20 Mar

Social Distancing Tips from Dr. Veach

Be Active at Home Be Active at School / Childcare Be Active in the Community For Trainers

A Pediatrician’s take on Getting through Social Distancing

This is a stressful time and kids feel it, too.  Not only have their daily routines been dramatically altered, but they're also picking up on your stress and hearing snippets of adult conversations and headlines and may not be able to fully reason through this information.  Different things will be helpful for different age groups, but some things will help for all.  

Before I get to that, I'd like to address for anyone wondering if all of this social distancing is really necessary that the answer is 100% unequivocally, YES.  There's new data coming out so frequently but it's very clear that the most important action right now is for as many people as possible to socially distance as much as possible.  For my family, that means no contact with anyone outside the immediate family aside from physician parents going to and from work.  

What can we do to help our kids during this stressful time?

  1. Communicate
  2. Stay connected 
  3. Get outside and be active
  4. Try new activities and think outside the box with things you already like
  5. Try a schedule
  6. Be patient and kind
  7. Seek help if needed

This is a tough time, but we're all in this together and we've got this! Read full article.

Audey Veach, MD

Testimonials

  • Preservice Teachers Learn to Use Be Active Kids in Limited Spaces

    I really enjoyed our class meeting. It was interesting to discover that you can do just about anything with children in the classroom where there may not be much space to encourage them to be active.  A change that I will make in my own life is to be more active, as well as my daughter. I will share this information with my friends that have children such as yoga animals, or Simon Says.

    Cathy Sesta, Parent & Child Care Provider
  • Early Childhood Physical Activity Institute

    Thank you for inviting me to be part of this year’s Institute. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed the experience. You’re doing amazing work and I hope I’ll be able to continue contributing to it a bunch in the future.

    Rae Pica, www.movingandlearning.com
  • Plenty of Resources That I Can Use and Share

    This class was informative, and I look forward to being physically active with young children. On Friday, I volunteered at a Parents Night Out through my daughter's school. When I got there the kids were watching a movie. I got them up to play Simon Says and Red Light Green Light, however, after that I was stuck on what to do. I wish I had the knowledge I gained from this class, to have made it more exciting.

    I enjoyed your Land and Lake Activity.

    Venessa Wright, Parent & Child Care Provider
  • Be Active Kids Trainers Rock!

    I loved the training.  I would have loved it more if I had the other teachers from my center there also.  I am really looking forward to taking my kit to work and sharing it with my staff.  I liked Brittney, she reminded me of myself as far as being very active and motivated.  When I am at work with my little ones we stay busy all day.  I feel like singing my instructions and dancing my actions helps them to focus better on what I need for them to do.  Britney was great and I learned a lot from her. I am always trying to find new little ways to get the kids moving.

    Tiffany Daniel, Sandhill Community College
  • ECPAI

    The Early Childhood Physical Activity Institute was just wonderful!  Thank you again for including me in such an important effort to create and sustain leaders in EC physical activity. I would love to return to NC anytime that you think I can help. I enjoyed meeting the folks who work with you and hearing about all of the great things that are planned. 

    Linda Carson, Choosy Kids
  • Be Active Kids has Much to Offer

    Congratulations to you and everyone who has been promoting PA for young
    children in NC. You have much to be proud of here. Be Active Kids is an excellent source of ideas for promoting active play in unstructured settings. The Be Active Kids website also has resources on promoting unstructured active play. I encourage folks to review these resources. 

    Diane Craft, SUNY Cortland & Active Play Books