Tips and Resources
Stay Connected!
Social connection (from a distance) is extremely important. Check in with your workmates, friends and neighbours and ask “are you OK?” Lend an ear and provide support to those who need it as we navigate these challenging times.
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The following great ideas are written by, and published with permission from: Tina Bogg, Exercise Physiologist, the Children’s Hospital Institute of Sports Medicine (CHISM)*, Westmead NSW.
Staying active at home
The WHO recommendation for physical activity for children is that they should be active for at least 60 minutes of moderate-vigorous intensity per day! This will look different for different age groups and depending on the individual child’s preferences. Here are some ideas to keep your kids active whilst they are required to stay at home.
Young children (2 to 5 years)
Staying active for young children is really important, especially when the usual outings and activities have been cancelled. Outdoor play time can give them a safe space to burn energy, explore the natural environment, get some Vitamin D and develop their gross and fine motor skills. In this age group, imaginative play is great and allowing them to dictate play can be helpful but you can also aim to introduce new games or ideas to get them to try something different. Look around and see what you have and be creative! Indoor play can also be active:
- Set up little circuits to walk/jump/run/hide around
- Bowling with different items to make towers or different arrangements
- Treasure and scavenger hunts, hide and seek
- Sandpits, water play – messy play
- Cardboard box cubby houses or for climbing
- Scooters/bikes in the driveway or along the pathway
- Online kids exercises (e.g. Cosmic Yoga), dancing
- Play equipment – either formal or self-made – swings, slides, climbing, trampoline, laundry baskets, boxes, balls, pegs, make your own balance beam)
Primary age children (5 to 11 years)
This is a crucial time for skills development for children as they learn the basic skills for playing sport and being active. Although they often learn this through sport and in a social environment, they can definitely practice these skills at home, in the backyard and with their siblings or parents. It is important to give them some structure in their day, e.g. allocated periods of time simulating their school routine (morning tea, lunch, after school) to be outside to play and, if needed, give them some activities to do and do it with them!
- Scavenger hunts in the backyard or in the house
- Practice sports skills in the backyard – shooting hoops, bowling, batting, set up dribbling drills with cones, obstacle courses, kicking the ball, shooting goals (into baskets/boxes if nothing available), throwing/catching with different sized balls
- Handball variations – against the wall, or competing against siblings
- Running, jumping, hopping, rolling, dancing, gymnastics
- Circuits (star jumps, skipping, hopping, bouncing a ball, throw and catch) - could time each activity or be given a set number of repetitions, and be encouraged to compete against others or themselves
- Martial arts
- Ride scooters, bikes up the road / at the park
Teenagers (12 to 16 years)
Social interactions are very important to this age group and doing sport or exercise together is often a way of connecting with others, teenagers and adults alike. At this age, sport may also have become much more competitive and play a significant role in an individuals’ identity and self-confidence. Encouraging teenagers to stay active during this time of isolation is crucial for their mental health, physical fitness and general well-being. It may also be beneficial to encourage them to engage their peers, e.g. exercise together over video calls, meeting to go for a walk together (but practicing social distancing) or sharing workouts they have done. They may also be interested in guided apps that they can follow with visual demonstrations, learn new exercises and track their exercise.
If they aren’t usually very active, this may be a great time to try something new without being worried about what others think and establish a routine that can be helpful for life. Self-discipline is a skill that needs to be developed for this age group, however encouraging them to set aside a particular time in the day, or a particular day of the week to do exercise can be helpful. For those who have had injuries recently, this is also the perfect time to do their rehabilitation whilst structured sport is not happening.
Practice sport-specific skills in the backyard; shooting hoops or kicking goals, bowling, batting, set up dribbling drills with cones, keepie-uppies (juggling) , kicking the ball, hitting the tennis ball against the wall with a racquet, interval training in the backyard.
- Backyard sports: badminton, cricket, soccer
- Go for a walk/jog/run/bike ride on their own or with a friend (practicing social distancing)
- Stretching
- Skipping
- Dancing, gymnastics,
- Boxing, martial arts
- Youtube yoga, Pilates workouts
Home workouts with own body weight or light dumbbells (squats, lunges, squat jumps, pushups), core exercises including plank, side plank, bicycles, pendulum swings, mountain climbers, bridge exercises. This could also be dictated by training apps on the phone (Nike Fit, Skimble) to help with compliance and ideas, but should be performed with precaution if the exercise is unfamiliar.
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| *CHISM http://www.schn.health.nsw.gov.au/find-a-service/health-medical-services/sports-and-exercise-medicine/chw |
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