How do 4–6 years-old children spend their time in preschool?

Aim: To objectively measure the time spent in different physical behaviors through ActivPAL measurement in the Portuguese preschool setting for the first time. Subject and method: This cross-sectional investigation included children (4–6 years-old) from a preschool of the Municipality of Lisbon. The study obtained ethical approval (number JL2224), and informed consent from parents/child subjects was provided. Data was collected using the ActivPAL inclinometer/accelerometer (model ActivPAL4; PAL Technologies Ltd., Glasgow, UK), while using the GHLA (v2.2) classification algorithm on an entire day at preschool. Differences between groups were examined using independent sample t-tests. Results: More than 180 h of data were collected throughout 4 typical days in 28 preschoolers (39% girls and 61% boys) from 3 different classes. No differences were found between classes or sex for any of the variables (p > 0.05). Our findings show that while at school preschoolers spent 39.2% sitting, 29.9% standing, and 26.1% moving around, while performing 65 sit-to-stand transitions/preschool day. Conclusion: In comparison to previous investigations, Portuguese preschoolers were less sedentary. The fact that this school had a significant outdoor space can explain the lower sedentariness, or it can be, that Portuguese preschoolers are in fact less sedentary. More studies using larger samples are needed to confirm these preliminary findings.