Family ideas for living an active lifestyle (1-3years)

Looking for ideas on how to fit in more activity into your family day?

Depending on the age of your child, whether they’re 12 months or nearly starting school, there are different ways of getting in a little more activity, that could be big movements or little. Some of them you may even do without realising!

1-3-year olds

Using your hands:

• Building towers
• Train tracks
• Posting toy games
• Puzzles
• Turn-taking games
• Balloon play keeping it in the air
• Blowing bubbles, try to pop and catch

Keeping moving:

• Learning to walk, run, climb, jump, up and down play. Encourage safety on stairs!

Music and movement:

• Musical instrument play e.g. shakers, tambourine, drum pad,  singing,  nursery rhymes,  moving to music, dancing,  Just Dance, Jiggy Wrigglers – YouTube

Games:

• Ball pit
• Water play (must be supervised)
• Messy play with play doh/ rice/ pasta
• Soft play/ mini obstacle course/ parachute play/ sensory play/

Sporty activities:

• Swimming
• Balance bike/ scooter
• Learn to ride a bike
• Skipping
• Stretching/ yoga/ cosmic yoga- YouTube
• Hula hooping
• Bouncing on a trampoline

Imaginative play: 

• Box play
• Post box
• Play tunnels
• Den building
• Funny walks
• Bunny hops etc.

Organised sports:

• Swimming lessons
• Gymtots classes
• Soccer tots
• Rugby tots

Out and about:

• Outside play/ sand play/ water table
• Fresh air walks anywhere outside/, bug hunts, sound walk, colour hunts
• Crayon rubbings