Preschoolers in Child Care Centers Not Active Enough by Rae Pica

According to a new study from researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, only 13.7% of child care centers in North Carolina offered 120 minutes of active playtime during the school day. The good news is that in 82% of the centers, children were not sitting for more than 30 minutes at a time and about 56 percent of centers had a written policy on physical activity.

Another study published by the same group found that only nine studies, all conducted since 2003, have tested ways to help young children in child care centers become more physically active.

The study recommended that researchers look at all areas of the child care environment, not just the amount of time children are provided for play. For example, other areas that relate to physical activity at preschools include the physical environment (such as fixed and portable play equipment), sedentary environment (such as television viewing time and the presence of TVs and computers in classroom), staff training and behaviors (such as staff joining in active play and providing verbal prompts to increase active play) and a written physical activity policy.

To this I would add: Look at how transitions can be used to increase physical activity levels, and incorporate movement into the curriculum!

Rae Pica is a movement specialist. For more information go to her website:
http://www.movingandlearning.com/

BOOK SUGGESTIONS:

“Making Math Meaningful” by Nettie Fabrie, Wim Gottenbos, and Jamie York. A Scource Book for Teaching Math in Grades One through Five

“String, Straightedge and Shadow” by Julia E. Diggins. Using only three simple tools - the string, the straightedge, and the shadow - men discovered the basic principles and constructions of elementary geometry more than two thousand years ago. This book reveals how these discoveries were made and shows how they were related to the early civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt and Greece.

“Moving through all Seven Days” by Kathy Stemke

“Jump into Math” by Rae Pica. The activities in each chapter are organized by level of difficulty, and each one incorporates fun, exciting math experiences with movement.

“Learn to Count 1-10 with Professor Hoot” author, artist: Eugene Ruble.

“Shaping up the Year” author: Tracey M. Cox, artist: Samantha Bell. Uniquely illustrated with cut out art. Teaches shapes, colors, and counting with activity pages, too.

Moving Through all Seven Days link:http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/moving-through-all-seven-days/7386965#http://www.helium.com/users/406242.html
http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/237923/Kathy_stemke_dancekam.html
http://kathystemke.weebly.com

Activities for Read Alouds

Children enjoy read-alouds. I suggest you read to them as early and as often as possible. But don't forget that older children get a lot out of read-alouds as well so don't stop just because they can read for themselves. Here are some ideas you can use to making reading aloud fun:

1. Use musical instruments to create suspense, silliness, happy and sad sounds. This can bring your story to life as well as keep each child engaged. You can even have them make simple shakers with beans or rice inside a can of pringles and decorate. They can use it at different times. For example: shake the shaker when you hear the word ______. Or, shake the shaker when you hear a verb (noun, a word that starts with B, etc.). The possibilities are endless.

2. Teach part of speech or grammar with signs as you read. Discuss verbs or exclamation marks, etc.. Give out index cards so that each child can write either the word VERB (pronoun, nouns, etc.) or any grammatical mark. Each time you read a sentence with a verb (or other) or a grammatical mark, the child should raise the index card.

3. Create the atmosphere created in the book. For example, use cardboard to build a rocket if the book is about outer space. Tons of possibilities here with this one.

4. Have the children act out what you read. If the character walks to the store, they should be able to walk in place as they reach a door and open it and grab some groceries. This should be fun and can help on those days it's raining out and their energy levels are high. It's a good idea to give them boundaries for control. You could have them stay inside a hoop on the floor.

5. Use a prop bag to illustrate parts of the story. Collect items that pertain to the story, and display them when they are mentioned in the story. Let's say your reading, "MIss Spider's Tes Party." You could take out rubber bugs, a tea cup, silk flowers, or a hankerchief to dry Miss Spider's eyes. If your story is about bananas, pull some bananas out of the prop bag. It would be fun to eat them while they listen to the rest of the story.

6. Ask your child questions about the story. Reading comprehension is one of the hardest things to teach a child if it doesn't come naturally to him. In order to comprehend something, you must be paying attention to it. Help your child to develop his ability to comprehend stories by asking him questions either about what he thinks is about to happen or what has already happened. This develops critical thinking, which helps later in life in making major decisions. It teaches him how to survive in the world, once he is put out in it.

7. Do a fun activity after you finish the book that relalates to the book in some way.
For instance, if the book is about a tall person, make your own stilts using metal cans. Punch two holes on either side of each can, near the bottom. Measure a piece of rope so it is the appropriate length for children. Thread one end of the rope into each hole and secure with a knot. To walk on stilts, children stand on the cans, holding the rope in their hands. It's not easy, children will need practice! (Verify that the edge of the can is not sharp, add masking tape for extra protection.) If you read a book about lions or the circus, you can have your child jump through a hoop like a lion at the circus. This activity may be done indoors or outdoors. Add words of encouragement such as, "Come my beautiful lions!" Continue raising the hoop, then alternate between high and low.

