurimae, 2002; Wang et al., 2014; Webster et al., 2005). According to Iverson (2010), ‘Studying the ways in which motor achievements contribute to the development of language may not only yield a more comprehensive picture of the emerging language system; it may also provide fundamental insights into the processes underlying this emergence’ (p. 258).
Ionesco and Ilie (2018) have recently shown that embodied learning processes in early language development may be superior to learning processes that do not involve the child’s body. One possible explanation for this is that the ability to (inter)act intentionally with the environment requires sensory, physical and motor skills that are continuously developing throughout childhood. For instance, one of the earliest motor milestones, the onset of walking, affects how young children share objects with their mothers and, in turn, mothers’ verbal responses to their children (Karasik et al., 2014); this underscores the close, mutual relationship between motor behaviour and verbal and non-verbal communication.
Becker, McClelland, Loprinzi, and Trost (2014) observed that a higher level of physically active play in preschool age was positively related to self-regulation, which in turn increased literacy and mathematics scores. This improvement only emerged when self-regulation also improved, not as a direct consequence of more play activity by itself. These findings suggest that the positive outcomes of physically active play on literacy and mathematical skills may be engendered by reinforcing and integrating executive functions such as memory, attention and inhibitory control. Movement training and physically active play stimulate the development of motor skills (Logan et al., 2012; Wick et al., 2017) and, through this, can contribute to strengthening children’s language skills. The importance of physically active play is also supported from a neuroscientific perspective. Kuhl (2011) emphasises that language performance is strongly related to children’s experiences and brain development. Although results from brain research are still mostly correlational, the connection can be considered ‘potentially causal and […] further research will allow us to develop causal explanations’ (Kuhl, 2011, p. 13).
Peer interactions and, to some degree, adult-child interactions rely heavily on motor skills (Leonard & Hill, 2014). Participating in play, playful activities and playful relationships with others requires sufficiently developed motor skills. Successful participation in play contributes to the physical mastery of play tasks, inclusion and appreciation in the peer group, as well as to being perceived as an attractive playmate for others. Since language learning is a highly social process, social settings that provide opportunities to experience and acquire complex language skills are one of the key demands for high-quality early childhood education, both within families and ECECs. Thus, an environment that provides affordances and opportunities to relate properly to peers and adults is of particular importance. This is consistent with the findings in a systematic review of the literature conducted by Leonard and Hill (2014), who explored the connections among motor development, social cognition and language. They concluded, ‘It is evident from these studies that developing motor skills can influence the number and types of opportunities that infants and children have to interact with others, and the consequent development of social relations’ (Leonard & Hill, 2014, p. 167).
The comorbidity between impaired motor skills and challenges in other domains of development has been frequently stated (Gillberg & Kadesjo, 2003; Hill, 2001; Iverson, & Braddock, 2011; Visser, 2003) in regard to developmental and learning problems at a young age. Son and Meisels (2006) revealed that weak motor-life skills at ages 5 to 6 can be a marker for the risk of weak development of academic skills. Hill (2010) emphasised that a large proportion of children with specific language impairment (40%–91%) show weak motor skills similar to developmental coordination disorders.
Poor or atypical motor development could be considered a possible moderating factor related to problems with language, communication and social interaction that arise in several neurodevelopmental disorders (Leonard & Hill, 2014, p. 167). However, the causality of the relationship has not yet been adequately clarified. Deficient motor skills might compromise preschool-aged children’s participation and enjoyment (Bart et al., 2011) and thereby limit their opportunities for communication as the basis for language development. Another explanation suggested by Adi-Japha, Strulovich-Schwartz, and Julius (2011) could be that deficient skill acquisition in language might not be exclusively linked to the language system but could be tied to the procedural memory system, which may affect both the language and motor domains. This is in line with Webster et al. (2005), who concluded that factors causing weak motor performance may lead to language deficits as well. Assuming that multiple approaches to understanding comorbidity may be more relevant than single explanations, Carpenter and Drabick (2011) called for longitudinal studies that focus on specific subgroups of children and provide relevant knowledge of the predictors of developmental outcomes in these subgroups. Thus, in this study, we aim to contribute longitudinal data pertinent to educational practice regarding all children of toddler and preschool ages.
Assessing children’s motor-life skills and language skills from a functional perspective
In characterising requirements for individual professional competence among ECEC staff, Urban, Vandebroek, Lazzari, Van Laere and Peeters (2012, p. 35) identified the following as core elements of educational practice: ‘Observing children in order to identify their developmental needs’, ‘Documenting children’s progress systematically in order to constantly redefine educational practices’ and ‘Identifying children with special educational needs and elaborating strategies for their inclusion’. Our specific interest lies in the relationships between the motor and language domains in children’s natural environment in Norwegian kindergartens. In this way, we hope to promote knowledge that is especially relevant to employees’ professional work with and for children. Professionals’ educational and pedagogical activities are based on daily observations of interactions with children. In this study, we thus build on the information professionals themselves can generate in their work and support them with observation instruments that centre on children’s actions and expressions in everyday life.
The term ‘functional perspective’ denotes an understanding of assessment that is closely related to, and could potentially benefit to, the field of educational practice, particularly regarding the professional work carried out by staff in ECECs. From a sociocultural and ecological understanding of learning and development (Vygotsky, 1997), according to Säljö (2009, p. 207), a major area of interest lies in ‘the study of how human skills—be they bodily, cognitive, perceptual or a mix of these dimensions—are appropriated by individuals’. Hence, we assume that knowledge relevant to educational decisions and actions requires observations of children in natural interactions with their social and physical environments.
