This website has lots of fun games to help teach nutrition, it also has some fun print outs for kids to color.
We taught our kids about the food pyramid and proper nutrition while playing with blocks. Here is a picture/example:
We also took our children grocery shopping with us and talked about healthy food choices while shopping. I let my toddler pick out apples and bananas and put them in the cart and he loved it. (It was fun for me to see how something that I do every week could be an educational and fun experience!)
Another simple thing we did was let our children help prepare meals with us. We talked about what food group each ingredient would go into…it became a fun, hands on guessing game.
You could also pull photos of food out of magazines and then ask your child to pick out which ones are healthy and which ones are not. You could even glue the healthy pictures to a piece of paper and let your child hang it on the fridge as a reminder of picking healthy foods rather then junk.
ChooseMyPlate.gov has some great advice for parents on ways to develop healthy eating habits. They also have some fun ideas of activities to try.
Mayo Clinic has 10 great healthy snack ideas for kids.
Fitness/Excercise
For some it’s hard to get your children involved in exercising and for others they can’t get their kids to slow down. Here are a couple examples of way to involve your children and get them excited to exercise.
~Play Tag or hide and seek
~Play the basket game (We put a basket at each end of the house and have our kids thrown little plastic balls into them)
~ Do the hokie pokie or Head shoulders, knees and toes
~Turn on the music and dance
~Throw a football while doing sit-up's
~Get in a good run with the kids-they will like getting out too.
~Go to the zoo or a Museum and walk around
~ Ride Bikes or walk to a nearby park
~ Do a work out movie (We love doing Jillian Michael’s 30 day shred…our kids get into it too)
~Have your child model your behavior while you exercise
Just remember when movement is fun your kids will love exercising…it doesn’t have to be a chore!
Ways to avoid Sickness:
Flu season is here and it seems like everywhere we go someone is coughing. Here are a couple reminders on ways to avoid getting sick and some activities to teach your children about germs.
The best way to avoid sickness is to wash our hands. Most kids only rinse rather then wash…here is a little video to remind us of how to properly wash our hands.
It is also fun to come up with a Hand Washing song. You could try using the tune of “ABC,” “Yankee Doodle,” “Happy Birthday” (sung twice), or “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.
Here are a couple activities to try with your kids:
Apple Activity:
Infecting an apple is a fun way to learn about how disease can spread. Drop an apple or find one that’s already starting to rot. Insert a toothpick into the rotten part of the apple and then insert the same end into a clean apple. Put the apples aside for a few days. What do you notice?
Do the same, only this time wash the toothpick well with soap. Did you notice a difference? Encourage your child to notice that washing the toothpick lessened the transmission of disease.
Hand Lens Activity:
Have your child look at his or her hand through a magnifying glass. Encourage your child to draw a “map” of their hands. Can they see all the nooks and crannies where germs might hide? You can extend the activity by having your child make handprints on a piece of paper and having them observe their prints. Then your child can practice washing their hands by using warm water and soap. The ink will show them all the spots they need to reach when they wash their hands.
Make a Hand Washing Chart:
Create a chart with your child that has spaces for each day. Then have your child record when they washed their hands. Your child should recognize if she or he is washing their hands enough and change their behavior based on what they have learned. Discuss when a person should wash their hands and set up a plan to remind everyone in your family about hand washing so that all family members can practice healthy habits.
Also, teach your child to cover their cough/sneeze (preferably with their elbow or shoulder).
Be sure to drink lots of water and stay hydrated. Also, be sure to eat healthy and get plenty of sleep.
My little guy loves these mini water bottles with a sport top. I love them too!
Easing the Ouch of Sickness:
It’s a great idea to keep a first aid kit close by if you don’t already have one Family Fun has a great checklist of what you might want to put together.
Click here to view 10 home remedies every mom should know.
This is a fun Website with some fun home remedies to try…or just read about.
Have fun playing doctor with the kids…they will love it and you might be lucky enough to get a laugh from them. (My little guy loves to be pampered with 7up and what he thinks is strawberries in a special hospital cup when he is sick.)
I saw this snack on pintrest and didn’t know what to think about it but tried it and my little guy loved them. We just did band-aid without the blood. It was super easy…just graham crackers with frosting:)
I loved these Feel Better Felt Bandages from PinkandGreenMomma. She has a tutorial on how she make them and they are super easy! We copied her and made some when my little guy broke his arm. He loves to put them on his animals!
Tip to Keeping Up on Hygiene
I had a patient that shared with me how she keeps up with her 5 children's hygiene needs. She does what she calls a "Hygiene Day" each week. Every Saturday she makes sure each child gets a really good bath. She pulls out her little "tool kit" and goes to work clipping finger nails and toe nails, cleaning belly buttons and ears, and making sure the little things that often get forgotten are done for each of her kids each week. What a great idea. I have adopted the tradition. ; )
Here's whats in my little tool-kit! Perfect to grab while we are cuddled up watching a movie or have an extra minute!
Have another wonderful week!
