Have fun with this 30-day family physical literacy challenge
This challenge is for anyone who wants to be more active with their family. It is for anyone who wants to focus on helping their child develop physical literacy and doesn’t have a lot of time to invest. Most of all it is for anyone who wants to have fun.
Participating in the challenge is easy. There’s no registration or commitment. There’s no penalty for missing a day.
Just follow us on Facebook. Starting on February 28, we’ll post an idea every evening for the following day. It will be a suggestion for an easy activity that will help your child develop physical literacy and will be enjoyable for the grown-ups in the house as well.
After a month of investing just a few minutes each day, being physical will become an easy habit for all of you.
And if you’re not sure why you should think about a month-long challenge, have a look at this Ted Talk to hear more about the benefits.
At the end of the month, we’ll post all the activities here so you can refer back to them any time you want.
So grab the family, join us on Facebook, and come along for the ride! Share how you’re doing on social media using #AfL30Days.
Day 1
Start the day off on the right foot … gather the whole family, wake up, and dance! Dancing is a great way to develop coordination, balance, agility, and rhythm. Remember, we want to see your crazy moves. Share photos or videos of your family doing our daily activities in the comments below, or post on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #AfL30Days.
Day 2
What’s easier or more fun for little kids than pretending to be animals? Turn their interest in pretend play into an opportunity to move like some of their favourite animals while developing coordination and balance. Share photos or videos of your family and their canine crawl or serpentine shimmy in the comments below, or on Twitter or Instagram using #AfL30Days to get in on the fun!
Day 3
Try a day of unplugging! Have the entire family turn off electronics and replace screen time with a walk, a family game of mini-sticks, or a living room obstacle course.
Day 4
Day 4 of our #AfL30Days Challenge may have your family going outside of your comfort zone. Embracing adventure often leads to being more active, family bonding, and lasting memories. Add some adventure into your Saturday with one of these simple ideas and give your kids lots of opportunities to move in surprising ways. #activeforlife
Day 5
Time to dodge it. There is no quicker way to get kids giggling then to hurl hacky sacks their way while they try to dodge them. Sound aggressive? It’s actually pretty fun and helps them develop the skill of dodging which comes in surprisingly handy in life. Plus, we have eight other hacky sack activities from which to choose from if dodging doesn’t appeal to you. #activeforlife
Day 6
Challenge the family to develop their balance by hopping (on one foot at a time) tomorrow morning. Hop to breakfast, hop to the bathroom to brush your teeth, and then hop to the front door. Hopping to school is optional. You can even pretend you’re kangaroos! #AfL30Days #physicalliteracy
Day 7
Today’s #AfL30Days Challenge activity is all about throwing. You can use any ball you have around the house, or try one of our activities: bucket toss golf for kids aged 4-10, or for 1- 3-year-olds, try bubble catch. Learning to throw properly will help your child develop arm and torso coordination, fine motor control, and the ability to ‘read’ distances. Bucket Toss. Bubble Catch.
Day 8
Develop coordination and balance with today’s #AfL30Days Challenge, tightrope fun. This activity can be made very simply for the younger kids and then expanded upon for the older ones. You’ll be amazed how much fun they’ll have with a roll of tape. #activeforlife
Day 9
Have you always wanted to get your kids to help out around the house more? With these fun activities, not only will they jump at the chance, but they’ll be developing skills like throwing, jumping, and lots more. Believe it or not, cleaning is today’s #AfL30Days Challenge activity!
Day 10
#AfL30Days Challenge Day 10: Movie Night. Watch Project Wild Thing with the family and talk about how you can add more nature into your daily lives. Get the kids involved in making plans and they’ll be more likely to get on board. Learn more about the film.
Day 11
Today’s #AfL30Days Challenge is to find a hill and go tobogganing. (And if there’s no snow, go play in the park and find a hill to roll down.) Make sure to sled responsibly using these guidelines.
Day 12
A great Canadian pastime influences our #AfL30Days Challenge activity today. Introduce your child to the fun sport of curling without leaving your home — all you need is an unwrapped bar of soap and some masking tape! #activeforlife
Day 13
Today we challenge your family to play follow the leader as … horses! Using our Galloping Horse activity, teach your 3- 6-year-olds to gallop, and then make it a family game. If you have older kids, try “Toss It” or “Marble Arcade”. #activeforlife
Day 14
Today’s #AfL30Days Challenge activity is great for kids of all ages, from preschoolers to preteens. Get kids kicking with the sides of their feet instead of their toes and developing leg coordination, strength, and fine motor control in the lower body.