The Norwegian Framework Plan for Kindergartens (Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training, 2017) and the national regulation of preschool teacher education (at the bachelor’s level) are highly process- and resource-oriented (see summary in Engel et al., 2015). Therefore, in this study, we are particularly interested in the opportunity for ECEC staff to implement the obtained knowledge in their pedagogical practice in ECECs. In line with Iverson (2010), we consider knowledge about the relations between motor and language skills, and the development of these skills, to be highly relevant for practitioners working with young children. Systematic observations of children’s skills in everyday life in ECECs have a direct bearing on educational practice and practitioners. Adapted support for individual children by the staff requires reliable, valid observations of children’s functional skills in their everyday activities and play.
Thus, our methodology to assess functional skills among toddlers and preschool-aged children is consistent with the authentic assessment approach (Bagnato et al., 2010; Macy & Bagnato, 2010). In this approach, toddlers’ and preschool-aged children’s interactions with their natural physical and social environments become the core objects of observation, and functional skills are understood as important prerequisites for meeting the challenges of daily life.
The purpose of this study is to examine the relations between language and everyday motor-life skills in toddlers and preschool-aged children in real-life situations, as well as the association between these skills from toddler to preschool age (i.e., how the level of motor skills in toddler age is related to language skills in preschool age). The research questions are as follows: (1) (a) What is the relation between language skills and motor-life skills at age 2;9 and at age 4;9 respectively, (2) How are motor-life skills in toddler age related to language skills in preschool age?
Design and method
This study is part of the longitudinal, interdisciplinary Stavanger Project – The Learning Child following children’s development from 2 ½ to 10 years of age (Reikerås et al., 2012).
As discussed above, data generation is based on authentic assessment as a presumed reliable, valid and non-intrusive way of assessing children’s skills in their play and everyday life activities in ECECs (Bagnato et al., 2014). The children’s language skills were assessed using the observation material TRAS – Tidlig registrering av språkutvikling (Early registration of language development) (Espenakk, 2003). The TRAS consists of eight sections, including nine items in each section (for a total of 72 items): Language comprehension, Linguistic awareness, Attention, Communication, Interaction, Sentence production, Word production, and Pronunciation. There are three levels of difficulty within each section, with level 1 as the easiest and level 3 as the most difficult. The interrater reliability for the sections in TRAS varied from .69 to .83 (Espenakk, 2003).
The material was developed in Norway for children between two and five years old and was constructed for use in ECECs. Natural situations and children’s play activities are the main observational arenas. To make the observations easier for the staff in the ECECs and to strengthen the quality of the data, a detailed description of each item and guidelines for scoring were developed for the project (Helvig & Løge, 2006). The 3-point response scale ranges from 0 (proficiency not yet observed) to 1 (partial proficiency for the given task) to 2 (the child possesses competence in the given task).
Motor-life skills were assessed by ECEC staff who applied the Early Years Movement Skills Checklist (EYMSC, Chambers & Sugden, 2002, 2006). Moser and Reikerås (2016) reported the adaptation of the material to fit the Norwegian context. The EYMSC provides information about motor skills in natural surroundings for children from three to five years old (Chambers & Sugden, 2006). The interrater reliability was .96 (p<.01), and the test-rest reliability was .95 (p<. 01). A validation of the EYMSC (Chambers & Sugden, 2002) against the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (Henderson & Sugden, 1992) revealed a correlation of r = .76 (p<.01).
The material is divided into four sections: Self-help skills (six items); Desk skills (five items); General classroom skills (five items); Recreational and playground skills (seven items). Each of the 23 items is scored on a four-point scale to register how well a child has mastered the particular skills. First, the teachers must decide whether the child can or cannot perform the task. Subsequently, the teachers concretize their choice by using two further subcategories: for children who can perform the task, the subcategories are (1) can do this task well or (2) can just do this task; for children who cannot perform the task, the subcategories are (3) can almost perform this task (4) or not close to performing this task. After the observation period, the scores for the items in each section are summed, and the sum of these section scores becomes the EYMSC total score. The lower the total score is, the larger the number of items that are well-performed or mastered by the child. The EYMSC was developed for children between 3 and 5 years of age (Chambers & Sudgen, 2002); the age group at T1 in the current study lies somewhat outside this range. However, a study comparing the same sample as in the current study at T1 with 3-year-old British children revealed relatively high motor competence in the Norwegian sample compared to the slightly older British sample (Moser & Reikerås, 2016). This indicates that the EYMSC can be used for the participants in our study, although they are slightly younger than the age span for which the material is designed. Notwithstanding, we must interpret the findings cautiously.
Since both TRAS and the EYMSC are thought to identify developmental difficulties in children up to 5 years old, we expected ceiling effects at preschool age within a sample containing a majority of children assumed to not have such difficulties. Such ceiling effects at T2 are expected to reduce the information regarding average and high-performing children’s skills at T2.
A detailed description of each item and guidelines for scoring the EYMSC were developed (Iversen & Larsen, 2007) to help the staff gather the data, thereby strengthening the comparability of the assessments and increasing the reliability of the data collection. During the first round of data analysis, the response categories were re-coded so that high scores represented a better level of motor-life skills, while lower scores represented a weaker level. The recoded values are as follows: 1 = not close to performing this task; 2 = can almost perform this task; 3 = can just do this task; 4 = can do this task well. This was done essentially for convenience; it is easier to understand and communicate the results when a higher numerical score expresses a higher level of motor skills.
