FUN ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE HEALTHY PATTERNS
Children are carrying more body fat today than ever before. As a child care provider you have an opportunity to change that. To promote a positive activity cycle it must be fun for the children and strongly encouraged by the adults in their live.
IDEAS:
Bridge Constructor - Bend and shape several children into various “bridges” and have the other children be cars who try to discover as many ways as possible to “drive” around, under or over the bridges. This helps build flexibility.
Stepping up - Walking up and down steps gives the legs a good work-out. Have the children count the steps as they climb.
Hanging around - At the playground, arm and-shoulder development activity is hanging from a bar. Be sure that the surface below is of an impact-absorbing material. Safety guideline recommended that children not hang any further from the ground than their own height.
Mirrows and shadows - Children stand facing you while you perform a slow stretching motion. The children then copy your movements by watching themselves in the “mirror.” In “shadows,” children face the same direction, one standing directly behind the other. You, the leader, perform some type of whole body movement (running in place, jumping up and down, twisting from side to side) while the children become shadows and copy the actions.
Animal walks - Animal walks enhance strength, flexibility and coordination. Here are some ideas:
Sea Crawl - Start in a push-up position but with fingers pointing out to the side rather than forward. Travel by using only arms and hands to propel you. Feel free to make seal sounds or even climb up on a box and slap your front “fins” together.
Puppy dog walk - With hands and feet on the floor, travel around the area, sometimes going fast; sometimes going slow. Do you know any tricks? Can you roll over? Stand on your hind paws?
Bunny jump - In a squatting position with your weight on your feet, reach forward and place your weight on your hands while moving your feet up close to your hands. Then place your body weight back on your feet and continue your bunny hop around the area.
Ask the bunnies to jump like giant bunnies, baby bunnies, fast bunnies, slow bunnies and even dizzy bunnies.
Tree fruit picking - You can record children’s physical abilities such as jumping, running and stretching, on a long piece of paper draw a tree with many apples of different heights. Children keep track of how many apples they can reach to put into baskets. As the children grow his jumping skills will improve and the basket will get fuller.
Songs to move by - Try to sing a favorite song-or make one up. This idea works especially well when the words to the song cue children to the movements. “Whistle While You Work” actually is effective! So is “The Warm-up Dance” sung to the tone of the “Mulberry Bush.” Here are the word substitutes: “This is the way we stretch our legs, stretch our legs, stretch our legs. This is the way we stretch our legs in order to stay healthy.” Continue with cues to stretch arms and sides, lift shoulders, and run & jump.
What we can learn from fitness studies is that we can’t leave physical development to chance. We all want what’s best for children. Surely for the very young child, to move is to be, and to move better is to be more.
