May is National Physical Fitness Month and a reminder that exercise is so important for health. But, there are many ways to get your kiddos moving that are fun, as exercise shouldn’t just be jumping jacks and pushups – it should include daily activities, as well as sporting games. Here are a few daily movement activities that get the body revved up.
Take neighborhood walks together that include fitness skills. Ask your preschooler to run and skip down the sidewalk. Add a crepe paper streamer to her arms with a piece of tape and have your little athlete “run like the wind.†Find a line or draw a chalk line and pretend it’s a balance beam. Walk carefully across the beam. Take little jumps down the beam, too!
Play the game of catch with all kinds of balls. If your preschooler is afraid of hurting his/her fingers, use soft foam balls, yarn balls, and even balloons. After your youngster is familiar with catch, maybe it’s time for a more advanced game that includes throwing and hitting, such as T-ball, volleyball, or even a simple game of basketball with a lower hoop.
At home, try these chores that involve movement. Ask your child to help carry laundry and groceries to build strong muscles. How about helping you vacuum the floors? Your kiddo is also the perfect size for retrieving objects that have rolled under furniture. Think about all that twisting and turning on his/her belly to reach the objects. Acknowledge those building muscles with admiration and praise your preschooler’s helpfulness.
Construct an indoor obstacle course when outdoor weather is either rainy or too hot. Think of arranging chairs and tables along with big chunky couch pillow to create a path of climbing and navigating around obstacles. Keep increasing the difficulty every time you play this fitness game.
If you can go outdoors, set up plastic cones to play Olympic style obstacle games. First, invite your child to bounce a ball while walking through the cones. Next, suggest she makes her way through the cones while moving the ball with her feet. If you have a group of friends playing, have them form a single line and stand with their feet apart. Have the first child in line pass the ball through her legs to the next child. Continue this process until the last child gets the ball and that child will bounce the ball to the front of the line and start the game over. Keep playing as long as there is interest.
Who doesn’t like to move to music? And sing, too! Singing and dancing are universal forms of play. Do it together, as your child loves to see you play with him and doesn’t even care a bit if your voice is off-key and your dance is out-of-step.
These are only a few of the many games and activities you can do with your children that invite movement and build their physical skills. Along with good nutrition; support and encourage movement in your lives daily.