Ideas for Parents and Their Pre-K Kids to Learn and Move Together

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    By: Shape America

    Moving and playing with young ones is an important part of learning at home. It’s fun to engage in activities that teach families the importance of physical activity for young children. SHAPE America (the Society of Health and Physical Educators) serves as the voice for 200,000+ health and physical education professionals across the United States and recognizes the importance of early childhood education.

    The organization’s extensive community includes a diverse membership of health and physical educators, as well as advocates, supporters, and 50+ state affiliate organizations. SHAPE America envisions a nation where all children are prepared to lead healthy, physically active lives.

    SHAPE America understands the benefits of regular physical activity include:

    Reduces the risk of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.

    Assists in improved academic performance.

    Helps children feel better about themselves.

    Reduces the risk of depression and the effects of stress.

    Helps children prepare to be productive, healthy members of society; and

    Improves overall quality of life.

    Their suggestions feature a variety of ideas, strategies, information, and resources for parents to use the space within their homes, the materials they have, and their limited time to model and encourage physical activity.

    The following is for pre-K kids and is called “Do Three with Me.”

    Get Ready

    Space: Indoor or Outdoor Space; Small or Big Space

    Stuff: Just your imagination!

    Time: While preparing a meal, while getting ready in the morning, transitioning to bedtime, waiting for the bus… whenever you are waiting in line.

    Get Set

    Tell your child that you are going to say and do three movements/actions. Children will listen, remember, and repeat the same three actions.

    Go

    Start with the following three actions — reach up high, stretch out far, touch the floor — give all three directions, then repeat them with the actions, all as your child watches and listens carefully.

    Now it is your child’s turn to do the actions. You can say them and even do them together if needed.

    Other three action ideas:

    Run and touch something blue, jump high into the air, spin on your tummy

    Hop 5 times on your right, hop 5 times on your left, be as still as you can be

    Wiggle your knees, bend your elbows, shake your tummy

    Walk backward, touch something yellow, act like a monkey

    As your child does each movement encourage him/her to say the action words out loud. This enhances language arts skills such as vocabulary and sequencing. Get your child involved. Ask him/her to add a movement.

    Another activity for pre-k kids is called “Throwing Sponges.”

    Get Ready

    Space: Outdoors, side of a building such as the garage, house, or storage shed

    Stuff: A Variety of different-sized sponges, a bucket of water

    Time: Playtime, weekend fun

    Get Set

    Fill a bucket full of water

    Put the sponges in the water

    Find a spot or line from which your child could throw — make the distance far enough for a challenge but close enough for success.

    Move the line closer or further away to vary the task

    Go

    Ask your child to take the sponge full of water out of the bucket and throw it as hard as he/she can at the wall.

    Tell them to try to leave a wet mark on the wall.

    Vary the task by having them throw the sponge underhand or overhand, and high, low, or medium on the wall.

    Encourage your child to step at the wall, with their opposite foot as they throw. When children wring out the sponges, they will build the muscles in their hands and wrists that are necessary for fine motor (small muscle) tasks including drawing and writing.

    SHAPE America provides many free resources for individual, non-commercial use; learn more at http://www.shapeamerica.org.