2020 Summer Kansas Child

Building
Strong
Foundations
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR PRESCHOOLERS
BY SEAN HOFFMAN, MS Ed.
Physical activity is an important component
of leading a healthy lifestyle. This
is true for people of all ages, but especially
young people. Physical activity helps children
defend themselves against obesity and
future, chronic health issues.
Many adults know how important physical
activity is for general health and strive
to get 10,000 steps each day, or 150 minutes
of moderate activity each week. Did you
know that the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) recommends that
children aged 3-5 years should be active
throughout the day and get a minimum of
3 hours of physical activity each day? This
might seem like a daunting task as a parent
or caregiver, but it is important to give
children a healthy start to life.
One of the best ways for children to be
active is to play. The Society of Health and
Physical Educators (SHAPE) recommends
two types of play for 3-5-year-olds — free
and structured.
Free Play
Free play is any unstructured activity that
usually does not involve electronics. This
can include reading, coloring, and other
sedentary activities, but can also include
active free play. Active free play could involve
children walking around and exploring
their surroundings, playing house, pretending
to be animals, kicking a ball to each
other or dancing. Some children might
need positive encouragement from a parent
or caregiver to be physically active while
playing. SHAPE America recommends at
least 1 hour, and up to several hours of free
play each day for 3-5-year-olds. Free play
not only allows children to be active, it also
stimulates the brain and allows children to
be creative and adventurous.
Structured Play
Structured play involves children performing
activities led by an adult or leader.
Structured play is important for children
to learn specific skills. This is a great time
to work on basic locomotor skills, such as
running, walking, leaping, sliding, galloping,
jumping and hopping. Structured play
involves any activity that is structured with
instructions and rules such as throwing
and catching a ball, a game of animal tag
or activity stations. During structured play,
it is important for adults to be involved by
not only demonstrating the skill or game,
but also actively participating in the activity.
Some young children are more likely to
participate in activities if there is a trusted
adult participating. Adults also can help
children with disabilities participate in the
activity – whether this is by modifying an
activity to allow the child to participate
or assisting the child to perform a specific
skill. It is important that all children are
involved and active, no matter what their
physical and/or cognitive abilities might be.
(Continued)
www.ks.childcareaware.org
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