According to early childhood education experts, positive challenges and experiences in early life build the foundations of lifelong behavior.  The quality of a child’s environment will have a profound impact on his or her learning skills and capacity later in life, and movement activity is an essential agent in this process.  In short, according to experts, “rich environments produce rich brains!” 

Furthermore, brain research in recent years has shown that there are  “windows of opportunity” during which children are the most receptive to learning such skills as motor control, vision, language, and feelings.  If a child misses out on these types of experiences and challenges during the “window of opportunity,” experts caution, he or she may not develop to full potential the circuitry associated with that function.  This doesn’t necessarily mean that a child will have impaired function, but certainly parents wish to optimize their children’s learning opportunities so that they are fully prepared for the challenges of life.

For example, the “window of opportunity” for gross motor development appears to be from prenatal age to approximately age five years.  It is vital during this time to provide children with physical challenges, not only to build the gross motor skills foundation, but also to develop the primary circuits that children will need later for learning skills that require finer manual dexterity, such as playing musical instruments.  Experts offer the following suggestions:

• Give kids lots of sensory-motor experiences, especially of the eye-hand or eye-foot coordination variety.  Such activities include striking, kicking, and catching.

·        Include a variety of activities that involve postural control, coordination of movements, and locomotion – crawling, creeping, body rolling, and jumping. These activities stimulate general wiring patterns and provide the brain with its chief energy source, glucose.  Blood flow is increased to the brain and enhances the connectivity of brain neurons during these critical “windows of opportunity.”

·         Combine movement activities and music. The combination of music with movement presents an excellent learning medium for young children.

·        Individuals responsible for the well being of infants and toddlers should be aware of the
importance of physical activity and facilitate the child’s movement skills.  Make sure your daycare facility provides these kinds of important challenges.

·        Preschoolers can be introduced to activities that elevate the heart rate such as dancing, biking, jump rope, swimming, and brisk walking. Experiences with outdoor play equipment stimulate movement exploration and creative play. Providing preschoolers with opportunities to draw, play musical instruments, and work with puzzles provides the stimulation that leads to finer motor development.

These types of concepts are not new, but unfortunately they have not yet had maximum impact on early childhood programming.  Informed parents can make sure their children have the optimal stimulation at an early age to ensure their learning success in later years.  Check out our soft vinyl play products at www.m-roc.com - perfect for learning and growing toddlers and preschoolers.

Home schooling, once an option exercised largely by upper middle class white Christian families, is becoming more popular among groups of all economic and ethnic backgrounds.  According to a December 2005 article in USA Today, about 1.1 million children were home schooled nationwide in 2003, or 2.2% of the school-age population. That was up from about 850,000, or 1.7%, in 1999, according to the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics. The article also notes that although a racial breakdown of home-schooled students isn't yet available, the Home School Legal Defense Association says the percentage of black home-schooling families has increased.  All types of families—city, country, suburban, traditional, blended, single parent—are realizing the benefits of home-schooling. 

The reasons more parents from all walks of life are choosing this option are diverse.  Some parents don’t feel that public schools adequately educate their children about ethnic history and culture.  Some wish to protect their children from the increasing amount of violence in public schools.  Others choose to teach and emphasize religious values equally with mainstream subjects like math and language arts.  And some parents object to the ways children are taught in the public education system—they believe in a philosophy of “unschooling.”  These parents believe that children are naturally curious and do not need to be forced into learning the usual menu of subjects.  John Holt, one of the early promoters of “unschooling,” wrote:  “Birds fly, fish swim, man thinks and learns. Therefore, we do not need to motivate children into learning by wheedling, bribing or bullying. We do not need to keep picking away at their minds to make sure they are learning.”  They allow children’s natural curiosity to set the pace and direction of their education.

Skeptics and critics of the movement often argue that home-schooled children don’t receive as well rounded an education as public-schooled children, and that the children are missing the important element of socialization by learning at home.  But according to a 1999 study listed in the Education Policy Analysis Archives, home-schooled children performed better than publicly educated children on standardized tests such as the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) or Tests of Achievement and Proficiency (TAP).  What about the social skills of kids who learn at home?

One shouldn’t overlook the fact that there are many ways for home-schoolers to meet other kids:  neighborhood groups and playmates, church, scout groups, 4-H, community sports programs, community theater, or community-offered classes like music, dance, gymnastics, or art.  In some communities, there are home-schooler support groups who provide opportunities for home-schooled kids to mingle with other home-schooled kids. 

For anyone considering home-schooling and wondering about the legal issues, it is legal to home school in all fifty states.  You can find actual wording of your state’s law under “Compulsory Education” or “School Attendance” in a courthouse or law library, or you can write to your State Department of Education for a copy of the current regulations.  In some states, you might be required to submit a plan to your local district.  You might be required to file with the State Department of Education, or you might be allowed to register your home as a private school.  You do not have to be a certified teacher in order to home school, and there are many resources available to help parents make the most of their children’s at-home educational experiences.  Check out our at-home learning resources at www.m-roc.com

The number of overweight kids is growing, and they're gaining weight at ages younger than ever! In fact, one in 10 children between the ages of 2 to 5 is now overweight, according to a report released by The American Heart Association. That's up from 7 percent a few years ago. And all that so-called "baby fat" puts tots at a serious health risk for developing formerly "adult" diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes, and liver damage before they even hit puberty!

