So many schools are reducing recess–outdoor play–due to budget cuts and hopes of boosting test scores. However, studies show that increased recess time results in better test scores compared to increasing time in the classroom. Yikes!
But here’s something you may not have heard about in the argument for keeping recess. Outdoor play–and specifically, recess–helps our kids eyesight. I know! Wow, right?
On the website All About Vision, they quote several studies that found all sorts of interesting results. Here are a few quotes I found particularly interesting:
The researchers calculated a 2 percent drop in the risk of developing myopia for each additional hour children spend outdoors per week. “This is equivalent to an 18 percent reduction for every additional hour of exposure per day,” they said.
Compared with children with normal eyesight or farsightedness, children with myopia spent an average of 3.7 fewer hours per week outside.
In other words, more time outside means you’re increasing your child’s chance they WON’T need glasses. Think of all the money you’ll save!
In favour of recess:
The study authors concluded that outdoor activities during recess in elementary school have a significant protective effect on myopia risk among children that are not yet nearsighted and reduce the progression of myopia among nearsighted schoolchildren.
The 12-year-old children who spent more time outdoors had less myopia at the end of the two-year study period than others in the study.
There you have it.
Let’s get outside and play! What do we do in the Oram household? Well, first of all we got a dog. Why? Because not only does it teach our kids empathy and responsibility for others, but our dog gets us outside daily. We walk the dog, the kids ride their bikes alongside or walk too. It’s great exercise for all of us!
The brain is better able to pay attention, hold things in memory, and show self-control after it has been outdoors.
–Gabrielle Principe, Your Brain on Childhood
Getting a dog isn’t your thing? It doesn’t have to be complicated or strenuous. How about these simple activities that will get you outdoors:
9 Ways To Get Outside as a Family
Watch the Sunrise / Sunset
Does the world seem different at this time of day? What colors do you see in the sky?
Find Cloud Animals
Lie on your back and look at the clouds—whoa! Is that a giraffe?
Draw on the Sidewalk with Chalk
Try and Catch Your Shadow
Can you catch it?
Water Fights
Ring Toss
Make your own rings out of plastic container lids. Then shove a stick into the ground to toss them onto!
Hopscotch
Play Catch
Eat Outside
Picnic, BBQ, simply taking your meal out on the deck–it’s still outdoors and you’ll still get the benefits of being out in nature. Both for your soul and your eyesight.
Thanks for playing! See you next time. And if you need more activity ideas don’t forget to check out my book, 1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas. It’s reasonably priced so everyone can play.
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Remember way back when we walked uphill to school both ways? In a snowstorm. In boots too big for our feet? A time when vehicles didn’t come with DVD players? When there were no hand-held devices to keep you occupied as the boring old miles rolled by? Remember when we had to learn self-control and regulation by doling out our “Are we there yet?”s wisely because on a long road trip we were only given three? (Maybe that was just me. I did like to ask a lot.)
Remember that?
Well, the bottom line is this: road trips can be boring. As kids, we had to adapt. We had to learn to entertain ourselves. We had to get creative. Invent and modify games. We had to learn to be in our own minds. We had to learn patience. We had to get along with our siblings or figure out how to quickly make up after a fight–because we were in it together and goodness, don’t make me suffer alone!
Today? We strap our kids into the vehicle and hand them a device to absorb their attention. Which is all right. It’s nice as a parent to not hear this a million times: “Are we there yet?” and “I’m bored.” And “Cynthia is touching me/kicking me/looking at me.”
But are we doing our kids a disservice? Are we adding to their owly impatience? Their inability to self-regulate and entertain themselves? I know my kids certainly don’t look out the window as often. (Cue study findings about the correlation between an increase in screen time and a decrease in self-control, self-discipline, increased aggression, lowered attention spans and more.)
So, let’s mix it up old-school! Not only will these five fun classic travel games beat the boredom blues and prevent the summer slide, but they’ll also boost your child’s development.
(Summer slide is the loss of academic skills over the summer because kids aren’t engaged in learning experiences. That’s not to say put your kids in summer school–playtime and family time is important too! What they are saying is to challenge your kid’s intellectual skills throughout the summer. Read, play, explore, play math games and more. Keep that brain moving!)
Ready? Set… Let’s play!
Five Classic Travel Games for Kids
Game: Who Are They?
As you pass another vehicle use your imagination to create a story about the person driving. Be creative and try to imagine what that person is like and how they came to be there. You can be silly or serious.
Some starter questions: What’s their name? Where are they going? What’s their favourite thing to do? What are they afraid of?
You can play this game alone, or with others. If playing with others, each person can take their own turn without interruption as they create a history for the other driver. Or, players can build off of each other’s stories and ideas.
Variation: Guess who lives in a house or works in a business you pass.
There are no wrong answers with this one, only hours of creative silliness. For kids who fear being wrong this is a great, fun way to let them show their silly side in a safe environment.
