Recess For All

With many gyms closed right now, I like to think of fun ways to get my daily steps in while sticking close to home. Parents with school aged children have kids doing distance learning, but let’s make sure we’re taking care of all aspects of education including the most fun part of the day… Recess. Let’s admit it, adults deserve some fun, too!

Simon Says, “Get Active!”

The National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) recommends elementary school children have at least 20 minutes of recess daily. Research shows that when children have recess, they gain the following benefits:

• Are less fidgety and more on task
• Have improved memory and more focused attention
• Develop more brain connections
• Learn negotiation skills
• Exercise leadership, teach games, take turns, and learn to resolve conflicts
• Are more physically active as a part of their daily routine

The same benefits apply to adults as well!

This week’s challenge: Find time to play

Take a moment each day to think of when you can fit in activity here and there. Even 10 mins a few times a day will start adding up. EVŌ is still your guide. Be sure to have your fitness tracker or phone on you as you play along. Here are a few activities that we’ve done in my home to help keep us all active with the added benefit of doing it together:

1. We do a morning bike ride or walk to set the tone for the day and enjoy the cooler morning air.
2. Tag (a classic game we love) including some hysterical Freeze Tag moments.
3. The oldies but goodies: Duck/Duck/Goose, Simon Says, Red Light/Green Light, Hide & Seek
4. After dinner walks including using a Star Gazing app on our phone.
5. Game-ify Exercise for Kids: Handheld gaming devices, console systems, and mobile phones have games that keep kids active. Check out Pokémon Go, Ring Fit Adventure, Just Dance 2020, and Sports Party.
6. Take a Color Walk: We have pieces of paper with paint colors on them and each kid has to find one thing of every color on our walks.
7. Outdoor Scavenger Hunt: Print this fun sheet to take with you on your walks and see what treasure your kids can find:  OutdoorScavengerHunt
8. We’ve washed the cars and ended with some water balloon fun.
9. Dance Party! Put on some music and just freestyle dance or learn the latest TikTok dance moves from the older kids. Show your kids that you can still do The Running Man and don’t apologize for still looking fly while doing it!
10. Free Classes for the Win. There are studios offering free online yoga and fitness classes. I found a Taekwondo studio in my area that is offering live video classes for free on Fridays. This is a great introduction of a new sport for the kids and might be something we continue in the future when the studios open back up.

Above all, take a deep breath. Remember that your work will get done, the kids will learn what they can from home, and the moments we take now to connect and be active will be stories we tell for years to come.

Be Well and EVŌ On! #EVO

-Carrie Baum
Sr. Director of Product Development