Ways to Promote Active Play

You can promote fitness, self-esteem, self-confidence, learning, and more – without specialized knowledge, fancy equipment, or a lot of money.

Simple Ways to Get Moving

1. Spread paper plates on the ground and pretend they are rocks in a stream. Step from one to the other to get across "the stream".
2. Mow a maze and walk, crawl or slither through.
3. When you go for a walk move in a straight line, a curvy path or backwards.
4. Set up an obstacle coure, inside or out. Include things that children can climb over, go around or crawl under.
5. Find an open space and try rolling in different ways: straight body, curled up or down a hill.
6. Blow bubbles outside. Chase and catch them before they pop.
7. Pretend you're an animal - move and make sounds like that animal.
8. Pretend to be a a tiny seed in the ground and grow into a large flower.
9. Pretend to be a baloon. First, without air, they being blown up, then floating and then being popped!
10. Make weather motions. Move your body like the rain, the wind, a thunder storm or snow.
11. Use movement words throughout the day such as --slide, sway swing, hop, crawl, slither bend, dodge, zig zag - to keep active movement on the top of everyone's mind.

Check out these resources for other ways to get active

• Head Start - Body Smart

  Free activity downloads and tools to inspire creative, movement-based placy and healthy food chioces in your child care program or at home.

• Let's Move

  An initiative launched by the First Lady, Michelle Obama, that's dedicated to solving the problem of obesity within a generation through active play and healthy eatting.

• Moving and Learning

  Features activities and resources from children's physical activity specialist, Rae Pica.

• Bam! Body and Mind

  A kid-friendly site created by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention that offers interactive, educational and fun activites that encourage physical activity and healthy eatting.

• We Have the Moves

  Romp along with Sesame Street characters to discover fun and easy ways to incorporate active play into everyday routines

Training Recomendation

Check out the CCR&R Curriculum Planning section and Activities sections to learn more ways to incorporate active play into your child care program. Also, visit the ND CCR&R Training Center to search and register for training and events related to active play and healthy eatting.