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Active Kids Challenge

Teaching Resource - Be Active with Fit Habitz Week 5

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Learning

Fitness is fun! Adopting this attitude and enjoying ourselves are important aspects of making fitness part of our life. Children benefit from engaging with a variety of fun fitness activities. Regular fitness activities encourage children to build their:

• self confidence
• self esteem
• positive self image

Exercise stimulates the production and release of chemicals in the brain call endorphins. Endorphins provide relief from stress and pain. When we exercise the release of these chemicals provides an analgesic effect on the body, which can provide a state of:

• wellbeing
• a sense of europhia
• calmness

These states can be felt both during and post exercise.

When planning a fun fitness activity for children, consider that children enjoy and perform best at activities involving quick short bursts of energy followed by short periods of rest. The reason why is as follows:

Physiology

In comparison to adults Child's heart volume and size is smaller Child's heart beats faster to maintain same intensity level Volume of blood pumped per stroke is less = Kids tire more quickly Breathing frequency higher Energy cost of breathing higher = Need to breathe in more air for same level of oxygen = Children burn more energy than adults when walking or running

Fit Tips

• Be organised and take the time to plan your game.
• List the equipment that you will need.
• Engage children by giving the game a fun name.
• Make the game come alive by using your imagination to create a theme for the game.
• Use bright colourful equipment.
• Keep the game simple. Less time talking means more active time.

Fit Corner - Class Activity

Chain Train

• Set out a large 20m x 20m square coned area.
• Ask the students to find their own space within the coned area.
• Nominate one student to start chasing.
• Once the chaser has tagged someone they then hold hands to form a chain. The chain then continues to chase.
• The game is finished when there is one student remaining who has not been tagged.
• The playing area may need to be adjusted by moving the cones closer in to make the playing area smaller as the chain becomes longer. To make the game even more exciting, stop the game half way through and split the chain into smaller chains.

Fit Qs

• When our heart rate beats faster what happens to our breathing?
• Can you find your pulse? How many beats per minute is your heart beating while sitting? How many beats is it now after you have played a game of Chain Train?
• How many running games can you think of?