Recruitment, participants and dropout rate
All public (61) and 50% of the private ECECs (25) of Stavanger municipality accepted the invitation to participate in the study. The parents of children born between July 1st, 2005, and December 31st, 2005, who attended one of the participating ECECs received oral and written information about the project and were asked for written consent for their child to participate in the study. Apart from this period of birth, no other criteria excluded a child from participating in the study.
We consider the city of Stavanger to be representative of other Norwegian cities and urban settlements of a certain size in terms of ECEC services. The law nationally regulates ECEC, and the national curriculum guidelines for ECEC must be applied all over the country. The proportion of private and public ECECs in Stavanger corresponds to the national average. Because only half of the private institutions participated in the study, this could be a source of error. On the other hand, most national studies carried out in ECECs have usually not revealed any significant differences between private and public institutions. Nevertheless, due to the presence of the oil-related industry, the residents of Stavanger had higher average incomes during the data collection period (approximately 24% higher than the national average according to Kommunefakta, 2017). Nevertheless, we assume that the results are transferable to other Norwegian cities and urban settlements.
At baseline (T1), we gathered data on language skills and motor-life skills for 1,077 children (529 girls, 548 boys). All children had been enrolled before they were 2;6 years of age. Between the first round of data collection (T1) and the second round (T2), 200 children moved out of the municipality, and two consent forms were withdrawn. In addition, some ECECs had not returned results from either TRAS or the EYMSC at T2 for 219 children. These ECECs did not observe the children in the proper time intervals, forgot where they had stored their observation schemes, or the children had been absent because of holiday or illness. Finally, for 10 of the children, we identified failures in the registration of data at T2. Thus, the study had a dropout of 431 children, equivalent to 40% of the baseline group at T1. For the remaining 646 children (323 girls, 323 boys), data on motor-life and language skills were available for T1 and T2.
A dropout analysis using an independent-sample t-test identified no significant differences in motor-life skills (EYMSC total at T1) between the dropout group (M = 75.52, SD = 9.33) and the remaining group (participants) (M = 75.11, SD = 8.33); t (849.29) = –.75, p = .45 (two-tailed). The magnitude of the differences in the means was quite small (mean difference = –.42, CI: –1.51 to .67; eta squared = .001). For TRAS, the independent-sample t-test between the dropout group (M = 66.96, SD = 23.95) and the remaining group (M = 70.68, SD = 22.86) revealed a significant difference at T1 (t (1075) = 2.57, p = .01; two-tailed). However, the effect of the mean difference was quite small (mean difference = 3.72, CI: .88 to 6.57; eta squared = .006).
Compared to the remaining group, there was a slightly larger proportion of boys (225) than girls (206) in the dropout group. In addition, 15.3% of the children in the dropout group were multilingual, which is somewhat less than those in the remaining group (19%). On the basis of these analyses, we assume that dropouts do not seriously affect the findings.
Socioeconomic status (SES) was measured by parents’ education levels. In a questionnaire, both parents were asked to indicate their highest level of education achieved by choosing one of four levels (upper secondary school; high school; college/university education [1 to 3 years], and college/university education [>3 years]). Even though all parents received the questionnaire, not all of them returned a completed questionnaire. SES data are therefore only available for 269 (41.6%) of the participants, of which 263 contained answers for both the mother’s and father’s education level, five for only the mother’s education level and one for only the father’s education level (see Table 1).
|Level of education||Mother’s education level
(n = 268)
|Father’s education level
(n = 264)
|All of Stavanger||All of Norway|
|Upper secondary school||2.2%||.8%||21.5%||25.8%|
|College/university (1 to 3 years)||22.8%||22.0%||27.1%||24.1%|
|College/university degree (>3 years)||62.3%||54.2%||16.2%||10.0%|
As shown in Table 1, the SES level for the participants is considerably higher than the educational level in all of Stavanger and in all of Norway. This difference in SES, possibly based on selection effects, may affect the results. Families with a higher level of parental education may have a better understanding of the study’s relevance and/or may be more generally interested in educational issues regarding their children. The proportion of parents of multilingual children who answered the questionnaire was 39.8%, which was similar to the proportion of parents of children who are living in a monolingual Norwegian environment at home. Thus, there were no differences in the response rates between multilingual families and monolingual Norwegian-speaking families.
Although the limitations of the study, due to the high share of missing SES data, should be noted when generalising the findings, t-tests between the groups with and without available SES data did not reveal any significant differences between the scores in the dependent variables (two-tailed, p<.05; see Table 2).
|Group with SES data
n = 269 Mean (SD)
|Group without SES data
n = 377 Mean (SD)
|TRAS T1||71.97 (22.28)||69.76 (23.25)||1.21||.23|
|TRAS T2||136.19 (10.88)||134.60 (13.06)||1.63||.10|
|EYMSC T1||75.14 (7.94)||75.08 (8.61)||.08||.94|
|EYMSC T2||89.72 (3.34)||89.52 (4.29)||.66||.51|
aLevene’s test for equality of variance was not significant for any of the tests; equal variance in the groups could be assumed.
Whether parental SES data were available apparently did not interfere with the children’s scores for the dependent variables.
Data were collected through structured observation of the children’s motor and language competencies during play and daily life activities by the staff in the ECECs when the toddlers were between 30 and 33 months (T1) and when the children were between 54 and 57 months (T2).
