Why hasn’t anyone told them?
Milo commissioned a report, The State of Play, to find out the playing activities of kids these days.
What it found was two thirds of kids said outdoor play was their favourite activity but only 55% actually did it.
And their playmate of choice is…..the parent.
The key is for unstructured play. But as parents we feel guilty about what we provide for our kids.; and we sometimes get played by the marketers. The latest craze is to provide our kids with gym equipment.
Dr Shirley Alexander, staff specialist in the Weight Management Services department at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead agrees with Okely. “Certainly the aim is to encourage children to be active but using ‘fitness’ equipment, in my opinion, is not the best way to go about it. Physical activity needs to be fun and engaging; kids need to be able to use their sense of exploration and learn about their environment and their limitations. Using fitness equipment holds interest for only a short time period — it is much more fun to ride their bike in the park than an exercise bike in a room. Building physical activity into the day should be the main activity strategy to address fitness and weight issues. Sitting watching television/films/playing on the computer is bad for our health. Kids love spending time with their parents in the park, going for walks and mucking about with a soccer ball.”
So finish up reading this post people and head on outside. Teach your kid what 6 and out means. And double check that your kids know where yoghurt comes from.
