A worrying number of young children are not reaching the recommended daily quota of exercise, a figure that has more than likely risen drastically due to current times. Not only does lack of exercise prove to be damaging to mental health in all ages, it can also lead to physical health issues, neither of which young children should have to worry about.
To help tackle this, MFC Foundation is working with The Joy of Moving programme, which was set up to target lack of exercise in young children and to encourage them to get up and start moving again, through physical activities, but also education.
We ran our second Joy of Moving Festival of the summer at Hutton Rudby Primary School. With numerous activities set up, and glorious weather all day, over 250 students took part in a fun-filled day of learning and moving.
There are two national projects the The Joy Of Moving Programme runs. Move and Learn, which is specifically targeted at 9-10 year olds, and focuses on educating them on how to live better through raising awareness on what it means to live a more balanced lifestyle, coupled with practical sporting-sessions, to promote physical activity. The Joy of Moving Festival has a wider target, involving all Primary School years and has a wider spectrum of focused topics. The 4 areas of education are; physical fitness, motor coordination, cognitive functions, creativity (mental reasoning), and life skills.
Through the Foundations work with the Programme we hope to encourage children to move more. Hopefully through, fun physical sessions and engaging education we can help them live a brighter future.
