Active Movement in the Environment

Summertime is the perfect opportunity to encourage Active Movement in your children. Being active outside adds oxygen and endorphins to the blood and these help develop happy, bright and cherry children. Your own backyard is brimming with activities:

• Run under the hose on a hot day
• Place your baby’s pram outside under the trees
• Make a bird feeder
• Grow flowers and vegetables
• Set up the paddling pool – add flowers or glitter to the paddling pool for variety
• Hang old sheets or a piece of material over low branches to make huts
• Go on a treasure hunt – remember to use lots of descriptive words such as colours, smells, sounds the children can hear.
  

Venture further afield into the wonderful council parks and playgrounds which are all free of charge. All of these have a range of slides, swings, ladders and climbing frames which encourage Active Movement. Whilst there try some of the following activities:

• Go on walks to feed the ducks and birds
• Roll down hills
• Go to the beach and jump over waves
• Go on a nature walk and collect things
• Swing on the bars in the park
• Go on a biking adventure and collect things to make a collage picture
• Drop sticks into a river and run to see whose stick gets to the magic mark first

Whilst out there enjoying the outdoors please remember to SLIP, SLOP SLAP and keep safe around the water. Most importantly if you are an Active Role Model then your children are likely to follow in your footsteps.

Where can we be active in the environment? Playgrounds & Parks!

Local parks and playgrounds make wonderful places for the whole family to visit. Why not visit a park in a new area – your children will love it and you could even take a picnic lunch!

What are the Benefits of Playground Play? By taking your family to a local playground, you are not only providing them with a wonderful opportunity for fun and fresh air, but are investing quality time in developing their motor skills and exposing them to a different social environment. Experiences at playgrounds such as swinging and hanging from bars, are invaluable for your child. Climbing trees and ladders assists in developing foot-eye and hand-eye coordination, leg and upper body strength, body control, flexibility and balance. As well as this, judgment spatial awareness, cross patterning skills, climbing skills, swinging skills, landing skills, body awareness, self confidence and decision making (for example, ‘how far do I need to swing my arm to reach that bar?” are all exercised. The local playground may also offer a different social environment for your child as well. They may play with another child and teach her valuable social skills such as waiting her/his turn, sharing, respecting other peoples’ property and consideration of others.

Click the link for a list of some of the parks and playgrounds in Waitakere City. (Parks and Playgrounds)

Using the Environment in Active Movement "The Great Outdoors" 
 
As we enjoy the sunny summer days, the opportunity to explore outside becomes a little easier. The “using the environment in Active Movement” activity guide, featured here, encourages us to get our children outside to   explore the world around them. The great outdoors is a fun-filled, free of charge learning environment!

Why is using the environment important? What are the benefits?
Being active outside adds oxygen and endorphins to the blood, both of which help develop happy, bright and cheery children! Just some of the other benefits of using the environment are:
Children:
• Are encouraged to be active
• Develop a life long desire to be active
• Become aware of nature
• Learn respect for the environment
• Have lots of social opportunities to play with other children
• Get opportunities to develop their fundamental movement skills