Every parent has witnessed the benefits of getting the kids away from their Playstation and playing in the open air. A day out in the sun, be it to Brighton beach or a walk in the Lake District, gives children to the opportunity to burn up excess energy and use their imagination to play and compete with one another in an outdoor setting. By the end of the day their spirits will have inevitably lifted, as will yours.
Benefits of Fresh Air
Benefits of fresh air and exercise for a child's mind don't need to simply be confined to big trips to the country. Research has shown that even 15 minutes running in the local park has the potential to develop the way your children thinks, improving their mood and raising their understanding and ability to learn.
Teachers know that a classroom full of children fresh from the playground is a more relaxed, positive place to teach in. ‘The children are less grumpy, more willing to get involved and generally happy after they've been running around outside,' says primary school teacher Kirsty McCreadie.
‘If the kids are grumpy or uninterested we do something called the Brain Gym. We have a five minute break and get them to jump around a bit. It really helps them concentrate and puts them in a better frame of mind to listen.'
One school, Larkmead in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, has drawn on this kind of anecdotal evidence to encourage children to play more sports, providing games equipment such as soft balls, cricket and basketball equipment and table tennis tables for kids to use during their break and lunch times. Pupils at the school who might have otherwise spent their breaks sitting around chatting with friends now play sports with each other. The idea forms part of an overall strategy by the school to improve their children's behaviour, and it has won commendations from the Department for Education.
Links to behaviour and learning
‘We have seen a very positive affect on behaviour,' says headteacher Chris Harris. ‘Teachers are saying kids are easier to teach and being on breaktime duty is far more pleasant. Incidence of fighting and bullying is very slim now at break times and there is less tension in the school.'
It might be well-known that children feel happier after a bit of exercise, but studies have proved that their ability to learn and concentrate are improved as well. Professor Ken Fox from Bristol University's Department for Exercise and Health Sciences says: ‘There is evidence that children who are more active achieve better educationally. Movement is a crucial part of learning. If you coup children up and spend too much time sitting down in front of the TV they miss out on a whole range of social, cognitive learning which a child gets through play.
‘There is a lot of evidence that physical education is good for mental wellbeing. It improves they way kids feel about themselves, they feel more competent, fitter and stronger. There is also evidence that it also improves mood.'
Max Coates, from London's Centre for Leadership in Learning, says that the key is improving circulation and getting the heart beating faster. ‘The brain is the most oxygen-hungry organ in the body. It is an issue of the brain needing to remain oxygenated at a high level. Circulation helps because it moves oxygen around the body and keeps us fresh.'
So pushing your child to get out to the park or even just the garden isn't just great for their physical fitness, it helps them feel positive, motivated and interested in their mental fitness as well.
