Obesity rates in children have gone up while physical activity rates have plummeted since the pandemic started. As young children start coming back to daycare and childcare centers more regularly, daycare programs can do so much more in increasing children’s physical activity levels, promoting a better diet and leading kids into developing a healthier, more active lifestyle.

Short Sessions

Most daycare programs try to fit physical activity in a single session. However, this defeats the purpose of increased physical activity and engagement with children as young children, energetic as they may be, can start to lose interest in the activities after a couple of minutes. Instead of lumping physical activity in one single session, try to do 2-3 short sessions to achieve maximum physical activity.
Young children are great at releasing short bursts of energy, and having them engaged and physically active for the whole session, though short, still makes them more active longer.

2 or More Play Sessions

As young children emerge from their mostly sedentary lifestyle after intermittent childcare schedules and forced isolation due to the pandemic rules, childcare programs have a great opportunity in restarting and recharging the children’s interest in moving and being more active.
Get them moving more frequently by having more active sessions where they are required to move around and practice their gross motor skills.

Teacher-led Physical Activity

Aside from more frequent active play sessions, researchers have found that children are more engaged and active when the physical activity is led by the teacher. Having the teacher lead children into various activities and engaging children in order to encourage them to participate more.

Give Well-Balanced Meals

Childcare providers can get government funding to provide free water, milk, and a nutritious meal to their children by signing up for the Child and Adult Food Care Program. The program also has an extensive list of nutritious meals coming from various cultures that lets children discover diversity of food and flavor in their meals.

An active child needs all the support and encouragement they can get not only from their parents but from their childcare providers as well. As young children are once again allowed to spend more time in childcare, so should early childhood educators reorient young children away from the sedentary lifestyle of longer screen time into a more active one represented by longer and more engaging physical activities.