Pedometers & Children's Activities

A 2010 study released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation indicated that about one-third of all children in America are medically overweight or obese. The number has quadrupled in children aged 6 to 11, and tripled for children 12 to 19 since 1970. Encouraging your own or a group of children to be more active by using a simple pedometer may help them attain a healthy weight by raising their level of activity.

Pedometer Calorie Counter Game

Children will having fun learning how many steps it takes to burn the calories in their favorite foods with the pedometer calorie counter game. Before the activity, collect one pedometer per child, one food nutritional label for each child and some gym equipment, such as jump ropes, play balls or hula hoops. Give each child a food label and ask him to read how many calories are in the food. Attach a pedometer to each child's waistband, inputting his weight. Show the children how to press the pedometer buttons to reach the calorie-counting mode. Once set, call "Go." Each child should jump rope, run around the play area, skip or remain active for five minutes. Call "Stop." Ask each child to look how many calories he has burned. Continue in five minute intervals until most children have burned the calories on their food label. Switch to the step-mode of the pedometer to show the children how many steps it takes to burn a certain number of calories.

Get Fit Challenge

Set up a get fit challenge modeled on one used by Baltimore City elementary schools in 2007. Before the challenge, teach the children the importance of being active in terms of achieving a healthy weight, reducing the risk of developing diabetes at a young age and feeling more positive about themselves. Explain the duration of the challenge, the number of steps they should strive to take each day and the rewards. Reward all the participants with a certificate and award the children who take the most steps with such inexpensive gifts as water bottles or shirts. Post a chart on the wall with each child's name. Give each child a pedometer and a log book. When starting the challenge, ask each child to record the number of steps she takes each day in her log book and transfer the number to the challenge chart every morning. At the end of the challenge, reward the children and discuss how being more active makes them feel.

Errands With a Pedometer

Robert Pangrazi, author of "Pedometer Play," offers a pedometer activity you can do at home with your family or with several families. Busy families find it difficult to set aside dedicated play time. Make your kids aware of how many steps he takes within day-to-day activities such as running errands. Every time you go to the grocery store, watch a family member play soccer or walk through the mall, record the number of steps you take. Compare one more sedentary activity, such as watching a ball game to a more step-generating activity such as walking the mall. Talk about how you can increase the number of steps you take by walking the perimeter of the ball field in between quarters, parking farther away from the store entrance or walking the perimeter of the store two or three times while shopping.