Two of the staff independently had to observe whether the children had partially or fully mastered the various items for both the EYMSC and TRAS. In addition, before the observation started, the staff in the ECECs received updated information on young children’s language development and training to rehearse how to use the EYMSC and TRAS.
The Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS), Version 21.0 (IBM Corporation, 2013), was used for all statistical analyses. Two research assistants entered the data into an SPSS file. Alternately, one entered the data while the second controlled the results of the data input. After data entry, two other research assistants re-entered the data for a randomly selected 10% of the participants to compare the degree of deviation. The outcomes of this control procedure showed good consistency (nearly 100%) between the datasets. Furthermore, frequency analyses were conducted for all variables in the whole sample to check whether the values were within the range of possible values. The few deviations discovered in this control procedure were corrected in the data set.
On an item level, the observations in the EYMSC and TRAS produced data on an ordinal scale. There is a ceiling effect for the data at T2; thus, nonparametric analysis was applied. The association between motor-life and language skills within and between T1 and T2 was analysed by Spearman-Brown correlations. To explore how the level of motor skills at T1 was related to language skills at T2, nonparametric group comparisons (the Kruskal-Wallis test) were used. We established three groups, with two groups representing toddlers with the weakest and strongest levels of motor skills and a middle group. The first two groups were defined by the 15% of children with the weakest and strongest motor-life skills, respectively, at T1. The middle group encompassed 15% of children who scored closest to the mean EYMSC total score at T1.
The study was approved by the Norwegian Social Science Data Services and was conducted in accordance with the ethical regulations for research in Norway. Participation was based on the parents’ voluntary and written consent. Applying authentic assessment as a respectful methodological approach is considered to provide low strain for the participating children. In general, children’s participation in the study did not notably affect their everyday lives in the ECECs.
The first research question addresses the relations between language and motor-life skills at age 2;9 and 4;9. Table 3 provides an overview of the correlations between motor-life skills, including the four EYMSC section scores and the eight TRAS section scores, and the total scores at 2;9 years of age (T1).
|Language skills TRAS section scores Age 2;9 (T1)||Motor-life skills EYMSC section scores Age 2;9 (T1)|
|Self-help skills||Desk skills||General classroom skills||Recreation/ playground skills||EYMSC total score T1|
|Mean (SD)||16.92 (3.61)||15.02 (2.67)||18.51 (1.90)||24.65 (2.96)||75.11 (8.33)|
|Language comprehension||8.25 (3.00)||8.00||.19**||.28**||.17**||.17**||.26**|
|Linguistic awareness||8.03 (2.52)||8.00||.28**||.18**||.17**||.19**||.29**|
|Word production||8.46 (3.30)||8.00||.23**||.23**||.12**||.15**||.25**|
|Sentence production||8.17 (3.08)||8.00||.20**||.25**||.19**||.15**||.25**|
|TRAS total score T1||70.68 (22.86)||72.00||.23**||.24**||.19**||.22**||.29**|
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed)
All the correlation coefficients are significant (p<.01) and vary between .12 and .29; they are thus considered small (Cohen, 1988). There are small variations in the correlation coefficients between the EYMSC total score and each of the TRAS section scores, as well as the EYMSC section scores and the TRAS total score.
Table 4 presents an overview of the correlations between motor-life skills, including the four EYMSC section scores and the eight TRAS section scores, and the total scores for the EYMSC and TRAS at 4;9 years of age (T2).
TRAS section scores
Age 4;9 (T2)
|Motor-life skills EYMSC section scores Age 4;9 (T2)|
|Self-help skills||Desk skills||General classroom skills||Recreation/ playground skills||EYMSC total score T2|
|Mean (SD)||22.85 (1.96)||19.49 (1.16)||19.74 (.86)||27.53 (1.20)||89.60 (3.92)|
|Language comprehension||17.08 (1.97)||18.00||.27**||.32**||.24**||.31**||.35**|
|Linguistic awareness||15.60 (2.82)||17.00||.35**||.41**||.27**||.30**||.44**|
|Sentence production||17.16 (1.93)||18.00||.20**||.29**||.21**||.29**||.31**|
|TRAS total score T2||135.26 (12.22)||140.00||.35**||.42**||.27**||.32**||.46**|
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed)
Table 4 reveals considerably higher correlations between motor-life skills and language skills at age 4;9 (T2) compared to age 2;9 (T1). All correlations at the section and sum score levels are statistically significant (p<.01). Eighteen of these 45 correlation coefficients are of moderate size (Cohen, 1988), with the highest correlation between TRAS and the EYMSC total score (.46). In general, there are larger differences between the intersectional correlations at age 4;9 than at age 2;9. Among all TRAS sections, Linguistic awareness had the strongest overall association with motor-life skills, while Attention and Pronunciation had the weakest relations with the EYMSC total score. Among the EYMSC sections, Desk skills were the most strongly related, while General Classroom skills were weakly related to the TRAS total score.
The second research question asks to what degree the level of motor-life skills at age 2;9 is related to language skills at age 4;9. To explore this relation—which is of particular interest for children with weak motor-life skills—we examined the degree to which the groups with the lowest, highest and middle scores of motor-life skills at 2;9 years of age (T1) differed in language skills at 4;9 years of age (T2).
