Tips for Parents – Brain Development

A healthy body helps create a healthy brain! Movement is a very important part of building a healthy body for your baby.

• Toddlers need to be able to move and use their muscles. They should not be restrained (in a stroller or high chair) for more than an hour at a time. On long car trips, provide breaks for young children so that they can move and stretch.
• Toddlers 1 to 2 years old should get at least three hours of physical activity each day. Some of it should be energetic play that makes their hearts pump faster.
• Give your toddler the opportunity to learn and practice simple large muscle skills such as running, kicking, throwing, catching, climbing, skipping and jumping. Developing these skills early in life will help them play sports later on.
• There are many ways you can be active with your toddler: roll a ball back and forth, dance or move to music, explore the neighborhood, run through the sprinkler, put some cushions or blankets on the floor and tumble, etc.
• It is also important to know when your child is tired or thirsty and to provide a rest and some water.
• Take your toddler to the park, playground, playgroup, or to an EarlyON Child and Family Centre and give them room to move. The more active they are, the better!
• No screen time is best for children under the age of 2. Studies have shown that children under the age of 2 are too young to understand what they are seeing on the screen. Products that are marketed to improve baby’s brains can actually work against healthy development. Instead of watching television, children should be interacting with others and developing their brains.
• Be a good role model. Be active with them. Children learn from their parents. It is up to you to set the example.

Links

• Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for the Early Years (0-4 years). Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology. 
• Physical Literacy. Canadian Sport for Life. 
• Have a Ball Together. Best Start by Health Nexus.