How to Stay Active and Healthy in the Summer Time

Summertime is the best time to start becoming more physically active. With all the extra time your child has its important to make sure they have fun during summer vacation but also that they stay happy, active and healthy.

Here are some ways to stay active and healthy in the summer:

Keep them Hydrated:

It’s obvious that staying hydrated during summer time is important, but it is not always easy to get them to drink as much water as they should. Here are some tips that can help you:

• Fruit Infused Water: By letting delicious fruits soak in water it makes a plain drink more delicious! You can also purchase cool looking fruit infused water bottles made just for kids!
•  Schedule more drink breaks: Get your child in the habit of taking water breaks throughout the day and it will soon become routine. This is especially important if your child is participating in a lot of physical activities throughout the day.
•  Popsicles: Try to get some with low sugar so your kids can stay hydrated with less sugar. You can also make popsicles fun by looking up recipes to make them with your kids!

Engage with nature:

Marla and her Falconry bird Mack from The New England Reptile and Raptor Show

The Children’s Museum in Easton recently had Bigfoot summer drop in day, which focused on nature and ways to have fun in your backyard. The New England Reptile and Raptor show had an interactive performance where children learned about the cool creatures that live right in their backyard. They even got the chance to meet the animals up close!

 The performance also taught visitors about bones and how they differ for each animal. Their new found knowledge about  nature helped children create amazing Bigfoot dioramas that Bigfoot himself would love to call home! Visitors also made a Bigfoot expedition kit which would help them catch Bigfoot and many other creatures that may be nearby. The Bigfoot obstacle course was also a huge hit because it allowed children to literally “walk in Bigfoot’s shoes”!

 

All these activities promoted learning about nature and inspired creativity. The Bigfoot drop in day allowed Children to learn and be active in ways that they enjoyed. Children were able be active while exploring their surroundings and learning.  Many children left the museum happy and eager to continue their search for Bigfoot.

Attending Bigfoot day isn't the only way to have your children engage with nature. Make every day an adventure and start exploring wherever you can, which leads me into our next tip for staying healthy and active in the summer.

Make sure your child gets daily exercise:

It may seem like something obvious, but the summertime is when children become less physically active. On hot days it can be tempting to stay inside and sit around all day, but there are many ways to make sure your child gets daily exercise in the summer. Here’s what you can do:

•  Take walks to the local store to buy Popsicles and cool down.
• Go for a swim to stay active and cool down.
• Go on at least three bike rides a week.
• On rainy days instead of staying in and watching movies turn on some music and get your groove on!
• Visit your local park and play games such as, Frisbee, basketball, or soccer.

Hopefully all these tips help you and your children have a healthy and happy summer and remember you can always stop by the Children’s Museum in Easton to have a healthy and happy summer!

*Written by Love Boussiquot, PR Intern

Best Gas Mileage in Town........for a Bus!

Does your school age child whine that she doesn't want to take the bus to school while your preschooler begs to go on the bus? Here's a bus that everyone can ride. The best part is it gets excellent gas mileage and burns some energy too.

Start with a regular cardboard box. We used the size that paper comes in. Cut off the flaps, if any, and cut a 12" X 16" rectangle in the bottom of the box, which will become the top of the bus. If, desired, paint the box yellow and let it dry overnight.

Develop cutting skills and shape awareness by having your child cut basic shapes using shiny paper for rectangular windows, black construction paper for round wheels, and red construction paper circles for lights. Point out these details the next time you see a real bus to connect the project to life experience. Smiley face or character stickers can be stuck on the windows to make it look like your bus is full of passengers.

Your child can decorate a paper plate for the steering wheel while you use a utility knife to cut two 1" slits in the top of the cardboard (see picture) and fold that piece upward. Now use a brass paper fastener to attach the steering wheel.

As your child runs around he can hold the bus up himself, or you can make suspender straps to hold it up with string, yarn, or a belt. Just punch holes and run the string through like the one in the picture. It helps to cross the straps in the back like overalls.

Now have some fun with your bus: play Red Light Green Light, draw some sidewalk chalk roads and have someone be a police officer directing traffic, or even try what my daughter did---put on roller skates so the bus can go really fast! Try to encourage creativity. One friend rode the bus down our slide, pretending to be driving over really big hills. My other daughter started a tour bus company, offering in the family tour of our backyard. You could even set up an obstacle course or a bus driver training course.

Before you know it the real school bus will be back with big brother, sister, or friend, who will want to make a bus of his or her own.