This document provides information on children's health and physical activity. It discusses the importance of physical activity for child development and health. It outlines the stages of motor development in children from infancy to later childhood. Examples of physical activities for different age groups are provided, as well as healthy eating practices families can implement. The impact families and communities can have through role modeling physical activity and providing opportunities is explored. Local resources for families to support healthy lifestyles are listed. Outside sources that demonstrate the relationship between physical activity and children's health, such as the CDC, are referenced.

1. Children’s Health
Awareness
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2. Table of content
• Stages of motor development for young children.
• Importance of physical activity for the developing child and provide
examples.
• Impact that families and the community can have on children’s health and
physical activity.
• Examples of physical activities
• Examples of healthy eating practices that families can implement at home.
• Local resources for families to make healthy lifestyle choices within their own
community
• Outside sources that support the relationship between regular physical
activity and children’s health.
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3. Stages of motor development for young children
• Three stages of motor development in children.
• The first stage is marked by extremely rapid growth and development, as is
the second stage. By the age of 2 years old, this development has begun to
level out somewhat.
• The final stage does not have any marked new developments, rather it is
characterized by the mastering and development of the skills achieved in
the first two stages
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Infant hood
(0-2 YEARS)
Early Childhood
(2-6 YEARS)
Later Childhood
(6-12 YEARS and
later)
http://ehlt.flinders.edu.au/education/DLiT/2000/Motor%20Dev/stages.htm

4. Stages of motor development for young children
Age Motor Developmental Milestones
1–1.5 months When held upright, holds head erect and steady
1.6–2 months When prone, lifts self by arms; rolls from side to back.
2.1–
4.5 months
Rolls from tummy to side.Rests on elbows, lifts head 90 degrees Sits propped up with hands, head steady for
short time
3 months Prone: head held up for prolonged periods. No grasp reflex
5 months Holds head steady. Goes for objects and gets them. Objects taken to mouth
6 months
Transfers objects from one hand to the other. Pulls self up to sit and sits erect with supports. Rolls over prone to
supine. Palmar grasp of cube hand to hand eye coordination
9–10 months Wiggles and crawls. Sits unsupported. Picks up objects with pincer grasp
1 year Stands holding furniture. Stands alone for a second or two, then collapses with a bump
18 months
Can walk alone. Picks up toy without falling over. Gets up/down stairs holding onto rail. Begins to jump with
both feet. Can build a tower of 3 or 4 cubes and throw a ball
2 years Able to run. Walks up and down stairs 2 feet per step. Builds tower of 6 cubes
3 years
Goes up stairs 1-foot per step and downstairs 2 feet per step. Copies circle, imitates hand motions and draws
man on request. Builds tower of 9 cubes
4 years Goes down stairs one foot per step, skips on one foot. Imitates gate with cubes, copies a cross
5 years
Skips on both feet and hops. Draws a man and copies an hexagonal based pyramid using graphing paper. Gives
age
6 years Copies a diamond. Knows right from left and number of fingers
4https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_development_stages

5. Importance of physical activity for the developing child
• Physical activity is important to many aspects of child health
and development.
• In young children, lack of physical activity is a risk factor for
many health problems such as :
– high blood pressure,
– weight gain,
– excess body fat,
– bad cholesterol,
– respiratory difficulties,
– cardiovascular diseases and
– bone health problems.
• Moreover, the health benefits of physical activity extend well
beyond physical health, e.g.
– having a positive impact on the domains of motor skills,
– psychological well-being,
– cognitive development,
– social competence and
– emotional maturity
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6. Statistics
• According to the Canadian National
Longitudinal Survey of Children and
Youth (NLSCY), only 36% of 2 to 3-
year-olds and 44% of 4 to 5-year-olds
engage in unorganized sport and
physical activity each week.
• Alarming trends in childhood obesity
among preschool children have
refocused attention on the
importance of physical activity in this
age group. In Canada, national data
show that 15% of 2 to 5-year-olds are
overweight and 6.3% are obese.
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36%
44%
0%
20%
40%
60%
2-3 yr. old 4-5 yr. old
Children engaged in physical
activity/week
http://www.excellence-earlychildhood.ca/documents/parenting_2011-04.pdf