Reading aloud to your child helps them to learn the correct way to read. By hearing you read the words on the page and sound them out, he learns that letters make words, and words make sentences, and sentences are how we communicate with each other. Communication is very important in how a person relates to the rest of the world. Reading aloud to your child encourages interpersonal communication, which is vital to a child's development.

Reading to your child on a regular basis will give them an appreciation and respect for reading. If reading is important to you, it will become important to your child. A bookcase full of a variety of great books should be available. The "Dr. Seuss" and "Dick and Jane" books are wonderful, because they are full of repetition. This will enable your child to learn sight words such as: it, at, on, in, the, etc. Learning sight words will help keep the frustration level down when they start to read books.

So, read aloud to your child, and I guarantee that not only will he benefit in phenomenal ways, but you will bond with your child in the process! Reading aloud calls for a lot more than just listening when you have just a little imagination. Have fun reading!

Help your Preschooler Learn Large Motor Skills

Glitter Graphics

Have you ever watched a group of children playing and noticed that some of them were uncoordinated and clumsy? These children need to develop their gross motor skills. Gross motor skills include: balance (the ability to maintain equilibrium), body awareness (for improved posture and control), laterality (awareness and coordination of the left and right sides of the body), spatial awareness (awareness of the body position in space and in relation to other objects in space), and major muscle coordination. These skills are needed for athletic activities and more importantly, physical coordination in their daily activities.

Physical activity should be a positive and fun experience for kids. Developing positive attitudes about movement at an early age is essential to making a commitment to an active lifestyle. Mastering some fundamental large motor skills means children are able to participate in a wider range of activities.

Because no two children are alike, some activities need to be modified to fit your individual child. Younger children have shorter attention spans and need more variety to maintain interest. Kids also need to be given the time to explore solutions to movement problems in free play situations and in independent creative settings. Activities should be fun, non competitive and success oriented. Make sure you keep the sctivity below their frustration level, or the point where the child has difficulty succeeding. Kids should be given adequate instruction and plenty of time to practice. Skills should be taught in a sequential manner. Kids need to feel safe while learning so there should be boundaries, rules and routines that they can follow. And most importantly, remember to give them tons of praise.

The three main types of skills that should be covered are stability skills (bending, balancing, stretching, swinging, twisting, dodging), locomotor skills (walking, running, jumping, hopping, leaping, skipping, galloping, climbing, rolling, creeping, crawling), and manipulative skills (throwing, catching, rolling, bouncing, kicking, striking, trapping). The suggested activities are endless. Here are some aimed for 3-5 year olds.

1. Play with a large ball. Kick the ball with one foot, and then the other. Throw and catch the ball, too. If your child has trouble catching a ball, you can slow down the process by using a chiffon scarf. The scarf moves slowly and has lots of surface area to grab.
2. Have a set of props that your child can use for exploration. Examples: scarves, hoops, sticks, flags, bean bags.
3. Play "Simon says," so your child will have to copy your movements, and improve his
listening skills. In "Mirror images" you face each other and mimic the leader's actions. Remember to go slow enough for your child to keep up. These activities are good for developing laterality and spatial awareness.
4. Play the balance game. Ask your child to count how long they can balance on one foot. Use a variety of balances holding your foot in several positions.
5. Ask your child to gallop like a horse or slide like a baseball player.
6. Log rolls or forward rolls are good for body rotation skills.
7. Tag is great for practicing sprinting, stopping, and changing direction quickly.
8. Kids can develop their skills in climbing and hanging by using playground equipment. This type of environment fosters development in spatial awareness, body tension and grip strength.
9. Learn action songs. Tell your child to act out animal moves: slither like a snake, waddle like a duck, or jump like a kangaroo. You can combine phonics and action with the "Animal Action Phonics Rhymes" found posted on this blog.
10. Set up obstacle courses with tunnels to crawl through, hoops to jump in, and inclines to
roll down.

Now is the time to give your child the right environment and opportunities to develop their large motor skills. Each time your child solves a movement problem it is recorded in his muscle memory. Gross motor memory is vital at this stage as it allows a child to recall the muscular steps used in the past for successful performance. Numerous muscle groups must be rapidly engaged, so that the right muscles are accomplishing the necessary steps at the right time. For some kids these processes will be nearly instinctive and for others continual training will be required. Have fun and enjoy this special time with your preschooler.