ASK A TEACHER
Staying Physically Fit

with Nancy Downing
Q: School has started and I need some ideas on how to help my children stay physically fit
and eat the right foods.

A: You might want to incorporate that as a family goal and put into practice one or more of the ideas
below:

  • As an adult, be a good example. During dinner have your family state each food item on his
    plate and tell what food group it belongs in. Did you include all the food groups? Have an
    exercise schedule for yourself.
  • Each week have one member of the family plan the menu for dinner. (Have a food pyramid so
    the appropriate servings and food selections can be viewed.) Using the same concept, have
    one member of the family pick out snacks.
  • Exercise as a family: walk or jog in the neighborhood or a nearby park, ride bikes, go swimming,
    on the weekend go for a hike, rent an exercise video and interact with it together.
  • When you grocery shop have your children tag along. Teach them how to read the ingredients on
    the packaging. Make a game of who can pick out the most nutritious breakfast cereal.
  • Cook together. It may be messy and take longer to prepare the meal, but the benefits that your
    children will reap for it will be worth it. Use healthy ingredients for your dishes and discuss the
    reasons for your choices. Math concepts can be thrown in as you go along.
  • Sit down with each child and see if there is an after school physical activity that each could sign
    up for. You might do the same for yourself. That takes us back to you being a good example.

These are just a few ideas. You and your family can probably branch off these with some real creative
ideas. Have fun along the way.


Copyright © by Nancy Downing.  All rights reserved.
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Nancy has been an educator for 30 years and is currently a special education teacher.  
She is the former Center Director of LearningRx in Little Rock, Arkansas. She has
received local, state, and national recognition for her development of Downfeld
Phonics, a multi-sensory reading program.  Nancy also wrote curriculum for an
educational technology company.   

Nancy is a single mother of three children:  one with learning differences, one gifted,
and one who has to work for his grades.  Not only does she know what it is like to teach
all these different learning styles at school, but she has the experience of dealing with
all aspects of each twenty-four seven.  
Train a child in the way he should go,  
and when he is old he will not turn from it.
(Proverbs 22:6)