A Unique Child: Health - Early movers

A 'must-have' resource designed to help under-fives lead active and healthy lives and aimed at early years practitioners is now available from the British Heart Foundation.

The Early Movers pack provides comprehensive advice on how to plan and organise physically active play environments and includes ways to involve parents.

Written and collated by the BHF National Centre, the pack comprises:

• seven A4 booklets providing advice and ideas

• two parent leaflets: 'Help your baby move and play every day' (G610) and 'Help your child move and play every day' (G611)

• a height chart (G612)

• stickers (G613), and

• six Early Movers posters (G614).

Advice

The seven booklets are:

• Early movers - an introduction to the guide

• Introduction to physical activity in the early years - includes the UK physical activity guidelines for under-fives and explains how the guide supports the UK early years

• Planning and organisation for early years managers - explains how to develop a whole setting approach to physical activity, audit current provision and plan a physical activity policy

• Getting the best from your environment - provides ideas to create enabling environments for physically active play and reduce sitting time

• Practical ideas for physically active play - suggestions for non-walkers to pre-schoolers

• Getting children involved - considers the principle of inclusion and the balance of child-initiated and adult-led activities

• Getting parents and carers involved - provides ideas for building partnerships and promoting physical activity beyond the setting.

Dr Lala Manners, director of specialist training company Activematters, says, 'The pack is really well thought out and should be a must for every setting. It emphasises the importance of physical activity to children's overall health and development and clarifies its relationship to other areas of the curriculum. Ideas for activities are carefully chosen and manageable for all settings. Particularly strong is the section, "Planning and organisation" for early years managers.'

MORE INFORMATION

For further information, visit www.bhfactive.org.uk. To order the pack, call the BHF Orderline (quoting order code G609) on 0870 600 6566, email orderline@bhf.org.uk or visit: http://www.bhf.org.uk/publications/ view-publication.aspx?ps=1002163

• The materials are free but BHF would welcome donations to help towards its costs.