As school begins the younger children are going to be spending full days in school buildings with very little play space. The older girls and boys will be studying until almost bedtime, with very little time for physical activity. Many mothers report to me that the first few weeks after the summer the children are moody and irritable. The freedom of outdoor play is no longer possible. The physical energy that was burned off each day during the active vacation days becomes pent up causing an emotional letdown. There are certain steps we can take to help our boys and girls adjust to the school routine, remain leaner and at the same time, maintain the healthy bones and muscles developed during the summer. Exercise Exercise is not a luxury. It is a requirement. Every one needs it for both physical and emotional health to be maintained. As a child’s body grows, the stress and strain put on the muscles and bones during activity makes them grow straighter and stronger. The easiest and best exercise is walking. Instead of riding buses, they should walk to school and back if they live within a mile of school (the new knapsacks on wheels could be used to lighten the book load). Even the little kids could be walked by older kids or walking monitors. They should also walk to friends and shopping. The walk will be refreshing and invigorating, helping the kids to burn off energy in a healthy way. The parents and the school administrators should consider giving higher priority to providing the students with time and opportunity for active play during the school week. More time could be set aside in the curriculum for organized play and exercise. In addition to playgrounds and play space in schools, there are some games and activities that can be played in a limited space like a lunchroom, hallway or even an empty classsroom. Diet As our children begin the school year, this would be a good time to reassess the daily diets eaten during the school day. Some teachers have taken upon themselves to limit at least some of the snacks to “healthy” snacks in the very young students. It is also very important to make sure that the meals prepared and eaten in school are well balanced. There should be salads, lean meat or chicken, fish, low fat dairy foods, whole grain breads, in addition to the standard noodles and potatoes and fish sticks. Many mothers tell me they must send packaged snack to school with their kids because all of the children at school bring them every day. They should try to give popcorn and pretzels more often than greasy chips and “super snacks.” It is very important that the number of packaged snacks be limited to one portion for each snack time allowed. At home the real junk food should be put away for special parties. If they don’t have the snack foods available the children will be more amenable to eating wholesome foods such as fruits and vegetables, string cheese, chickpeas, grape tomatoes, rice cakes and whole grain crackers when they are hungry. This kind of attention paid to the quality and quantity of the food our families eat will go a long way to fighting obesity. Healthy eating habits, learned in childhood, will last a lifetime. |
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