How Did the Pandemic Affect Kids Health? Part 2
National agencies and governments have confirmed that children’s physical, emotional and social health have been impacted by the pandemic. (See “How did the Pandemic Affect Kids?” Blog Part 1)
There’s no doubt about it. Kids have changed in the last 3 years.
The fitness instructors, recreation leaders, yoga instructors, and school teachers in our community who have been teaching our pre-packaged dance and yoga programs are reporting the following:
Since the pandemic, children:
Are more anxious and hesitant with social interaction
Have a significantly lower stamina for physical activity
Show extremes in social engagement: all in, or all out.
Seem less motivated in playing with others, and prefer solo activities
Although these are observations, they are not limitations.
Since hearing about our instructors’ first-hand experiences, I’ve been on a mission to adjust our PL3Y Kids Fitness programs content, courses and trainings to ensure that instructors have the tools to deliver a quality movement experience, and that children get from our programs what they need.
As someone who has been working with children for over 25 years, my goal has always been to design fitness programs that get children active while also becoming healthier and happier along their physical literacy journey.
The insights gathered over the last 6 months have exposed exactly what kids need, and I’m excited to adapt our programs to meet our young participants where they are today.
Here’s what I’m doing at PL3Y to evolve our kids fitness programs:
Creating Inviting Social Settings
Before…Kids couldn’t wait to get together, run around and play. They rarely needed an invitation or help to get out there and socialize.
After…More kids need invitations, permission and coaching to get into their socially playful states
Action…Take time at the start of session to talk about socialization and interaction between children in classes. Prepare coaches with situational and coaching skills to help children know how to gradually engage more with others in play.
Explicitly Teaching Self-Regulation
Before…High-energy in nature, our previous approach in all programs involved children ‘jumping into activity’ to begin each class. Often through expending energy (and a well-instructed/structured class) their state and behaviours were generally well regulated
After…With such a range in self-regulation abilities, instructors take time as part of the class structure to teach children to identify emotions, skills to self-regulate, and expectations if they need assistance or support in doing so during the class.
Action…Design activities within the class structure for the instructor to discuss and explore feelings, state, and social skills.
Offering Purpose-Driven Solo Play:
Before…instructors might have needed to support one or two children in each class that needed a bit more time before feeling ready to jump in and play.
After…We find that the time frame for social engagement form timid participants is longer. Instead of “wait and watch”, we’re designing alternative solo activities that meet the program goal, while giving timid children time to warm-up to our classes’ busy social climates.
Action…Provide alternative activities for students who aren’t ready to socialize in play
Modified Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity (MVPA) Blocks:
Before…All our instructors were required to choose activities from our database and design lessons that had a minimum of 10-minute blocks of MVPA.
After…We’ve adapted the structure and requirements for children to get the minimum through blocks of 5-8 minutes of MVPA before a period of rest or lower intensity, as children re-gain their cardiovascular and muscular endurance.
Action…Plan a different sequence with various intensity levels so that all children can reach the minimum of 20 minutes of MVPA levels in our classes.
Taking a participant-centered approach to children’s fitness program requires instructors to be present, adaptable, confident and professional
In general, children have changed since the global pandemic…and, in general, there are many ways that children are still the same.
They are playful, creative, silly, sweet, caring, energizing, and hilarious.
And at all times, kids need qualified leaders who can deliver positive and nurturing movement experiences that help them build the foundations for physical activity, and a motivation to be active for live.
Have you seen any changes in children since the pandemic? Comment below I’d love to know!
———
Learn more about PL3Y’s pre-packaged kids fitness programs
Become a PL3Y Instructor - Instructor Certification Courses and CECs