Foundations Health for Kids
Helping children build a healthy life from the start
Foundations Health for Kids delivers school based lessons teaching children about their health and fitness.
These lessons teach children what it means to be healthy and why it is so important, in an engaging, meaningful way. The best way we can live healthy lives is by learning healthy habits from a young age.
Benefits for children from taking part in Foundations Health for Kids
Reverse childhood obesity
Develop lifelong healthy habits
Learn how to exercise safely
Improve resilience and perseverance
Exercise boosts brain power
Enhanced focus
Improve mental health
Develop confidence
Reduced risk of injury
Improved performance in sport
Benefits for Teachers from working with Foundations Health for Kids
Improve Own Health and Fitness
Teachers will learn how to improve their own health and fitness, with the ability to either join in the sessions themselves or repeat them in their own time. Likewise, the knowledge and tips given to children are also actionable in the teachers' lives.
Engage Students
The engaging structure of the lessons can help overcome apathy to traditional PE and PSHE lessons. The short movement exercises incorporated in the day to day structure of school helps children focus and engage in other areas of the day.
Develop Knowledge
Teachers will learn what fitness is and the different ways we can develop it. Along with this, they will learn about different ways to develop strength and metabolic conditioning
Likewise, teachers will learn the underlying principles of broad aspects of health and how these impact both pupils and their own lives in various areas. This deep health understanding will allow teachers to support the children and families they work with.
Develop Awareness of Pupil Safety
Teachers will develop an understanding of how to create a safe training environment. Likewise, they will understand how to train strength and conditioning with children safely and some of the safety concerns associated with this.
Teaching the Foundations of Health and Fitness
https://www.crossfit.com/essentials/theoretical-hierarchy-of-development
When teaching children about what fitness is and how to become as physically fit and healthy as possible, we teach CrossFit's Theoretical Hierarchy of Development.
Nutrition
Nutrition is seen as the foundation of the pyramid. The quality and quantity of what we eat impacts the the foundations of our muscle, bone, hormones and nervous system. It is almost impossible to optimise your health and performance without addressing your diet.
As children grow older, they gain more independence and can make more choices about what they eat, particularly moving into secondary school. It is important to teach children how they can make conscious and sensible choices, without causing any anxieties towards food
Metabolic Conditioning
This is developing your cardiovascular capacity and effectiveness. This is crucial for health in later life, as well as athletic performance. Developing the body's ability to use different energy sources more effectively prevents having to perform at extreme fatigue, which impacts performance. A basic baseline of cardiovascular capacity is needed for most physical activities, as well as improving heart and lung health
Gymnastics
This doesn't mean being able to perform flips across a balance beam or do the Iron Cross on a set of rings. Instead. it means your ability to move your body in a controlled manner with coordination, spatial awareness, flexibility, balance and agility. Basic movements such as air squats, press ups and ring rows develop movement patterns and sound mechanics to be utilised in more complex scenarios.
Weightlifting & Throwing
This means being able to lift, move and control external objects. In schools, this would not involve lifting barbells, due to logistics. However, children would lift or throw plastic tubing, balls and small sandbags as there have been proven health benefits for children developing strength in a safe, controlled environment. Mayo Clinic - Children Strength Training
Strength training develops gross motor patterns and acts as a way of transferring power from the body's core to other areas.
Sport
These developed foundations can then be utilised in sport, with improved performance and reduced risk of injury. All sessions involve games and sport to utilise the children's improved fitness, show how some of the areas developed in the sessions can be utilised in other situations.
Developing other dimensions of health
While developing nutrition and fitness are crucial for children's health, they are not the only areas which need addressing, so with the Foundations Health for Kids programme we also support children with understanding and developing their ability to positively improve their sleep, stress management and recovery skills.
Sleep
We explain the importance of sleep - particularly for children - and how to create habits which will help them get the best possible sleep!
Stress
It is undoubtable that children today are in the midst of a mental health crisis and part of this is due to their inability to process and tolerate different forms of stress. During these sessions we explain that stress is unavoidable and, in fact, some stresses are positive for us, as long as we respond to them correctly. During the sessions, we use physical stress as an example of how we can do difficult things and it makes us better.
Recovery
In children's lives, they are inevitably going to come across physical and mental stressors all the time! How they respond and recover dictates whether their bodies and minds improve or are damaged by these stressors. Ideas covered include developing resilience, restoring nutrition and fluid levels, taking time for ourselves and processing disappointment.
Curriculum Links
Taking part in the Foundations Health for Kids programme addresses a range of curriculum objectives which are often tricky to address effectively, such as not only the risks associated with an unhealthy life, but with actionable steps to help children address this, all while inspiring a passion for fitness and health.
Lesson Structure
Warm Up
A series of easy to access movements engaging the children and practicing previously taught movements
Health
Input and activity learning about an aspect of health, such as how sleep affects our performance and mood
Movement Mechanics
Teaching and practicing foundation movements - children assess each other's movement and give cues on how to improve it
Workout of the Day
Movements taught put together into a workout or game
Recap
Quick quiz on content covered that day
Try at Home
Children are given a small task or workout they can try between sessions