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Introduction
It is evidenced that the prevalence of child and adolescents mental health problems has increased in recent years [1, 2]. Mental health is described “a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to his or her community” [3]. Due to the 15–24% of children and adolescents have mental health problems in the world [4], it is very important to improve their mental health.
Previous studies have shown that children’s physical activity is associated with fundamental movement skills (FMS) [5, 6–7]. The development of children’s FMS plays an important role in the physical activity participation of adolescents [8]. FMS are defined as basic learnt movement patterns that do not occur naturally [9], consisting of locomotor skills, manipulative skills, and non-manipulative skills [10]. Morrison et al. [5] found that among 498 Danish children aged 6–8, children’s physical activity, measured using accelerometer, were associated with FMS. Carvalho et al. [6] found that 148 Brazil children’s physical activity were significantly associated with FMS assessed using the Test of Gross Motor Development-Second Edition (TGMD-2).
Regular participation in physical activities contributes to the mental health, reduces symptoms of disorders such as anxiety and depression [11]. Studies have shown that children’s physical activity were significantly associated with mental health (e.g., depression, self-esteem, and cognitive functioning) [12, 13–14]. For example, Xiang et al. [13] investigated the relationship between physical activity and mental health in 36370 American children aged 6–17 years. The results showed that a lack of physical activity was related with mental health disorders (such as anxiety, depression). Furthermore, a systematic reviews showed that physical activity is associated with cognitive function in young people [15].
Studies have also found that FMS influences children’s mental health development [16, 17–18]. For instance, examining the relationship between FMS (including basketball, striking with a paddle, overhand throwing) and health related quality of life (e.g. physical health, psychosocial) of 215 American children, a study found that overhand throwing were significantly associated with physical health [17]. Moreover, Xie et al. [16] indicated that 334 Chinese children’s FMS were significantly associated with physical functioning, social functioning, and school functioning. In addition, a...