Stand. Sit. Walk. Run. Jog. Skate. Ride. Swim. Jump. Hop. March. Swing. Slide. Twirl. Spin. Throw. Catch. Tackle. Kick.
The types of activities that can be available at home often depend on the size of the space available. Yet. As a young child these can be played indoors. Toddlers climb all over everything, run around the house and jump onto pillows. Yet as kids get older its not ok to do this indoors. If there is space outdoors then we shift to different types of equipment, maybe a bike to ride, maybe a pool to swim in, or a slide to climb up. Do we need supervision for these types of things as compared to when they were little and able to do things inside where the adult can multi-task and do other things at the same time? Fences. Pavers. Grass. Sharp edges. Spiders. Snakes. Eating leaves. These types of challenges environmentally make supervision more required when outside, which can result in kids not getting the body movement that they were able to get before they got older. Families often manage this by bringing a trampoline indoors. By making crash mats which take over the living room. This way the parents can do other things at the same time as their kids get their physical outlet needs met.
Sloped blocks of land. No fences on the property.
Go to the local park. Supervision required. Lack of fences? Shared equipment so difficulty with how long you can spend on a swing when you are caring for someone who just wants to swing for an hour or more without stopping.
Managing time together for outdoor play can be challenging. Some outdoor activities provide a lot of structure. Or they did to start with. And then the interest is lost. I don’t want to ride my bike anymore. I want to do this…. I only want to spend 15-20 minutes in the pool, so no my parent you can’t sit and enjoy some time outside, I’m done now I want to go do something else.
Does your home allow you to safely supervise your kids outdoors? For how long can you trust that they’ll be safe? As more kids get added to your family or as friends come over how does this change?