PE and Technology- Tips for keeping your kids fit

By Steve Novikas

I have been an elementary physical education teacher for three and a half years.  Making sure our nation’s youth is active and physically fit is a passion of mine.  Now more than ever, our nation is facing an epidemic that is steering our youth down the wrong path.  I like to call this epidemic, laziness!  This blog is going look at some of the causes of this epidemic and offer simple solutions to keep your child healthy, active, and physically fit.

The Technology Era:

Don’t get me wrong, I love technology.  Everyday something new is created or evolved that is mind-blowing.  Technology has made our lives easier and has made our world smaller by a few key strokes and clicks.  Technology has also made our lives very convenient.  What used to take a few hours can be managed in seconds through the Internet.  With the evolution of video games and television, children are able to receive the mind stimulation I used to receive by riding my bike or playing a game of roller hockey. 

Now, I am not saying for you to throw out your child’s DS or Xbox and forbid them to not watch television.  I want to offer a few suggestions to keep your child active while they still enjoy the many benefits of technology. 

Suggestion # 1: Learn to take a break.

I do not consider myself much of a video gamer, but I have gone through phases in my life where I would get hooked on a game and then next thing I knew, four hours had passed and I had not even looked up from the screen.  Talk to your child about taking an active break.  An active break does not have to be an hour long process.  Suggest they do 25 jumping-jacks after every level they beat.  Have your son or daughter run in place for one minute during every commercial break.  Better yet, have your child do some form of physical activity (push-ups, sit-ups, mountain climbers, etc.) until the commercial break is over.  Make it a competition; see if they can do more push-ups during the second commercial break than they did during the first.  You may be surprised to not see that zombie look on your child’s face after they have gone on a technology binge!

Suggestion # 2: Offer limits.

It is OK to offer limits on how much technology your child uses and when they use it.  If your son or daughter is the type of person to come home right after school and be locked into a video game the rest of the night, you might want to start offering some limits.  Set a time limit for how long your child can use technology or set aside a special time in the evening when they can use it.  You may even start noticing that your child is choosing active forms of stimulation rather than technology.

Like I said earlier, technology has become a great asset in our society.  When used properly it can become a great learning tool and form of entertainment.  When abused, it can make our minds stale, and contribute to the epidemic I like to call, LAZINESS!

Bad Behavior - Setting an Example for Our Kids

Now that the holidays are behind us, it seems like a wonderful time to reflect on the behaviors of the holiday season. Well, not the season itself, but the people who participated!

We had the joy of attending the holiday performance at Pine Ridge Elementary School in which our kindergartener as well as our second grader participated. As any good mother would say, it was incredibly cute and I see some natural talent shining from both of our children! (That part is a little far-fetched.) Cassidy enjoyed the singing part but was, obviously, painfully so, bored during other parts of the performance. Oh well, it’s her first play of many to come and I think she worked through it. Blake on the other hand, seemed to enjoy himself. I saw him rocking out in the back row with his best friend and he happily sang every song. There were some incredibly cute kids and the music teacher put so much effort into the program. It was much appreciated.  But let's talk about what was NOT appreciated. At all by many parents in the audience........

Now let’s talk about the absolutely outrageous behavior of the parents who attended! It was one of the ugliest displays of self-centered behavior I have EVER seen. What kind of an example do you think you are setting? Here are a few bullet Big Bad Behavior Call Outs to some of the actions we saw from adults.

·        The woman right in front of us who kept standing up to wave at her child, every 10 seconds!

·        The people who crowded to the front of the room and blocked the view for the seated people for 20 minutes while taking pictures of their child.

·        The people who actually got to the event 45 minutes early to reserve entire rows of seats for their attendees. Yup, they even told an elderly couple of grandparents they would have to stand during the 1.5 hour performance because they had friends coming.

Seriously, the extremely poor behavior exhibited by 50% of the attendees was atrocious. So it makes me ask, how are they teaching their kids to act? Are they raising their children in the same self-centered vein that they just performed in? They sent a clear message to other parents, grandparents and family members that THEIR child was the one who mattered, not anybody else’s.

Perhaps their actions were not intentional. I find that less than comforting. That tells me that they go through life without even being conscious of how their actions affect anybody else.  Great. Is this really what the next generation needs to see? Is this really what we need to confer to the future leaders of our country, our communities and our municipalities?

If your answer is no, then think about this. How conscious are you about how you are living? Not just at the end of the day, but during the day? Were you one of those parents who blocked everybody else so you could celebrate your child’s moment on stage? What were you thinking?

Here is a Zen test for all of us, the next time you are in a group of people, notice the people around you. Is there somebody who might need that seat more than you? Is there somebody who could obviously use a hand? Did you bother to say “Excuse me” when you grabbed the last sale item?  It’s called having manners. Please take the time to teach your child some of the basics and be sure that you review them yourself. It just might make the difference between your child knowing how to behave and actually behaving!

Peace,

Teri