Day 15
Sleep is an important part of living an active, healthy life. Are your family’s sleep habits in good shape? For Day 15 of our #AfL30Days Challenge, use these guidelines to assess your sleep habits, and try to make one adjustment that will lead to a better night sleep for all.
Day 16
Have some playground fun, bring back a game from your childhood, and each take turns picking a “fortune”. These activities will develop balance, coordination, agility, throwing, catching, and more.
Day 17
Little kids love bears. Whether yours loves pandas, koalas, polar, or brown (or maybe just Winnie the Pooh!), they’ll have fun trying to imitate their movements. Today’s #AfL30Days Challenge activity is the Bear Crawl. Help your kids develop coordination, balance, and strength. #activeforlife
Day 18
“Ah, might as well JUMP!” Try this easy jumping activity that can be made progressively harder for older kids and even adults. #activeforlife
Day 19
Try a budget-friendly family activity together. These suggestions work great for winter, but use your imagination if the weather is warmer and be sure to tell us which activity you chose and share your photos in the comments below. #activeforlife
Day 20
Science shows that a regular practice of mindfulness and meditation are good for our immune systems, brain activity, and reducing stress. Today, choose a mindfulness activity to do together as a family. You’ll find some tips here. #AfL30Days
Day 21
Do you live near a forest? It’s a great time for a nature walk in the woods. If it’s a bit too far to travel, create an indoor obstacle course of trees, stumps, and creeks, and navigate the pretend “forest” in your living room. Both will help kids develop balance, coordination, agility and more. #AfL30Days
Day 22
Today’s activity is to make your own family game with your own unique rules. Some of the best games are the ones you create yourself! Your kids will always remember your special game. Find some inspiration here.
Day 23
Unwind with a family yoga session. Here’s how to make it fun for the whole family.
Day 24
Continue with our #AfL30Days challenge today by playing a few rounds of ‘Simon/Simona Says’ and have fun with the actions. Think: hop on one foot, walk like a crab, jump on the spot. What are your favourites?
Day 25
Try something completely new today: go for a walk in a different neighbourhood, find an indoor mini-golf course you’ve never been to, go bowling, or even try parkour as a family.
Day 26
Today’s #AfL30Days Challenge activity is to pack up the suits, towels, and flip flops and hit your community pool together for family swim. Learn why Puneeta of Maple and Marigold prefers this unstructured swimming time. #activeforlife
Day 27
For today’s #Afl30Days Challenge activity, use existing things around the house to make up fun ways of moving, like this idea from our Role Model Holly LaRochelle (The Inspired Home): “Think outside the box; there’s a bunch of easy ways to move inside. Grab a stool and jump off it. Play tag. Jump on the bed. Practice your somersaults. Have a dance party. Ride your bikes around the basement.” Or, choose another way to be active as a family today from this list of more ideas from our AfL Role Models.
Day 28
Feeling overwhelmed with a packed schedule? Developing #physicalliteracy doesn’t have to take a lot of time. Today’s #AfL30Days activity is to have everyone in the family brush their teeth with their non-dominant hand … that’s it! Sounds simple, but it’s surprisingly effective for helping kids get more comfortable using both hands for other tasks. #activeforlife
Day 29
Squeezing in some family time while getting active is very simple. One easy idea for today’s #AfL30Days activity is to leave the car at home or park it a couple of blocks away from your destination. #activeforlife
Day 30
Today it’s time to go to a park. Dress for the weather and pack a snack. Don’t forget to bring a ball or a frisbee, or get inspired by these ideas. #activeforlife
Bonus activity
Do you often find your family scrambling for fun, active ideas — or just need an excuse to get the kids away from the screen? Make an activity jar of your favourite activities from our #AfL30Days Challenge this past month, and pull it out in the future whenever someone says, “I’m bored” or “What should we do today?” Try this step-by-step guide to make your own activity jar.
You did it! A month of fun, skill-building activities that will set your family on a path to developing physical literacy, new habits, and being active for life. But your commitment doesn’t have to end with the month of March. Make the parent promise and keep following along with this page for daily ideas, activities, news, and inspiration.