We stumbled upon this site while researching the effects of TV on children in our target age range (not good, in case you were wondering, but quality and quantity make a difference).  The program is fun, interactive and contains great information on nutrition, mood, and our favorite, movement!  WebMD, the leading provider of health information services, and Sanford Health, the largest not-for-profit rural health care provider in the United States,  teamed up to develop this comprehensive suite of resources that empower children and parents to make healthy lifestyles choices that help prevent childhood obesity.

The pictures posted are of our recent debut at the Mandeville, LA Barnes and Noble.  Taking Possum and Monkey to the next level with a new MwMâ„¢ Action Adventure story!   

But what I really want to share is another good research article I've come across.  Dr. John Ratey, author of Spark:  The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain, is a fellow I like to keep a close eye on.  His latest book compiles in a very digestible read, the groundbreaking research done over the last 15-25 years to validate the link between physical activity and cognitive function.  His quotes are peppered over,  under and through most of the articles written on exercise and the adolescent brain from 2008 (when Spark was published) to now. The article I came across tonight was such a good summary that I've pulled a section for your perusal.

From ADDitudeMag.com - An ADHD Med without Side Effects
"Routine physical activity firms up the brain. “Exercise turns on the attention system, the so-called executive functions — sequencing, working memory, prioritizing, inhibiting, and sustaining attention,” says Ratey, author of Spark (Little, Brown). “On a practical level, it causes kids to be less impulsive, which makes them more primed to learn."

 

I have a child, my eight year old daughter, "diagnosed" as a kindergardener an ADHD child.  Now in 2nd grade and doing very well, I've medicated her with exercise  since the git go.  It did take the "official" diagnosis to get me to buckle down and really do the work I'm trained to do with my own daughter.  She was/is my biggest inspiration and my most challenging client.  When we do not get out of the house for a minimum 30 minute playtime in the morning before school, everybody suffers.  Next year I'm taking the homeschooling leap, for many reasons, one of those giving ourselves the opportunity to delve more effectively and completely into exercise as an effective medication for a balanced life.

Warmly, Wendy Piret

Writer and Instructor MwMAA