Table 5 shows the results of the Kruskal-Wallis test analysing the differences in language skills at T2 between the three groups with different motor-life skill levels at T1.
|Language skills at T2|
|Motor-life skills groups at T1||Mean (SD)||Median||Mean Rank|
There were significant differences (p<.01) at T2 in the total TRAS score between groups with weak, middle and strong motor-life skills at T1. Mann-Whitney U tests were used to examine which groups significantly differed from one another, and effect sizes were calculated to estimate the effects of grouping for the total TRAS score at T2. To prevent a Type 1 error due to a three-way group analysis, a Bonferroni correction was applied. The significance level of .05 was divided by three; thus, the significance level was adjusted to .017. Table 6 shows the findings of these analyses.
|Between weak and middle||Between middle and strong||Between weak and strong|
|TRAS Total score||4302.00||–2.43||.015*||.16||4280.50||–3.77||.00*||.26||3016.00||–5.74||.00*||.40|
Effect size: ≥.1 = small, ≥.3 = medium, ≥.5 = large (Cohen, 1988); * p<.017
Based on the measurement at T1, the three motor-life skill groups differed substantially in their TRAS total score at T2. Significant differences were found between all three groups. The difference between the groups with weak and strong motor-life skills at age 2;9 was of medium strength, whereas the differences between the middle group and the two other groups were of small effect size.
Regarding the first research question on the relations between language and motor-life skills at age 2;9 and at age 4;9 respectively, we discuss the findings for toddlers and preschool-aged children separately. In the discussion, we will apply the term gross motor skills, including the sections General classroom skills and Recreational/playground skills, and the term fine motor skills, including the EYMSC sections Self-help skills and Desk skills.
For toddlers (T1; 2;9 years), only the correlation between the total EYMSC and TRAS total score reached a moderate level (.31). The association between EYMSC total scores and the eight TRAS section scores varied between .20 and .29, indicating that the relations between motor-life skills and language skills is rather weak in this age group. Neither of the correlations between the EYMSC sections and the TRAS total score reached moderate size, even though all correlations were still statistically significant (p<.01). Only a few studies have examined these associations in a comparable young age group. Houwen, Visser, van Der Putten and Vlaskamp (2016) found somewhat higher correlations (.27 to .46) for children 0;3 to 3;6 years of age; the somewhat younger average age of their sample (1;10 years) may have caused the differences. Additionally, Wang, Lekhal, Aarø, and Schjølberg (2014) found a high correlation (.72) at the very young toddler age of 1;6 but considerably lower correlations at age 3 (.29). Thus, the results at T1 in our study (.29) are comparable to the Norwegian sample of Wang et al., at age 3.
The relations between the sections in TRAS and the EYMSC provide a more differentiated picture. The highest correlation between motor-life skills (EYMSC total score) and language skills for toddlers was in Linguistic awareness (.29). This section involves reflecting on language and includes items regarding children’s skills in drawing attention to sound structure (phonological awareness), as well as their participation in language awareness activities (Frost, 2003). Prior research has shown (Stangeland et al., 2018) that participation in language awareness activities are the skills in this section that is most commonly mastered by toddlers. The strongest correlation between the TRAS and EYMSC sections at T1 was between Self-help Skills and Linguistic awareness. Mastering self-help skills requires a substantial amount of practice in terms of active participation in everyday life. Likewise, to develop language awareness skills, the child must take part actively and extensively in various activities that stimulate and require language awareness activities over time (Frost, 2003). Hence, the associations between these skills may mirror the toddler’s level of participation in different activities. Participation therefore seems to be highly important as a prerequisite to developing skills in several developmental areas simultaneously, as emphasised by Leonard and Hill (2014).
Further, the correlations between Language comprehension and Desk skills in toddlers are among the largest in the present study. However, the findings of Houwen et al. (2016) revealed a considerably higher correlation (.46) between the fine motor subscale in their instrument and receptive language. Additionally, our study indicates lower correlations between the EYMSC fine motor skills (the sections Self-help skills and Desk skills) and expressive language skills than those found by Houwen et al. (2016). These divergent findings can be explained by the different age spans, languages or scales applied. Differences in the children’s development of motor skills between countries may also influence the results; for example, toddlers in Norway generally have a higher level of motor skills than British children of the same age (Moser & Reikerås, 2016).
The correlations between EYMSC gross motor skills (General classroom skills and Recreational/playground skills) and the three sections characterising expressive language skills (Pronunciation, Word production and Sentence production) in toddlers are among the lowest in our study, though they are at the same level as those recently found by Houwen et al. (2016). The weak associations between gross motor skills and expressive language suggests that for toddlers, expressive language still might not be as important for their physically active play. In addition, the rather low correlations imply that the onset of the most prominent development of motor skills in early childhood has not yet begun (Williams et al., 2008).
The relations between motor skills and the TRAS sections Interaction, Communication and Attention in our study are in line with the results of Giske et al. (2018) and Stangeland (2017), who found comparable relations between motor skills, social skills and language in toddlers. The strongest correlation appears between Interaction and Recreational/playground skills. This is commensurate with findings from Leonard and Hill (2014), showing that interactions between peers at a young age rely heavily on motor skills.
In regard to preschool-aged children (T2, 4;9 years), the associations between motor-life skills and language skills become considerably more salient. All correlations are statistically significant (see Table 4; p<.01); the TRAS and EYMSC total scores correlated on a moderate level (.46), while the correlations between the EYMSC total score and the eight TRAS section scores varied between .25 and .44. Only Pronunciation and Attention were weakly related to motor-life skills, while the correlations in the other six sections achieved moderate strength. Three of the EYMSC sections correlated on a moderate level with the TRAS total score; only the correlation with General classroom skills was weak. It is striking that the two fine motor skill sections were moderately correlated with five of the language sections, four of which belong to Desk skills and one to Self-help skills. Only two correlations with gross motor skills were of moderate size, both belonging to Recreational/playground skills.