7. Impact that families and the community can have on
children’s health and physical activity
• The creation of strong links to opportunities for
physical activity both at home and in communities is
fundamental to developing active lifestyles for
families and children.
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8. Impact that families and the community can have on
children’s health and physical activity
• They control the exposure to physical activity
opportunities; they act as role models; and
parents can use specific parenting practices, such
as rules on television viewing.
• Young children need parents’ and other adults’
support in accessing environments in which to be
physically active.
• Parents should model healthy physical activity
behaviors by being active themselves, and by
interacting with their children in physical activities
such as bike riding, walking and active play.
• Preschools, kindergartens and childcare centres
should be encouraged to provide children with
ample time outdoors on a daily basis, and to
provide children with opportunities to be active
indoors if the weather prevents them from going
outside.
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9. Impact that families and the community can have on
children’s health and physical activity
• Supporting active play Families,
childcare centres, schools and
communities need to provide safe,
supervised yet unstructured play
spaces for active play, where
children and their peers can
engage in physical activity.
• This will increase :
– physical activity levels and
– promote imagination, social
interaction and
– the ability to learn and practise
skills independently.
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10. Examples of physical activities
1. Endurance
• Scootering, in-line skating, skateboarding
• Swimming, skating, dancing, tennis, martial arts
• Hiking, jogging, skipping, playing tag, cycling, dodge ball
• Hockey, football, soccer, basketball
• Skiing, lacrosse, wall climbing
2. Flexibility
• Active play on a playground
• Digging in the garden or at the beach, raking leaves
• Gymnastics, dancing, wall climbing
• Yoga, skipping, stretching routines
3. Strength
• Lifting and carrying things like groceries, garbage and garden
waste
• Raking leaves, climbing stairs
• Gymnastics, doing sit-ups and push-ups
• Playground activities: monkey bars, climbing ladders, scaling
poles
• Calisthenics using their own body weight as resistance or
supervised weight training exercises using tubing, bands and
hand weights.
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11. Healthy eating practices that families can implement at
home
• By teaching your children healthy eating habits, and modeling these
behaviors in yourself, you can help your children maintain a healthy
weight and normal growth.
• Include serving of :
– Lowfat or nonfat dairy products
– Poultry without skin
– Lean cuts of meats
– Whole grain breads and cereals
– Healthy snacks such as fruit and veggies
• Reduce the amount of sugar sweetened drinks and salt
• Leave the unhealthy choices like chips, soda, and juice at the grocery
store. Serve water with meals.
• Encourage your children to eat slowly.
• Involve your children in food shopping and preparing meals
• Make as nutritious snacks as possible, without depriving your children
of occasional chips or cookies.
• Discourage eating meals or snacks while watching TV to avoid
overeating.
• Encourage your children to drink more water.
• Try not to use food to punish or reward your children.
• Make sure your children's meals outside the home are balanced.
• Also, select healthier items when dining at restaurants.
• Pay attention to portion size and ingredients
11http://www.webmd.com/children/guide/kids-healthy-eating-habits?print=true

12. Local resources for families to make healthy lifestyle
choices within community
• Healthy Lifestyle Community Resources
• Each community provides a variety of local resources to support living a healthy lifestyle. The
organizations and programs listed offer a variety of walking/running programs, groups and classes, local
5k walk/runs, physical activity classes, gardening classes and resources, farmers markets in your area,
and a variety of resources to assist you in living a healthy lifestyle.
– YMCA
– Athletic Footwear and Apparel Stores
– Community Education Program
– Parks and Recreation Department
– Local Schools
– Farmers Market
– Gardening
– Michigan State University Extension
– Health Care Organizations/Hospitals
– Local Health Departments
(Source : http://www.michigan.gov/healthymichigan/0,4675,7-216-33088-273066--,00.html)
• Other resources :
– https://www.healthiergeneration.org/live_healthier/be_a_role_model/look_for_local_resources/
– http://www.lakeviewclinic.com/graphics/community%20resource%20list.pdf
– http://www.sjhsteps.com/parents/resources.html
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13. Source supporting relationship between regular physical
activity and children’s health
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends
that - Children and Adolescents need three types of activity
each week:
– Aerobic
– Muscle-strengthening
– Bone-strengthening
(http://www.cdc.gov/healthyplaces/healthtopics/physactivit
y.htm)
• Centre of Excellence for Early Childhood Development
(CEECD) and the Strategic Knowledge Cluster on Early Child
Development (SKC-ECD) - identify and summarize the best
scientific work on early childhood development
(http://www.excellence-
earlychildhood.ca/documents/parenting_2011-04.pdf)
• World Health Organization - Recommended levels of
physical activity for children aged 5 - 17 years
(http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/factsheet_young_p
eople/en/)
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14. Government Strategies & Investments
• Strategies, policies, and investments made by the U.S federal government toward increasing physical activity levels
and developing guidelines recommending healthful amounts of physical activity among American children and
youth.
• 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
– provide scientific evidence for the amounts and types of physical activities recommended for children and adults in order
to improve their health.
• Community Transformation Grant Program
– supports programs that focus on community health and wellness, Including those that promote active living and healthy
eating
• Federal Safe Routes to School Program
– aims to empower states and communities to establish programs and projects that make actively commuting to school safe
and routine for children and youth.
• Let’s Move!
– Its mission is to solve the problem of childhood obesity in the U.S. in a single generation.
• NHANES National Youth Fitness Survey
– The NNYFS combines interviews and a battery of fitness tests designed to directly collect data on the fitness, physical
activity levels, and nutritional behaviors of U.S. children and youth between the ages of 3-15 years old.
• President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, & Nutrition (PCFSN)
– With the vision, “All Americans lead healthy, active lives, it strives to educate and motivate all Americans to live healthy
lifestyles, including habitual physical activity and good nutrition.
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15. References
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16. Thank you ! 16