The holidays bring festivals and lots of fun. They also bring a lot of activity, which sometimes also allows for unhealthy eating. After the celebrations are over, free time can get boring, especially for children. With so many technological devices available these days, kids like to spend most of their free time playing video games or watching TV. While this is good in moderation, it could have serious health effects if done in excess. When parents limit children’s screen time, it becomes their responsibility to find alternative ways to keep children busy and happy. Trips to commercial playgrounds or church playground equipment can also do much to keep children happily occupied. They eventually fall into boredom and become lethargic. This can be bad for their mental and physical health because they need to exercise as part of their routines. For those times, here are some tips for parents to make exercise fun for kids and keep them active and healthy.
Make it a group activity
Children enjoy anything in the company of their friends and peers. Since this problem is common to all parents, it shouldn’t be difficult to find other children in your neighborhood to take a walk with your little ones. Alternatively, you can talk to other parents about signing their kids up for the same sports club or a class of fun activities. If nothing else works, take your kids to the community park with foam padding for the playground surface, where they can make friends and socialize with other kids their age while you sit on the benches and keep an eye on them.
Turn your backyard into a playground
Add some ribbons on the sidewalk to make a board game where kids become the game pieces. They jump and gallop trying not to touch the tape and get scores with how many squares or rows they are able to jump. This would make the game fun and also add a healthy dose of physical activity to your play time.
Have your own treasure hunt
Almost every kid going to school has a phone these days, or at least the parents do. All you have to do for this fun training activity is jot down interesting things in your neighborhood. Ask your little ones to walk around the area and take pictures of the things mentioned on the treasure map. The child who spots the most things gets the winning prize. Alternatively, you can hide trinkets and toys in your own home or garden and take the little ones on a treasure hunt. The seeker becomes the keeper. This will keep your children busy and active for hours without getting bored.
Turn housework into a game
Have your children clean their rooms or collect all the toys and put them in a basket. Use a stopwatch to time them and whoever does it in the shortest amount of time will be the winner. In this way, the little ones will also learn to do household chores and have fun at the same time. Have a race over who finishes their milk first and who changes into their nightwear the fastest. This would make all day activities fun and also provide frequent doses of physical exercise.
