By setting good examples early and establishing habits of healthful eating and physical fitness, parents can give children the gift of health to carry them through adulthood.

With more than 108 million adults, or 61 percent of the adult U.S. population, either obese or overweight, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, it’s no wonder children are headed toward unhealthy, sedentary lifestyles.

Obese children can have serious health problems that they carry into adulthood, according to the Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. The social and emotional fallout of being overweight also can cause low self-esteem, behavior and learning problems, and depression.

But for young kids, it shouldn’t be about diet and exercise: It should be about being healthy and having fun.

“The No. 1 role model is the parent. The kid does what the parent does,” said Stacy Beeson, a registered and licensed dietitian who is St. Luke’s Boise ( Idaho) Medical Center outpatient dietitian and corporate wellness specialist. “Parents need to control the home environment.”

“It’s sad to see meals and exercise squeezed out of our lives,” Beeson added. “Research behind the family meal has shown kids get more nutrient-dense foods.” Family meals also reduce the chance kids will take up drugs or alcohol, he said.

Beeson offers these tips for parents:

Chew on this

• Set a schedule for meals to discourage all-day grazing. Always have fresh fruits and vegetables readily available as a snack.
• Eat at the table, as a family. Use the time to share news and tell stories.
• Don’t eat in front of a television or computer. This leads to fast, mindless eating.
• If you’re trying to undo unhealthy habits, either your own or your child’s, start slow. Introduce a healthy, and possibly unfamiliar, food along with something familiar. And never focus on a child’s weight.

Get moving

• Experts agree on the biggest deterrent to physical activity: screen time. Limit the number of hours your child watches TV or plays on the computer. If you want an active child, set a positive example by being active yourself. Find fun activities the family can do together. Exercise should never be a punishment or chore.
• Can’t afford a gym or class? Emphasize activity, not exercise, especially among younger children. Free-play activities, such as playing hide-and-seek, tag or jump-rope, also burn calories and improve fitness.
• Celebrate a birthday, holiday or other special day with a physical activity — a trip to the zoo, arboretum or botanical garden — instead of a calorie-laden meal.
• Rally the families in your neighborhood for a game of touch football or tag at the local park. If it’s too cold outside, crank up the stereo and dance around the living room with your kids.

Post Source:
P.A.C.E. Trek – Paul Staso Promotes Active Kids!
Article Source:
Chicago Tribune / Brenda Guiterrez

Read Alouds at Creative Years

Reading aloud to children is so commonplace in the classroom that sometimes it can become an undervalued activity; however, when you stop to see the benefits you will wonder why the entire day isn’t devoted to such activity. When children are gathered together to listen to a story they know there are expectations: they need to listen, they need to wait their turn if the teacher asks questions and they need to respect their peer’s thoughts and ideas.

Children learn that reading can be a collaborative activity as well as an independent one. When read alouds are done properly, children gain much more than just the mere excitement of a new story. Children learn that an author writes the words and an illustrator draws the pictures. They come to understand that books convey meaning and words put together tell a story. Children learn that knowing how to read is important, but that getting there is half the fun.

A story can be told through pictures and knowing this allows children to gain confidence in the ability that, “yes, I can read too!”

While reading in the classroom is part of the everyday routine it is something that should also be continued at home. Studies show that when families place value on reading children also come to value this activity as opposed to those children who are only exposed to books at school. Reading in the home should begin during infancy. Using board books with young children is a great way to allow them to handle the books without worrying about ripped pages. As children get older consider incorporating the following into your reading routine:

• Introduce the author and illustrator. Getting in the habit of telling your child who wrote the book as well as drew the pictures provides the knowledge they need to specifically express the authors and illustrators they enjoy. I will never forget when my 16 month old grabbed a book from his shelf and said, “Look Mommy! Dr. Seuss!” At this moment he was so excited to be able to share his enthusiasm and I was so proud and amazed that he knew the author of the book!
• Take a picture walk. Before reading any words go through the pages and briefly examine the pictures. See if you can tell what the story might be about by simply looking at the illustrations. As your child gets older the picture walks can become more involved by looking for specific clues such as examining facial expressions or the placement of objects.
• Begin to read. Reading with younger children will require a quicker pace as their attention span is shorter. Gauge their interest and let that set the tone for how long you will spend on each page. As children get older more time can be spent examining the pictures and asking questions.
• Don’t confuse reading with comprehension! We sometimes assume that as we read the story our children understand the plot development. It is so important to ask your child questions throughout the book to gain a sense for how much they comprehend. Think ahead a few years to those wonderful standardized tests your child will take and you will immediately realize the importance and value for building strong comprehension skills now.
• Make mistakes! When reading, if you don’t make a mistake naturally, feel free to pronounce a word incorrectly or skip a word or two. Then simply say, “Oops, I made a mistake. Let me try again.” Children need to know that adults make mistakes too.
• Allow your child to choose books that are of interest to them. As parents we have our favorites and sometimes we try to impart those books onto our children. The problem with this is that if they are not interested they are not going to enjoy the experience. If your child wants to choose Margaret Brown’s, Goodnight Moon, for the millionth time, then so be it. Maybe you institute a rule where the reading adult chooses one book and the listening child chooses another. This allows for exposure to new books while still satisfying the craving for the old.
• Share reading responsibility among all the readers in the house. Read alouds should be done by everyone in the family. This is not a solely “mom” or “dad” activity. This is especially important for families who have boys. Studies show that boys who grow up having only been read to by the females in their lives are less likely to enjoy reading later on. It is important for children to experience reading by mom, dad and other readers (i.e. siblings, grandparents).
• Routine, routine, routine. When reading is part of your daily routine it naturally fits into your everyday life. Most often reading is done during the bedtime routine, but it can certainly be done at other times during the day. Reading can be a breakfast or dinner activity. The time of day does not matter as much as the making a time in the day.
• Parents should demonstrate their own interest in reading. It is important for children to see their parents or other family members reading for enjoyment. When we take time to read whether it be a novel or the daily newspaper children gain the perspective that everyone can enjoy reading.
• Have fun! Make reading time fun. It should never be viewed as a chore by either parent or child. Make this a special time valued by all.

For additional resources on reading with your child please visit the sites below.

Children’s Book Council

Learning to Read and Write: Developmentally Appropriate
Practices for Young Children (pdf download)

Reading is Fundamental

Parent Child Reading