Why is this happening? Experts blame a combination of factors: 

• Excessive amounts of "junk foods" being marketed to children.  Have you ever counted the number of commercials for unhealthy, sugary, or fattening foods shown between children's programs? No wonder your kids want them!

·         Eating on the run. With time at a premium, today's families often rely on convenience foods rather than meals cooked from scratch. But beware — fast food and frozen dinners and their higher calories and fats can lead to extra pounds!

• Busy but less active.  While there's no doubt that life today is busy, that doesn't necessarily translate into more physical activity, experts say. In fact, many children spend more time in the car every week than they do running around on the playground!
• More indoor sedentary time.  Thanks to television, video games, and computers, children spend more time sitting inside than ever before. While these activities are not harmful, they have replaced other, more active forms of play like tag or hide-and-seek. Also, these sedentary activities go hand-in-hand with another cause of childhood weight gain — unhealthy snacking!

Help your kids avoid excessive weight gain and stay healthy by establishing good habits early. By incorporating some or all of the following suggestions into your family’s daily routine, you can help kids (and yourself!) avoid future health problems.

• Teach kids the basics of good nutrition and to avoid foods that provide little more than empty calories.
• Turn off the television or video games, and encourage active play such as a game of hide-and-seek, tag, frisbee, or sports like basketball, football, volleyball, and soccer.
• Take the time to reconnect as a family with sit-down meals featuring healthy fare on a regular basis.
• Limit television-viewing time to two hours or less per day.
• When weather prohibits outdoor play, replace tube time with fun indoor activities and games that keeps kids busy, like puzzles, reading, board games, or dancing to music.
• Make it a point to get out and get active with your kids. Take them to the park or playground.
• Watch commercials along with your kids, and explain why some of the foods advertised aren't the best choice for a healthy body.
• If you do buy "junk foods," limit the amount your children eat — make sure the empty calories aren't ruining their appetites for more nutritious foods.
• If you're hosting a party, offer healthy alternatives like fresh fruit, trail mix, cereal bars, and crackers with peanut butter in place of the usual cupcakes or sweets.
• Watch portion sizes when dishing up your child's plate. Aim for variety over quantity, and go heavier on healthy choices like fruits and vegetables!
• Encourage kids to choose healthy beverages, like sparkling water or juice, instead of soda and sugar-laden “fruit flavored beverages.”
• Don't make children clean their plate. This teaches them to tune out their body's natural signal to stop eating when they're full.
• Set a good example by making socializing, not food, the focus of get-togethers.
• After a meal, encourage kids to go out and play or take a walk with you!
• Eat breakfast every day. Don't let your child learn the habit of skipping meals, which leads to overeating later in the day.
• Reduce the amount of fast food you eat as a family. When you do eat fast food, stick to the healthier options available.

• Don't promise dessert if a child eats their vegetables. Using one food as a reward for eating another sends the message that some foods are more valuable than others, causing kids to favor the "valuable" foods.

There is some bad news for any woman who is packing on extra weight — if you develop breast cancer you may have a harder time fighting it.  A new study, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, found that women who are 17 or more pounds overweight were more likely to experience cancer recurrence or fatality. The experts speculate that the higher estrogen levels generated by fatty tissue may be fueling estrogen-dependent breast cancers.

The study cites three factors that increase breast cancer recurrence risk in obese women:  lower physical activity, higher caloric intake, and higher fat intake, when compared with nonobese women. 

The good news is that all three factors are within your control!  For those who dislike exercise, there really are fun alternatives to huffing and puffing on a treadmill or stationary bike.  It may take some experimentation to find your exercise “style,” so be prepared to be patient with yourself.   But to ensure that exercise remains part of your routine, do take the time to consider your personality when choosing activities.  Do you enjoy the socialization and camaraderie of team sports like volleyball, or do you prefer to be on your own?  Do you like to be outdoors, in public among other active people, or do you prefer the privacy of your home?  Do you enjoy hand-eye coordination challenges or exciting competitive games (such as tennis or soccer), or are you attracted to more aesthetic pursuits (such as dance)?  If you would enjoy activities that allow for personal reflection, you might try yoga or simple walking.  It may take some time to find the physical activity that works best for you, but the point is not to give up trying to reach your health goals.  Aim for a BMI (body mass index) below 25 and don’t become discouraged by minor setbacks and frustrations.

Monitoring caloric and fat intakes presents a challenge for all of us existing in a convenience and fast food “world.”  Instead of cutting back on everything, the experts say to limit empty-calorie sources, replacing them with low-calorie bulky items such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.  Avoid refined carbohydrates (white flour and white sugar, namely) and limit your intake of fatty meats and dairy products.  You'll not only naturally cut your calorie intake without feeling deprived, but you'll replace empty foods with foods offering loads of nutrients.

The study reaffirms that maintaining a normal body weight is an important way to protect your health.  Don't take the risk--get on the healthy track!