Developmental perks: patience, self-expression–this can become an emotional outlet where they express and regulate their feelings through others, verbal skills, creativity, empathy–understanding others have lives too, and more! (Those are just a few of the developmental perks for this one.)
Storytelling Chain
Group storytelling. Everyone makes up one line for the group story.
So, one person starts the story by saying one sentence, then the next player takes over, adding their own sentence to the story. On and on until you have a story!
Once upon a time there was a girl…
I love playing this one with my kids and niece and nephew–whenever it is my nephew’s turn “the girl fell on her face and died.” Why do I love it? Because it forces the next person to get creative to keep the story going. And sometimes, because they know this is going to be his answer, they set him up for his famous line. Not only do kids learn patience and taking turns, but they learn teamwork and the joys of building a hilarious, rambling story with others.
Developmental perks: Taking turns, teamwork, verbal skills, creativity, storybuilding skills, patience, listening skills, social skills, communication, self-expression, and more! PLUS if you have someone in your group who is very set on how a story should go, this game can help them learn to work through their frustrations of not always having it their way and learning to see something from another’s point of view. (They can learn to let it go! It may take time… be patient! Help them see the humour and intrigue in another’s viewpoint.)
Car Ride I Spy Booklet
Cut pictures and words out of a magazine and glue them on a piece of paper. Check things off as you find them on your trip. For example, pictures of a dog, a bus, a crosswalk sign, the word “exit,” the letter “X,” etc.
Developmental perks: reading, visual identification skills, fine motor skills (if your kiddo makes the book, they’re cutting, gluing AND learning categorization–what sort of things do they see riding in the car?) and more.
5 License Plate Games
Ah, the BIG classic car ride game. What’s sweet about this one for preventing the summer slide? With the different variations you can not only work on literacy skills, but you’ll also work on some math skills. It’ll get your kids looking out the window, strengthening those eyes for some far-sighted seeing. As well, some of these variations boost creativity, work on some geography skills and more. Plus, they’re fun!
License Plate Find It
Pick a number or letter and try to find it on a license plate. Playing with a friend? See who can find it first. (Learning how to compete with others–winning with grace, losing with grace.)
License Plate Phrases
Make a phrase or word from the letters and numbers on a license plate. For example: license plate “RSN 542” could become Really Silver Nickels or Reason #542.
Collect States & Provinces
Look at the license plates on the vehicles around you. See how many different places you can find. Can you find all the provinces and territories or all of the states? See who finds the most.
License Plate Numbers
See how high you can count by finding numbers on license plates. Start with finding 1, then watch the next plate for 2…
Alphabet License Plate Game
Most license plates have numbers and letters. Search for the whole alphabet in license plates. Start by looking for the letter “A.” Once you have found that, go on to letter “B.” On you go through the whole alphabet—go in order!
Boost the challenge: Take only one letter from each license plate. In other words, you can’t take the letters “A” and “B” from the same license plate.
Rest Stop Track Meet
One person chooses an activity for the next rest stop (or gas station stop) whether it is to run to the nearest tree, do ten jumping jacks, or play five minutes of Frisbee or soccer. At the next rest stop, someone else chooses. Not only will this help relieve the ants-in-your-pants that builds up in small kids, but it will help keep the driver stay alert, too.
Thanks for playing today. Have a fabulous road trip!
This post was sponsored by The Genius of Play. Check it out here, there’s tons more great stuff for you and the kids: TheGeniusOfPlay.org
Want more travel game ideas? These games and MANY MORE are available in Jean’s book 1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas. It’s available in paperback and ebook for a low, low price so you can have more family fun! Find out more about it here.
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Jump over to Goodreads and enter my giveaway for 1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas! It’s open internationally and ends May 2nd. Have your best summer ever with a book from me! Good luck!
Goodreads Book Giveaway
1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas
by Jean Oram
Giveaway ends May 02, 2016.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
Not on Goodreads, missed the giveaway, or didn’t win? No worries! This awesome boredom busting book is available in book ebook and paperback through all online stores. Grab your copy today and turn those bored frowns upside down! Available at:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Amazon AU
iBooks
Barnes and Noble
Kobo
Google
Ebook only $2.99. Paperback available for a low price of $11.99. Your kids will thank you.
]]>By New York Times bestselling author & mother of two, Jean Oram
“A LIFESAVER FOR PARENTS AND EDUCATORS.” Kenneth, Amazon reviewer
Never be bored again! All of this website’s great content and MORE!
Affordably available in ebook for only $2.99 and $11.99 in paperback from these online retailers:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Amazon AU
iBooks
Barnes and Noble
Kobo
Google
Ever been unable to think of a single fun thing to help your child solve their boredom blues?
Beat the boredom blues and turn those frowns upside down with over 1,000 easy, fun, cost-effective play ideas for toddlers to school-aged kids. There’s something for everyone–even parents–in this tried and tested one-stop book from NY Times bestselling author, Jean Oram.
“A lifesaver for parents and educators.” –Kenneth, reader.
