A passion for excellence in
movement education.
Helping children build strong foundations through movement.
Meet Darlene Koskinen
40+ years of practical, hands-on experience teaching children through movement
Darlene Koskinen is the founder of MoovKids and an experienced children’s movement educator, karate instructor, and gymnastics instructor.
For more than 40 years, she has worked directly with children, teaching movement and observing how they learn, participate, practice, and develop physical skills. Her experience includes 13 years working with children with special needs, as well as teaching parent-and-child foundational movement classes.
That experience has shaped an approach built around a simple belief: children need regular opportunities to move, practice, and develop a strong physical foundation from an early age.
Over the years, Darlene has learned that successful movement teaching is not only about choosing an activity. How an activity is demonstrated, introduced, practiced, adapted, and encouraged can make an important difference to a child’s experience.
This practical knowledge became the foundation of MoovKids.
Experience Behind the Approach
Darlene’s wider movement and teaching background includes:
40+ years of practical, hands-on teaching experience
13 years of experience working with children with special needs
Experience teaching parent-and-child foundational movement classes
National champion in three sports: gymnastics, aerobic sport, and karate
4th Dan black belt karate instructor
Karate dojo founder
Developer of a karate teaching methodology for young children, with a track record of developing world champions
World championship medalist
Founder of MoovKids
Experience Behind the Approach
MOOVKIDS IS BORN OF DECADES OF TEACHING EXPERIENCE, BY A COMMITTED SPORTS PRACTITIONER
Karate
2010
2013
Karate Team
Gym Classes
2010
Gym Classes
2010
Training
2016
Proof of Concept
Darlene’s story is proof of concept. Through combining early instruction in fundamental movement skills with learning a complex sport, dozens of Darlene’s students have achieved national and international success in their teenage and adult years.
4th Dan black belt karate instructor
Karate dojo founder
Creator of a karate teaching method for young children, developing world champions
Karate World Championship medalist
National champion in three sports: gymnastics, aerobic sport, and karate
Darlene’s Vision for MoovKids
After years of teaching children, Darlene wanted to make her movement activities, teaching methods, and experience available to more of the adults responsible for children’s development.
MoovKids brings those elements together.
It is not simply a collection of activities. It reflects how Darlene teaches movement, how she engages children, how she demonstrates skills, and how she helps children practice, progress, and build confidence.
The goal is to give parents, educators, and child-focused professionals practical support they can actually use—whether they are helping one child, teaching a class, or introducing movement across an early-years organization.
“Movement is a powerful, often underestimated tool for developing a child’s physical and cognitive abilities.”
— Darlene Koskinen
Experience Behind the Approach
Purposeful movement, practical teaching, and progress through practice
The MoovKids approach combines Darlene’s teaching experience with purposeful activities and practical guidance that help adults understand not only what to teach, but how to teach movement with greater confidence.
Purposeful movement
Activities are selected with a clear movement focus, helping children practice areas such as balance and stability, locomotor movement, manipulative skills, coordination, body awareness, and spatial awareness.
Clear demonstrations
Seeing an activity can make it easier to understand. MoovKids uses clear instructional guidance and, across its activity resources, adult-directed and child-directed videos to help adults understand how to introduce an activity and help children see what they are being asked to do.
Practice and repetition
Children need opportunities to practice. Rather than continually moving from one new activity to another, the MoovKids approach recognizes the value of repetition and gives children time to become more familiar and confident with a movement.
Observation and adaptation
Every child approaches movement differently. Observing how a child approaches an activity can help an adult decide whether they need more time, a clearer demonstration, simpler instructions, additional practice, or a different level of challenge.
Confidence through achievable progress
Movement should give children opportunities to participate, experience success, and recognize their own progress. Activities can be introduced gradually so children have the opportunity to develop both their movement skills and confidence.
How research changed Darlene’s thinking
Her platform of activities was built to share her playful, intentional movement ideas. But as she researched more about movement and how it supports so many developmental areas Darlene became genuinely intrigued.
Darlene discovered the undeniable connection between the brain and body, and how they are inextricably entwined. This led to further research and a much deeper understanding of the value of every movement activity in her program.
Learning how different movement activities support not only physical well-being but also academic success has fuelled Darlene’s determination to get children moving and learning worldwide.
Movement for children with challenges
Working with children who struggle with coordination, balance, or learning difficulties is very close to Darlene’s heart. She has extensive movement teaching experience with children in her home country, Zimbabwe, where she worked with children of all ages with special education needs and disabilities.
Darlene has seen how children thrive and develop when given the opportunity to move in an environment where they feel comfortable. She believes connection should come first, and whenever possible be treated equally.then gentle guidance, keen observation, adaptation, and repetition.
Inclusion comes from how you guide, encourage, see and adapt activities without drawing too much attention to any one child. Children with developmental delays need movement the most. They deserve our attention and the opportunity to move, learn and thrive in a supportive environment.
In her online workshops, Darlene supports adults in effectively including all children so every child can excel in this crucial developmental area.
“I believe it is our responsibility as adults to ensure that each and every child is prepared for the world that awaits them.
By ensuring that children develop strong movement foundations, we give them a gift that will last a lifetime.
Together, let’s help children be the best they can be.”
Find the MoovKids support that fits you
Whether you are supporting one child, teaching a class, or guiding an educator team, there is a MoovKids pathway designed to help you put purposeful movement into practice.
MoovKit
Movement activities for
individual users
For parents, homeschoolers, individual educators, coaches, and other child-focused professionals who want personal access to practical movement activities and instructional videos.
MoovCenters
Movement resources for early years organizations
For kindergartens, nurseries, schools, and after-school programs that want practical activities, instructional videos, and educator resources for their team.
MoovEducators
Guided movement training and implementation support
For early years organizations that want training, manageable implementation steps, mentoring, and direct guidance from Darlene.
Give children a stronger foundation through movement.
Explore practical movement activities, educator resources, and guided support created from 40+ years of practical hands-on teaching experience teaching children.
Not sure where to begin? Try a free four-activity movement lesson for children ages 4–7.
