What we have learned and the way forward

An Ecological Dynamics-based pedagogy demands that the educator or practitioner operates at the behavioural scale of analysis with the capacities and dispositions of the child, such as cognitions, preferred ways of moving, emotions and perceptual skills supporting functional movements. Where the educator or practitioner is able to create an enriched environment which is purposefully designed to provide feel and freedom experienced with unstructured play, but overlayed with careful learning design, it can provide a powerful platform to support children's physical literacy. Physical literacy has been slowly adopted as a worldwide social movement to support long-term health and well-being of our children and young people. A growing number of countries are investing in physical literacy and are integrating this into public policy in education and health to help children become more physically active. Competitive, backyard games promote the conditions to facilitate the development of holistic physical literacy skills and propose that they should become a key feature of talent development programmes.