Physically Active Screen Time
During times where we need to spend more time indoors (rainy weather, pandemics), screen use will undoubtedly increase. However, that does not mean that you need to be inactive. Below are some great resources that utilize screens to get kids moving!
GoNoodle
GoNoodle helps teachers and parents get kids moving with short interactive activities. GoNoodle caters to grades K-5, but has many great videos for the early years too.
Some great videos for our younger audience to get their whole body moving and grooving are:
• The Champ Harmonic: McPufferson in "Infernal Galop"
• Awesome Sauce: Cookie Boogie
• Awesome Sauce: Rainbow Kids
• Moose Tube: The Penguin Song
• Moose Tube: Go Bananas
• Moose Tube: Fabio's Meatball Run
• Blazer Fresh: Lunch
• Koo Koo Kanga Roo: Roller Coaster
• Koo Koo Kanga Roo: Pop See Ko
• NTV: Footloose
• NTV: Jump
Check out the other videos on these channels too; they are all super popular with younger children.
The Body Coach TV
Joe Wicks is an English fitness coach that caters to getting kids moving! His YouTube channel has many different workouts and fitness activities that kids of different ages can follow along with from home.
• Kids Workouts to Do at Home
• Active 8
Joe also has many great adult workouts that you can also join in with!
Instagram has some great accounts and hashtags that link to games and activities. Check out these accounts for some great activities and videos:
@pise_play
@kenzensportskarate
@recgympros
@dancepl3y
@motorskilllearning
@physicalliteracy
Some of the videos and ideas were created with groups in mind, so use some creativity and imagination to alter them to your own space and equipment.
The Moblees
Available on CBC Gem, the Moblees embraces an anti-sedentary philosophy seeking to create a “movement movement” among young children and their families. The Moblees seek to increase physical activity and decrease sedentary behaviours among children while they are watching an informative TV program, while also instilling the importance of movement throughout the day.
Other ideas for TV
If your children are watching other TV shows, there are certain ways to encourage activity after the show has ended. Here are a few ideas:
- Print out images of the shows main characters and place them/hide them around the house/area. Then the children have to go and find them all!
- If you are watching a show about wildlife, start moving like the animals that you saw.
- For superhero shows, think about what your own superpowers might be and move around trying to stop some sort of nefarious plan.
- A nature documentary can be a great way to use different habitats to think of the animals that live in those areas.
- Print out those areas as colouring sheets, or draw them with sidewalk chalk, and then move around from location to location.
- Lots of shows include different types of vehicles. Use those to pretend you are in a city or on a highway, and they may move slowly, or quickly, or have to stop at a red light.
In general, use the screen time as a launchpad for extra activities that you or your children are able to engage in a physically active way.