Our findings of clearly stronger associations between motor-life skills and language skills in preschool-aged children compared to toddlers contrast with those of Wang, Lekhal, Aarø, Holte, and Schjølberg (2014), who found stronger relations between motor-life skills and language skills at age three than at age five. A methodological explanation could be the ceiling effect at T2 for both TRAS and EYMSC in the present study, which reduces the spread of the scores. More suitable instruments may contribute more information regarding high-performing children at age 4;9, possibly leading to other results.
The strongest correlations at preschool age emerge between Linguistic Awareness and the two sections Self-help skills (.35) and Desk skills (.41). This association indicates that activities that demand fine motor skills create space for verbal communication, play and reflections on language between children, as well as between staff and children (Frost, 2003).
At preschool age, Desk skills also correlate with a medium strength with the remaining four of seven language sections: Interaction (.35), Word production (.33), Language comprehension (.32) and Attention (.30). This is in line with the conclusions of a review study (Van der Fels et al., 2015) on the relations between the motor and cognitive domains in children aged 4 to 16, which showed that fine motor skills had the strongest relations with higher-order cognitive skills such as language. Attention, as a core component of self-regulation, has been proven in several studies to be related to motor skills (McClelland et al., 2016; Robinson et al., 2016). Becker et al. (2014) emphasised self-regulation as a moderating factor between motor and language skills.
The moderate correlation between Recreational/playground skills and Linguistic Awareness in preschool age (.30) corresponds with the findings of Becker et al. (2014), Stangeland (2017), and Stangeland, Lundetræ and Reikerås (2018), which underscore the significance of participation in play for language development, as well as the findings of Bar-Haim and Bart (2006) and Giske et al. (2018), who confirmed the relations between social competence and motor skills. Play in early age builds heavily on motor skills and communication with peers; children’s play both requires and strengthens language (Dickinson & Porche, 2011). This also appears to be a plausible explanation for the high correlations between Language comprehension and Recreational/playground skills.
In addition, the correlation between Recreational/playground skills and Sentence production (.29) is one of the strongest in the gross motor domain in preschool age, indicating that expressive language plays a major role in children’s gross motor play. Children use more words and apply more complex sentences in play situations compared to other classroom activities, as shown by Cohen and Uhry (2007) and Fekonja, Marjanovič Umek and Kranjc (2005).
The second research question examines the degree to which the level of motor-life skills at age 2;9 is related to language skills at age 4;9. Weak, middle and strong motor skills groups based on the EYMSC scores at T1 were created, each comprising 15% of the total sample (see the method section). The Kruskal-Wallis test reveal significant grouping effects for the TRAS total score at T2 (Table 5). The largest effect size was between the strong and weak groups (.45; Table 6). Additionally, the differences between the weak and middle groups, as well as between the middle and strong groups, were significant but only indicated small effect sizes (.20 and .27, respectively; Table 6).
These findings are in accordance with other Norwegian (Wang et al., 2014) and international (Leonard & Hill, 2014) studies. To some extent, the rather weak association between motor-life and language skills at age 2;9 speaks against the alleged comorbidity between the areas (Hill, 2010; Webster et al., 2005). However, the clear differences in language skills between children with weak and strong motor skills at age 4;9 indicate that the two developmental domains are related from a longitudinal perspective. According to Williams et al. (2008), the most prominent changes in height, muscle strength, body mass and proportion appear between 3 and 5 years of age. These bodily changes allow children to achieve much more complex, well-coordinated movements by boosting their motor skills. Our assumption is that the baseline in motor skills at a young age to some degree determines the developmental track for motor skills and thereby affects children’s opportunities to communicate with their social and physical environment (Bart et al., 2011; Kuhl, 2011) as a prerequisite for developing language skills. This implies that motor and language development are closely intertwined from 2;9 to 4;9 years of age and that motor development could be a driving force (Ionesco & Illie, 2018; Leonard & Hill, 2014).
However, there are considerable dynamics and discontinuities in early motor skill development (WHO, 2006), and neither delayed nor advanced motor development in toddler age fully determines later motor development (Moser et al., 2018). Thus, an overall effect size of .45 in language differences between the weak and strong motor skill groups may be substantial.
Summarising discussion and implications
The present study contributes to the body of knowledge on the relations between motor-life skills and language skills, which are crucial for educational praxis in ECECs (Iverson, 2010). The findings in the present study support the conclusion of Leonard and Hill (2014) that motor development at an early age is not an independent process, but it has diverse, complex connections to several cognitive domains. In summarising the findings for our first research question, there are low to moderate correlations between everyday motor-life skills and language skills; these correlations are more prominent for preschool-aged children than toddlers.
Although our study does not address causal relations, the results advocate for an embodied approach to language learning as appropriate for young children (Ionescu & Ilie, 2018). Promoting an activity- and movement-oriented pedagogy can strengthen children’s motor competency and may simultaneously support development in other domains. An adequate level of motor skills may efficiently contribute to placing children in a position to better experience, understand and cope with demands and challenges that involve their own body, as well as the physical and social environment. These experiences are crucial for general cognitive development and learning, including language. Motor skills are not only a matter of bodily and physical development; they should also be thoroughly integrated in a holistic educational approach that addresses all developmental domains.
