National Wellness Month Can Benefit Young Children

August is National Wellness Month, a time to focus on self-care, stress management and healthy routines. While wellness is important for everyone, it is especially crucial for young children, who are developing their physical, mental, and emotional skills. Explore why National Wellness Month is important for young children, and how parents, teachers and caregivers can help them celebrate it.

Wellness involves taking care of one's body, mind, and spirit, and finding balance and harmony in life. Wellness can be influenced by many factors, such as nutrition, exercise, sleep, hygiene, relationships, environment and hobbies.

For young children, wellness is especially important because it affects their growth, development, learning and behavior. According to the World Health Organization, opens a new window, early childhood is a critical period for establishing healthy habits and preventing chronic diseases later in life. Young children who practice wellness are more likely to:

• Have a strong immune system
• Develop healthy bodies
• Have a positive self-image and self-esteem
• Learn new skills and concepts faster and easier
• Have better concentration, memory, and creativity
• Have more energy and enthusiasm
• Have better social and emotional skills and relationships

How to celebrate National Wellness Month with young children?

Here are some ideas on how to celebrate:

• Make wellness a family affair. Involve children in planning and preparing healthy meals, choosing and doing physical activities and practicing relaxation. Set a good example by following a healthy lifestyle and encourage children to join in.
• Make wellness fun and creative. Use games, songs, stories, crafts and other activities to show children about wellness and its benefits. For example, play a nutrition bingo, sing a hygiene song, read a book about emotions or explore what wellness looks like in the home.
• Make wellness a daily habit. For example, start the day with a healthy breakfast, teeth brushing, do some stretches or yoga, and express appreciation. Throughout the day, remind children to drink water, eat fruits and vegetables, take breaks and take time to breathe and experience calm.
• Wellness can be a social activity. Connect with other parents, teachers, and caregivers who are interested in wellness and share ideas, resources, and support. There might be an opportunity to organize wellness events such as a wellness fair, a wellness walk, or a wellness picnic and invite other friends and families to join.

National Wellness Month is a wonderful time to celebrate wellness and promote healthy habits for young children. By making wellness a part of a child's life, it can help them grow, learn and thrive. Remember, wellness is not a one-time thing, but a lifelong journey. So, keep celebrating wellness every month, every week and every day! Get started now with books about wellness and belonging with:

List created by WVMLyouthLibrarian

Developed for West Vancouver Schools' Kindergarten Connections program, these books tie in with the Well-Being and Belonging Living Inquiry of BC's Early Learning Framework (ELF) and can be used by early childhood educators, teachers and caregivers for navigating the Inquiry's various pathways with young children.

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