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This article is republished from our Spring 2000 issue of Vigor.
10 Ways to Jump-Start Kids When Mud Season Ends
Winter is finally over and it’s time to get moving. Help your child take advantage of spring fever to revitalize his or her fitness routine.
True, some cabin-fever-afflicted kids may be bouncing off the walls about now. You may need only to harness their energy. But others have surely reacted to the long Vermont winter by burrowing under blankets and kicking back into hibernation.
Susan Adams, a Vermont Teacher of the Year and physical educator at Jericho Elementary School, notes that “According to the U.S. Surgeon General’s report on the health of the nation, fewer than one in four children get 20 minutes of physical activity every day.”
“Lack of physical activity has been identified as the number-two health concern of our nation,” Adams explains. “That thought–coupled with the fact that the percentage of overweight young Americans has more than doubled in the past thirty years–makes it imperative that families get involved and get moving,” she says.
Whether your children have too much energy to burn or need a “kick in the pants” to jump-start them, these ideas can surely get your young Vermonters’ engines running.
- Take them on a hike. Take advantage of where you live and enjoy some of Vermont’s beauty. Spring provides wildflowers, fiddlehead ferns and other attractions to make your post-mud-season hike special. To keep the more cerebral of your kids happy, consider attending a nature program. State parks, national forests and even local recreation areas have programs that teach children everything from chemistry to photography.
- Dust off the bikes. Make sure your child has a helmet and all the necessary equipment.* Then take a family bike ride. Or sit down with an older child and plan an interesting trek for a group of children to try alone. Need to spark interest in your child’s older bicycle? Consider letting her pick out some new gear to go with it. A new water bottle or helmet can give her a great incentive to start a new biking fitness routine.
- Change the scenery. Take your child to a new playground or park. Walk or ride on a bike path in a different neighborhood with him. Discovering a new area might whet his appetite for activity.
- Plan now for the summer. Does your child have plans for swimming lessons? Sports camp? Little league? Make arrangements early, before teams and classes fill up. Children who learn to love physical activity can carry that love into adulthood.
- ShadowTag. Kickball. Jumprope. Handball. These games may be old, but they still work and they’re still fun. Would your child and her friends enjoy learning a game from you?
- Do you have a very young child who is hesitant to take part in physical activities? Take him out to the ballgame or a swim meet or any sporting event. Sometimes just observing an activity can help a child know that it’s safe and fun to try. You may see the benefits later.
- Use the same activities and incentives that adults use to keep fit. Buy an age-appropriate fitness video for your child or help her to do calisthenics or other exercises you learned in gym class. Then help her keep track of physical activity with stickers on a wall chart. Offer a prize if she gets a certain number of stickers.
- Make up a scavenger hunt for your child. Include both nature finds and man-made items on your list of things for him to find. Anything is fair game if your child can safely uncover it. (Different ages need different challenges.) The hunt can make walking more interesting.
- All she wants to do is dance? Encourage it. Dancing gives a great work-out, while teaching rhythm and other musical skills that, studies show, help kids learn other academic subjects. No child is too young to benefit from dancing–even if it’s in your arms at first.
- Make moderate activity an everyday part of your child’s life. Have your child walk the dog, help you in the garden, carry laundry to the washing machine. If you keep in mind the importance of fitness, yourchild will benefit. Adams notes, “Physical educators throughout the nation are concerned about the need for physical activity for people of all ages. The most important thing that families can do is to make exercise a family affair. Get involved in physical activities that are enjoyable and are easily done throughout life.
“Introducing activity as fun at an early age may be the most important gift you can give your child,” she says.
*Call Vermont Safe Kids at 1-800-974-7055 for information on low-cost helmets and safety tips.
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