To determine whether the observed associations between the two domains in the present study are based on a causal relationship or whether other factors create a purely correlative relation, further studies using appropriate experimental designs are needed. As Carpenter and Drabick (2011) underlined, processes from multiple domains are necessary to understand how risk and protective factors translate into different patterns of children’s language functioning.
Although this study does not allow for causal explanations, we assume that the development of language and motor-life skills mutually influence each other, and that they presuppose and stimulate one another. Young children’s interactions rely on motor skills; it is through such interactions that language skills develop (Leonard & Hill, 2014). Children with sufficient language skills are attractive playmates and have a higher participation rate in play with their peers (Stangeland, 2017). Such participation in play is necessary to cultivate vital motor skills. This means that children who have difficulties in one or both areas may end up in a vicious cycle. Due to a lower level of development, they might not be included in play to the same degree as others, and thus have fewer opportunities to develop their skills and to catch up.
Knowledge of the relations between the level of motor-life skills in toddler age and language skills in preschool age, may be useful for staff in ECECs in terms of identifying children with possible risk factors, who could then receive early intervention. Motor behaviour, based on motor skills, is an easily observable, core element in young children’s everyday lives. Serious problems in achieving age-adequate motor tasks in daily life in ECECs may be trustworthy, initial indicators that we should also pay attention to other domains of development that are not as distinct as motor skills (Son & Meisels, 2006).
The ceiling effect in both TRAS and the EYMSC, and the fact that the instruments produced ordinal data, limit the opportunity to apply more powerful statistical analyses. Future research should use instruments that offer enough variance for average and high-performing children.
One can assume that standardised instruments and individual testing routines conducted by advanced students of psychology or special needs education would lead to more reliable assessment scores than those carried out by staff. However, our initial assumption that ECEC teachers tend to evaluate children’s skills in a positively biased way due to positive attitudes towards children in general, and their desire for the children in their units to do well, does not appear to be the case. Even though the staff were trained in applying the instrument, the large number of data collectors still might be a problem. It may also be a limitation that it was different staff collecting the data at T1 and T2. The rating scale provides room for interpretation in assessing children’s motor-life and language skills. Notwithstanding, these measurement errors would not have a systematic effect. This is supported by the fact that the data revealed a normal distribution of the results at T1, and that the variance in language and motor-life skills was sufficient. In addition, because two staff members conducted all observations independently, the findings’ reliability is strengthened.
Since many of the effect sizes found in our study are of small to medium size, this leaves plenty room for alternative interpretations, and we must be careful not to draw too strong conclusions.
Our design and data do not allow statements about causality or determine whether the associations between motor-life and language skills are an expression of general development across domains or an expression of domain-specific trajectories. There might be a common developmental factor that influences all domains of development. Studies based on multivariate growth-curve models (Rhemtulla & Tucker-Drob, 2011) have shown that a global dimension of development accounts for as much as 42% of the variance across domains (linguistic, mathematics, reading, gross motor and fine motor skills).
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domain: psychology


A motorist has set tongues wagging after a photo of their very bizarre car modification - using a Woolworths supermarket trolley - went viral.
The image, which was shared on Reddit, shows how the car owner created a spoiler for their Toyota Starlet Life hatchback using the handle of a Woolies shopping cart.
“Yes, that’s a shopping trolley handle. I secretly think it’s fantastic,” the passerby wrote alongside the photo.
For more Lifestyle related news and videos check out Lifestyle >>
The unusual detail has prompted a huge reaction, with thousands blown away by the car.
“I want the owner to be ridiculously tall just so they can use it like an actual shopping cart,” said one.
Added another: “Definition of a grocery getter!”
Wrote a third: “And it is, in fact, welded on. Beautiful.”
Many admitted that they were big fans of the transformed vehicle.
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‘I dig it’
Added a third: “I think it’s perfectly s****y to the point where I dig it.”
Said one more: “It’s so dumb, but I love it.”
Another wrote: “S***ty? Yes. Cool? Also yes.”
Others felt that the trolley handle was in fact “very functional”.
“Probably ties all kinds of stuff to the roof,” said one.
Wrote one more: “It’s for drying your towel on the way home from the beach.”


text:
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If you’ve recently gotten braces from an orthodontist in Fort Lauderdale, it’s important to know which foods you should eat, and which you should avoid. Keep reading to learn about the best and worst foods to eat with braces!
Fresh Fruit: Softer fruits are perfect on days when your teeth are sore. Fruits like apples can be cut into slices for easier eating or you can blend them up into a smoothie.Fresh Vegetables: Vegetables are a great source of vitamins and nutrition for healthy teeth. Try to steam veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots to make them softer.Dairy: Dairy provides calcium and protein for strong teeth and bones. Low-fat milk and yogurt are great at any time. If you're lactose intolerant, try dairy alternatives.Whole Grains: Whole grains are a healthier choice than refined flours and won’t damage your braces. Just remember to stick with soft bread and oatmeal that won’t damage your braces.
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domain: medical


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Design a New Computer
Subtract – I would take away the devices and surface areas that suck in the dust and let liquids leak into the system units.
Repeat – I would keep the same architecture of the computer with modern and stylish look it has already gained.
Combine – I would combine the new materials and cooling mechanisms with the current architecture and style.
