Children between the ages of 8 and 12 are defined as being in the middle childhood stage of development. At this age, the rapid development of the previous stages has diminished, and the physical changes in this period are slower and more defined. Refining gross and fine motor skills is a critical aspect of this stage as delayed or delayed development can have a significant impact on areas of cognitive, social, and emotional development. To ensure that children are equipped with the correct knowledge and understanding of health, wellbeing and healthy eating, the middle childhood period is when these aspects are incorporated and failure to do this correctly can cause consequences and problems for long term. Middle childhood is a distinct period of development in which a child develops physically, cognitively, and socio-emotionally. Between 3 and 7 school years, children begin to gain an understanding of themselves in relation to others, learn large amounts of information, manage their own behavior, and also develop self-concepts and self-esteem. (McDevitt & Ormrod, 2010.) General motor skills in middle childhood have become smooth movement and are no longer as clumsy as in earlier stages. For most children there is an emerging interest in carrying out physical activities using the increased skills and abilities that have been developed. As children gain muscle coordination, movements such as running, hopping, skipping, throwing and catching become proficient and can be performed correctly. Through the performance of physical activity in children there is a continuous positive effect on motor development and further refinement of actions. During this phase of development, ... half of the document ...... retrieved March 10, 2012 from http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/content/9D7D393564FA0C42CA256F970014A5D4 /$File /kids_phys.pdf Global health risks: Mortality and burden of disease attributable to selected major risks. (2009) WHO Libraries Cataloging-in-Publication Data Healthy Children, Active Children. (2011). Healthy children. Retrieved March 5, 2012, from http://www.goodforkids.nsw.gov.au/sitefiles/GoodForKids/documents/ActiveKids[1].pdfMarsh, C.J. (2010). Becoming a teacher: knowledge, skills and problems. Frenchs Forest, Sydney, NSW: Pearson AustraliaMartin, K. (2010) Brain Boost: Sport and physical activity improve children's learning. Retrieved from http://www.dsr.wa.gov.au//assets/files/Research/Brain%20boost_emailer.pdfMcDevitt, T. M., & Ormrod, J. E. (2010). Child development and education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.