In May, the Government called for help to halve childhood obesity over the next 10 years.  According to current estimates, 10 per cent of boys and nine per cent of girls start primary school obese and children gain weight at a drastic rate once at school. Pressure is mounting on parents and schools to address this trend and the Government has set pre-school children a physical exercise target of 180 minutes per day.

Parenting on Female First

Parenting on Female First

In response, Micro Scooters launches  Play for Life: an online resource for adults caring for pre-school children. Play for Life is based on the foundations of physical development and explains why for under-fives, exercise should be less about minutes and more about movement challenges. 

Play for Life has been developed with Brytespark, a team of experts in biomechanics, child development, fitness training, podiatry, physiotherapy and athletics. The team emphasised that children who develop confidence in their physical ability at a very young age, grow into more confident individuals with a lower BMI and a positive relationship with exercise.  Play for Life simplifies the science behind these formative years and provides guidance on how to support a child in building a positive relationship with movement that will last a lifetime.

Here FemaleFirst gets a sneaky peek of seven games that will get your toddlers moving with confidence this Summer. So grab your Mini Micro Scooter 3in1 or Micro Balance Bike and have fun!

GRAB THE TEDDY

Purpose of game:

Develop spatial awareness, balance, cognitive challenge, co-ordination, muscle strength

  • Adult holds a toy / ball / cushion across the other side of the room from the little one, waiting with their scooter, and encourages little one to scoot across to grab it
  • Provide lots of noise, praise and movement to keep the child’s attention on the objective, the child will be subconsciously honing their movement skills as they scoot to manoeuvre across the room

GET, SET, GO

Purpose of game: Develop balance and co-ordination

  • Adult lays out the helmet in front of the child next to the scooter
  • On the order of ‘Get’ the child picks up the helmet and puts it on
  • On the order of ‘Set’ the child gets onto their scooter
  • On the order of ‘Go!’ the child is to scoot across the room toward the waiting adult who congratulates them with a big hug!

FIND THE SQUIRREL

Purpose of game: spatial awareness, balance, change of direction, acceleration, fitness

  • Every park and garden is full of nature, the idea with this game is to spot a squirrel, or bird and follow it
  • The young child will be subconsciously honing important movement skills while focussing on the nature at play

FOLLOW THE TRAIN TRACK

Purpose of game: balance, cognitive challenge, muscle development, core strength

  • The child imagines they are driving a train through the town
  • The train track is long and straight
  • The adult ‘waits at the station’ standing about 20 steps along the path from the child
  • The child must scoot in a straight line to the station stop to collect the adult
  • The adult ‘gets on the train’ running along behind the child, encouraging all the way, for another 20 steps, towards another ‘stop’
  • When the child reaches the second ‘stop’ the train comes to a gentle stop and the adult ‘gets off’

SCOOTER DECK (OF CARDS)

Purpose of game: balance, control, cognitive challenge with shapes

  • Take a pack of cards
  • Each suit has a specific task:

o   Hearts - scoot in a circle

o   Diamonds - scoot with the left foot

o   Spades - scoot with right foot

o   Clubs – push off and balance with both feet on the scooter board and bended knees

  • When you choose a card the number dictates the amount of times they have to do the task eg: 7 of hearts = Scoot in a circle 7 times

MAKE THE SNAKE

Purpose of game: balance, cognitive challenge, confidence in decision making

  • The child starts at a stretch of narrow path, is possible with grass either side
  • The child is a snake slithering from side to side across the path from left and then to right in long, smooth motions
  • The child has to be careful to ride slowly and carefully, just like a snake and should make a loud hissing noise as they slide around the path!

SHAPE SPACE – for older children aged 36m+

Purpose of game: balance, acceleration/deceleration control, cognitive challenge with changes in shapes, team work

  • The children scoot in a circle to start
  • They scoot around a set number of times and then break out and scoot wherever they like
  • The leader calls out a shape and they have to all come back together and scoot to form that shape
  • Someone else is then the leader and it starts again

To find out more visit Micro Scooters online or find us on Instagram, Facebook or search #microplayforlife!

Tagged in