4 (Easy) Tips for Incorporating Health and Fitness Into Any Busy Homeschool Program
Nowadays, many military families are opting to homeschool. With what can seem like constant changes between new duty stations to moves back home during deployments, the option to homeschool is often easier for some families when compared to enrolling your little ones in a new school system every three to four years.
However, while teaching the core subjects, such as Math and English, is pretty straightforward no matter where you are, incorporating other important topics like health and fitness can be more difficult if you’re new to the area or simply unfamiliar with what’s available.
Luckily, there are some easy ways to include health and fitness in your busy homeschooling days without having to know every playground in your area.
Here are four ways you can teach your kids about homeschool health and fitness with things you already have or no supplies at all, and the best part is, in some cases, they won’t even know they’re learning.
Let your kids help with meal prep
While many parents rarely think of the learning opportunities that meal prep offers, allowing your children to help prepare and cook a meal is a great way to not only teach them about the importance of eating a balanced diet but can also be an excellent time to talk about the nutritional benefits of certain foods.
Studies have found that children who help with preparing their meals consume increased amounts of fruits and vegetables, which in turn helps to reduce their risk for childhood obesity, diabetes, and depression.
Plus, these benefits extend beyond the experience of actually cooking food, as other studies found that children also benefit from the supplemental activities around mealtimes, such as setting the table. 
So, even if your children are not old enough to cook part of the meal, you can get them involved by having them chop or peel vegetables or, as mentioned above, setting the table and helping with dishes afterward.
In addition to learning important life skills like preparing food, you will also encourage self-efficacy in your child, which is a great way to help boost their confidence in other activities as well.
Add a unit on nutrition to the homeschool agenda
Another great way to teach about nutrition is through a unit study. Often, unit studies include worksheets, videos, and other instructional methods, which are all great learning tools for kids. However, children often learn best through play.
Some fun ideas to teach your kids about healthy food choices include making a recipe collage or creating a cookbook where your kids can help find healthy recipes to include in the book.
There are also interactive nutrition-related games that your kids can play to explore more concepts. Lastly, food demonstrations and classes are another great way to learn about nutrition. Teaching about the various macronutrients (fat/protein/carbohydrates) that make up a healthy meal is often best demonstrated through a visual demonstration on how to pick and cook the various ingredients.
What’s more, children will love getting their hands in on the fun during a cooking class And, if you are new to an area, cooking classes/demonstrations can be a great way to meet new people, and potentially network with other homeschooling families.
Take your kids on “learning” hikes
As most parents know, children have a lot of energy. To help our kids get their energy out, we encourage them to engage in physical play. And, while allotting time for physical play certainly helps us parents maintain our sanity, physical activity is critical for children as it supports their development.
Children who are consistently physically active not only have improved cardiovascular health compared to inactive kids, but they also exhibit various other benefits from play, such as better cognition and executive function, improved attention, and decreased rates of depression.
To better understand how long your child should be active each day, you can check out the guidelines here.
However, if you’re looking for new ways to get your kids active, but you’ve exhausted all your options when it comes to playgrounds, one great way to help your kids stay active while also learning is through “learning” hikes.
Learning hikes are an opportunity for your kids to connect with nature while learning about the various plants they may see, or what animals live in the area. There are now great apps available that will provide information on any plant or animal you see and want to learn more about.
Another great activity to do with your kids while on a learning hike is talking about all the ways the hike is helping their bodies. This activity is great to help kids make the connection between physical activity and health.
Again, there are now great apps to help you find trails that are suitable for kids of all ages. Learning hikes not only helps connect your kids with nature while still learning, but you’ll likely reap the benefits of better sleep after a long day of moving their bodies.
Incorporate movements into your homeschool schedule
The last tip for incorporating fitness into a busy homeschooling schedule is to use movement throughout your lessons. And, the good thing is that most lessons are adaptable to include this element of learning. For example, a lesson for the younger kids on the alphabet can include making the shapes of the letters with their bodies or watching videos about animals while dancing and moving around the room as they pretend to be each animal.
For older kids, adding movement throughout the day could look like yoga breaks in between lessons or even hopping to different sight words or math problems that you’ve hung around the house. Movement breaks can be as simple or extensive as you make them. But, as highlighted above, the benefits your children get from consistent movement are essential for their overall health. If you’re looking for other ways to add more movement throughout your kid’s day, check out some suggestions here.
To wrap it up, homeschooling is a great option for families that need flexibility, but want to ensure their children receive the education they need.
While the core subjects, such as English and Math, are easier to adapt to any locale, it can be challenging to find ways to teach homeschool health and fitness if you’re new to an area and are not sure what options are available.
Four ways of incorporating health and fitness into any busy homeschool program include allowing your kids to help with meal prep, doing a unit on nutrition specifically, going for learning hikes, and finding ways to incorporate movement into the homeschool schedule.
And, while this list is not exhaustive, these four tips are a great way to get started. So, get out there and help your kids learn more about health and fitness.
*To read more from Expert, Crystal Neihoff, check out other articles on our AWN Homepage.
Sources:
How much physical activity do children need? | Physical Activity | DNPAO | CDC
Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition (health.gov)
5 Movement Breaks for an Active Homeschool Day • iHomeschool Network
