Do you want to help your children boost their brain-power? Get them moving!
By encouraging your children to run, jump, hop, hike, and chase a ball, you are greatly improving their ability to think, to focus, and to successfully multi-task. As parents, you’ve heard that exercise is important for good physical health and now a study published by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign confirms that physical activity greatly helps to improve thinking skills and academic performance in our children.
This is hardly new though. It’s already been proven that children’s test scores in reading and math rise if there is some physical activity beforehand. Other studies have determined that aerobic activity, which children come by naturally if left to their own devices, actually affects brain structure, increasing the size of the part of the brain devoted to learning and thinking. The ability to maintain concentration, to order mental and situational stimuli, and to control inappropriate responses is greatly enhanced. Conversely, children whose executive functions are inhibited tend to have academic problems in school.
So not only does wild, childish play improve mental function, it also improves aerobic endurance, basic motor skills, and overall well-being. Parents also have known all along that playtime, whether it’s in the form of organized team play, free recess at school or after-school romping, helps children let off steam, making for happier children, teachers, and parents too. Let me emphasize free play here. To allow children to self-direct their activities and to make their own choices also helps to build self-confidence, it also gives them room to breathe after a school day full of rules and restrictions, and furthermore, it gives them space to develop their creative thinking abilities. Of course, that means you need to make sure that they’re up and moving, and not sitting behind a screen (TV, laptop, tablet, etc). Get those children moving!
As an additional note, school districts nationwide are moving towards shortening physical education classes and in some cases, even considering eliminating them altogether. Many schools have already eliminated recess for younger children, opting to put more focus on required testing subjects like reading and math. This practice is shortsighted. If we want our young students to do well in reading, math, and school in general, we need to make sure they have physical activity built into their schedule. If your school is facing these changes due to budgetary or other reasons, let them know that you feel that physical education and recess are an important part of the school day. Your children and their teachers will thank you!
By encouraging your children to run, jump, hop, hike, and chase a ball, you are greatly improving their ability to think, to focus, and to successfully multi-task. As parents, you’ve heard that exercise is important for good physical health and now a study published by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign confirms that physical activity greatly helps to improve thinking skills and academic performance in our children.
This is hardly new though. It’s already been proven that children’s test scores in reading and math rise if there is some physical activity beforehand. Other studies have determined that aerobic activity, which children come by naturally if left to their own devices, actually affects brain structure, increasing the size of the part of the brain devoted to learning and thinking. The ability to maintain concentration, to order mental and situational stimuli, and to control inappropriate responses is greatly enhanced. Conversely, children whose executive functions are inhibited tend to have academic problems in school.So not only does wild, childish play improve mental function, it also improves aerobic endurance, basic motor skills, and overall well-being. Parents also have known all along that playtime, whether it’s in the form of organized team play, free recess at school or after-school romping, helps children let off steam, making for happier children, teachers, and parents too. Let me emphasize free play here. To allow children to self-direct their activities and to make their own choices also helps to build self-confidence, it also gives them room to breathe after a school day full of rules and restrictions, and furthermore, it gives them space to develop their creative thinking abilities. Of course, that means you need to make sure that they’re up and moving, and not sitting behind a screen (TV, laptop, tablet, etc). Get those children moving!As an additional note, school districts nationwide are moving towards shortening physical education classes and in some cases, even considering eliminating them altogether. Many schools have already eliminated recess for younger children, opting to put more focus on required testing subjects like reading and math. This practice is shortsighted. If we want our young students to do well in reading, math, and school in general, we need to make sure they have physical activity built into their schedule. If your school is facing these changes due to budgetary or other reasons, let them know that you feel that physical education and recess are an important part of the school day. Your children and their teachers will thank you! 
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