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When I picture a room of preschoolers, "sedentary" is not my adjective of choice. "Insane," maybe, or "spring-loaded," but not "sedentary."
However, according to a study from Wiley Interscience, that's exactly what 3-5 years olds in preschools actually are.
In fact, the researchers found that 89 percent of so-called physical activity by 3- to 5-year-olds was found to be sedentary at community-based preschool programs, as were more than half of their outdoor activities.
Troubling, isn't it? But not surprising to me. We parents keep pushing for our preschoolers to read the Iliad by the time they're five. You have to sit down and pay attention to learn that. And when you sit down and learn all that educational stuff, you're not running around as much. I think this is a big wake-up call for moderation in all things, including insistence on phonics at age three. Remember, the kids in this study were at preschools, not at home.
How much exercise should the kids be getting? Again, according to Wiley Interscience:
Contemporary professional standards for young children's physical activity have been propagated by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (1998), which recommends at least 60 min of outdoor activity per day, and the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (2002), which advises 120 min per day of physical activity (i.e., 60 min structured and 60 min unstructured) for young children.
If your preschooler has couch-potato tendencies, it's time to nip that attitude in the bud. Sedentary at four years old is no way to live. Four-year-olds, generally speaking, still like to hang out with their parents, so the best way to get your kid to move is to shut that laptop and get outside. Chances are, you'll probably be followed by the pitter-pat of little feet.
Creators Delight had another good suggestion:
Use physical activity to counter something your child doesn’t want to do. For instance, make it the routine that your child can ride a bike for 30 minutes before starting homework after school. Your child will beg for 20 more minutes outside just to put off the homework!
What about organized sports? Those little size-9 soccer cleats are awfully cute! I myself have held off on enlisting my five-year-old in organized sports because I don't want to have to watch games. (Hello, my name is Rita, and I'm fiercely protective of my weekends.) According to Mostly Mommy, I probably haven't missed much:
Essentially, what I have learned is that preschoolers can't play sports, but they can run around and have fun in an approximation of dancing or hockey. Officially, I am taking Emma to these classes so she can get used to a class format and to expose her to lots of different healthy activities. Of course, the real reason is that it gives me an hour where I don't have to come up with activities like her own personal cruise director, and the vain hope that afterwards, she will be tired enough for a nap.
I think the real point here is that we as parents are responsible for keeping our kids active. We can't rely on schools -- preschool or otherwise -- to do that work for us.
