Parents, especially of girls need to read this article:
Kid sit up to 8.5 hours a day…after a single session of prolonged inactivity, the children developed changes in their blood flow and arteries that, in grown-ups, would signal the start of serious cardiovascular problems.
We just attended Back to School night at my daughter’s school and the teacher was so excited to have a schedule where big blocks of time allowed her to work on long projects and activities. One catch though, second graders can’t (and shouldn’t) have to focus for that long. She demonstrated their on of their favorite “brain break” activities that gets the kids up and moving and oxygen flowing to their brains:
A Moose Ta Cha!
She cajoled us parents up to try it and amidst the giggling and consciousness we DID feel better! Awake, refreshed and dare I say…ready to learn?!
Chalk In My Pocket 