Add – I would have to add a new system of cooling and cleaning, as well as the new surface areas made of special materials.
Transfer – The computer can transfer into portable variants, new forms, which would allow people to use it even in extreme sports environment. Business people will also benefit from such new concept, as it will turn into their best companion that always looks stylishly and is never spoiled by dirt, dust, or water.
Animate – I would introduce a possibility to make the new surface areas personal for everyone by developing different design options and the possibility to order the new design.
Empathize – I can tap into the feelings of people who have to spend a lot of time by the computer and who have kids, and consequently, a risk f spoiling the computer by accidentally pouring something on it.
Superimpose – the option of having immortal computer (not vulnerable to the dust, water and other factors that were previously dangerous to it) can be superimposed on the computer.
Substitute – I will have to substitute the old surface materials with new, water- and dust-resistant ones, and the old cooling device for the new one.
Change scale – I would change the price for the product, as it will be more respected by Americans in this case and will allow for the use of better materials.
Fragment – in order to do it, the elements of system units will have to be produced from water- and dust-resistant materials. The cooling element will have to use another system as a basis.
Isolate – I would concentrate on finding appropriate materials for the system units and on developing the cooling an cleaning systems that wouldn’t suck in the dust.
Distort – As it will have better opportunities for cooling and resistance to the external influences, it will be possible to make it of new forms, even the one of a ball.
Contradict – A new computer can resist all the external influences, such as radiation.
Disguise – The new features of devices and surface materials can make it not only an element of the interior design, but also possessing other functions, such as a vase for flowers (as it is water-resistant).
Parody – It can be used as a toy by children – a ball for playing football, for instance.
Prevaricate – It can be presented as immortal computer, which cannot be spoiled by the most common threats of today.
Metamorphose – In the course of time it can integrate more functions not directly related to the original functions, such as a working surface for different purposes.
Hybridize – The computer can be combined with a fridge.
Mythologize – It can be presented as a superhero that is immortal and can overcome all the possible obstacles.
Fantasize – Such a computer can be used to fly to other planets.


text:
1607-Present, 2nd Edition
Series: Criminology and Justice Studies
This second edition of Gloria Browne-Marshall’s seminal work , tracing the history of racial discrimination in American law from colonial times to the present, is now available with major revisions. Throughout, she advocates for freedom and equality at the center, moving from their struggle for...
Published April 18th 2013 by Routledge


text:
... so what's the view from Dublin?
Last year was the year we said a proper goodbye to the downturn in Ireland. What precisely might replace the pain remains unclear. There is a strong sense that conditions should be notably better than those experienced since 2008 - a not particularly demanding expectation. Equally, there is widespread scepticism that we might return to the boom, a possibility hinted at both in the strength of recent economic releases and the scale of largesse emerging in political promises.
On some measures, it might seem the boom is already back. Current estimates put GDP growth at around 7% in 2015 which would be the strongest performance since 2000. With car sales surging, unemployment tumbling and worries about a shortage of housing, there are clear echoes of earlier times.
Confidence surveys appear to send a similar message. The KBC/ESRI consumer sentiment index posted a new 10-year high in December while business sentiment, as measured by the index KBC developed with Chartered Accountants Ireland, reached its strongest level in over nine years.
Firms and households both seem to be signalling that things are clearly improving. However, the details of these surveys suggest the future looks quite different to the past. They suggest caution rather than confidence is the key feature of the upswing.
For the majority of firms, the business sentiment survey suggests 2016 is starting on a very positive note. Almost two-thirds (65%) say activity levels increased in the past three months compared to just 6% that reported weaker trading conditions. This suggests a very broadly based upswing is under way and is expected to continue.
Significantly, the survey suggests companies are adjusting their output and staffing levels in response to, rather than in anticipation of, improving demand. Usually, at this stage of the cycle, growing 'animal spirits' would prompt firms to scale up production and add aggressively to their payrolls. Instead, it seems the painful experience of recent years, coupled with a quite uncertain global backdrop, is producing an altogether more cautious approach.
For Irish consumers, the recovery in confidence has been a very different process. For a considerable time, consumers were reading about an improving Irish economy entirely removed from a continuing deterioration in their personal finances. This stark divergence, between the blossoming recovery of media reports and the financial strains consumers were experiencing, didn't make for happy households.
Importantly, through the past year, a sense that Irish consumers might be beginning to share in the economic upturn has begun to build.


text:
Julia Farhat’s ebullient tone and soulful delivery beautifully capture the pure adolescent spirit of Jean Craighead George’s endearing coming-of-age YA story, set in the 1930’s and published in 1962, that evokes a simpler, bygone era in its heartfelt portrayal of the relationship between the 13-year-old June Pritchard and Zander, the sparrow hawk she trains and nurtures over three summers at her family’s Victorian summer home, and who teaches her invaluable lessons about nature and maturation as she prepares for her entry into womanhood.
June Pritchard and her pet sparrow hawk, Zander, are both caught between following the rules and spreading their wings to fly. June Pritchard spends every summer with her aunts, uncles, and cousins in the big Victorian house that belonged to her grandfather. But the summer she turns thirteen, something has changed. Her mother is imposing new rules on her, and she starts to feel the thrill - and burden - of growing up. When June is given a sparrow hawk to train as a pet, she takes on the task, eager to prove she can be reliable. But Zander the sparrow hawk is as resistant to new rules as June is herself. Together, they must navigate the fine line between responsibility and freedom.

domain: literature