Get the kids busy and out of your hair all while helping them develop the skills they need to succeed in our busy, complicated world.
Want to be the new favorite in the family? Check out some of the fun inside 1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas:
+ 101 tricky, goofy challenges for kids
+ 36 Travel games PLUS 24 more word games that can be played in the car
+ Arts and crafts (and holiday crafts, too)
+ Classic games from your childhood such as Hot Potato & Red Rover
+ Outside play ideas
+ Playground games
+ Mad scientist safe & easy experiments–including Flubber!
+ Birthday party games
+ Easy arts & crafts for all ages
+ Improv games–Human Gumby!
+ Family day trip ideas
+ Group games
+ Rainy day activities–rain painting!
+ And more play, play, play!
Now includes 26 BONUS activities for a grand total of 1,027 activities to keep your kids happy, and playing.
The brain learns by playing and play is children’s work. Build smart, happy, healthy children… let’s play!
A Tricky Challenge to Get You Started:
Coin Catching à la Elbow!
Put your right hand on your right shoulder. Point your elbow out in front of you. Lay a penny on the flat part of your arm just above your elbow. Without moving your arm, turn your hand so the palm of your hand is facing up. Very quickly move your elbow down and try to catch the penny with your right hand as it falls.
The record for caught pennies when I was a kid was a stack of 14. How many can you catch?
Want more fun? Try licking your elbow. Balance a spoon on your nose. Make an edible ice-cream cone Christmas tree. There’s so much more inside! Grab 1,001 Boredom Busting Play Ideas for a LOW playtime price–it won’t last forever!–and have your best sleepover, birthday party, road tip, babysitting experience, snowy day, or play time ever!
Save Time. Save Money. Play More.
Never be bored again! All of this website’s great content and MORE!
Affordably available in ebook & paperback from these online retailers:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Amazon AU
iBooks
Barnes and Noble
Kobo
Google
Mad libs for kids are a great way to teach them about story creation, parts of speech, all while playing and having a great time.
Enjoy!
To The Moon!: An Outdoor, Mad Lib Adventure
By Jean Oram
The other day I was playing a video game when it started to act all _________________ (ADVERB). I decided to go outside
where it was ___________________ (WEATHER). I put on my _________________ (PIECE OF CLOTHING) and went
out. To my surprise it was really ___________________ (ADJECTIVE).
I wandered around, a little bit _____________________ (MOOD), before finding a ________________________
(NOUN) in the _____________________ (NOUN). I carried it around with me before putting it on a
______________________ (NOUN). I stared at it. I knew it would make something really ____________________
(ADJECTIVE) but I couldn’t figure out what. My friend, ____________________ (NAME)
__________________________ (NOUN) with my new found thing. All afternoon we worked. We used a
_______________________ (NOUN) a lot. But then I banged my ________________________ (BODY PART) with it
so we decided to use ________________________________ (NOUN PLURAL) instead. That worked and before long we
had a ________________________ (ADJECTIVE) ______________________ (NOUN) that looked like it had been
______________________ (VERB PAST TENSE) through a ____________________ (NOUN).
By now we were getting really hungry and so when a ________________________ (ANIMAL) _____________________
(VERB PAST TENSE) by, my friend tried to eat it. He said it tasted like _________________________ (FLAVOUR) when he
licked it. He likes _______________________ (SAME FLAVOUR) but sometimes it gives him the
_________________________ (VERB PAST TENSE). That’s not as fun as it sounds.
After my friend’s snack, we looked at our creation for awhile and realized if we moved the ____________________ (NOUN)
on our project to the __________________ (DIRECTION) it would look just like a space ship. Maybe we could go to the moon!
When our ship was ready, we _________________________ (VERB PAST TENSE) in and breathed in the
______________________ (ADJECTIVE) outdoor air. The sun was starting to go down and it looked like
______________________ (FOOD PLURAL). We pushed the _______________________ (ADJECTIVE) on our project
and rode off into the sunset like we were a couple of ________________________ (SOMETHING SILLY). We were off to the
moon!
Mad Lib Instructions:
1. Print off this mad lib or paste it into a word processor so you can fill in the blanks.
2. Get one person to read out what ind of words they need (adjective, noun, etc. as shown in capital letters behind the blank) to fill in the blanks of the story (don’t read the story out loud yet.) Have the other person call out words to fill in those blanks.
3. Read out the story with it’s new words and try not to laugh too hard!
Reminder on parts of speech:
Noun: An object. Think of it as something you could pick up and put in a suitcase. Like a cloud, person, table, etc.
Adjective: A describing word. It describes a noun. Such as a beautiful house or a strong man.
Verb: A doing word. An action. I ran, walked, jumped, squealed, and swam.
Adverb: Describes a verb (and action). Ends in “ly.” He shouted loudly.
This mad lib has been created by Jean Oram (copyright 2012) as part of It’s All Kids’ Play.ca. If you would like to share this mad lib with others such as your class, please go ahead with attribution (mention my site as the source). Thanks.