How I helped my kids (and others) to move more and run around at school
Ten years ago, before the wonders of government recommended daily walks and Joe Wicks daily workouts (aka lockdown), I talked to the head teacher at my kids’ primary school about daily exercise.
I’d read an article about the Daily Mile, and heard about it in my health, fitness, and movement circles. In a nutshell, children get to run outside for 15 minutes once a day, not during breaks or lunch, but skipping part of a lesson. They behave and concentrate better, eat healthier lunches, and are also happier.
The head was unsure of the risk assessments, red tape, weather, and practicalities of the initiative, so I sent her the article, along with an encouraging email.
Run a Mile article in the Guardian 2015
Perhaps it was already being considered, or came through other channels, but when my kids announced they were starting the Daily Mile the following summer, I was over the moon. They kept going most days through the winter. The following year, they installed a basic track around the school field so that the daily mile could continue in all weathers. No need to change into trainers, just get out each day and do it, and then get back to learning, refreshed and raring to go! Movement is great for everyone, but particularly for people with neurodiversity like ADHD.
It’s a pretty popular initiative nowadays, with its own foundation and website; thedailymile.co.uk, and 21,567 schools taking part at the time of writing.
Wouldn’t it be amazing if all of those schools took part in Challenge for Change?
What if other schools who took part in Challenge for Change too, through their parents initiatives at work, clubs, etc… and then became “Daily Mile” schools!?
Challenge for Change in Schools
A small primary school with 7 years of 30 pupils each running a mile would run 210 miles each day. I’d like to think that the teachers and teaching assistants would join in too, so we could say 250 miles to make the maths easier. Over the month of September, say 20 school days, that would be 5,000 miles. This would be a great contribution to the Challenge for Change global target (and the Proclaimers would be happy!) But what if bigger schools, and secondary schools were to take part too! It wouldn’t take long to get around the world once, or a few times.
So, we’ve boosted the distance contribution and got kids and teachers moving, and talking to their parents about taking part. What about the charity angle?
Imagine if a few of the kids were sponsored 50p a mile by 5 people each, e.g. two parents, two grandparents, and a neighbour. Over 20 days, each child could raise £50. If just 20% of the school (40 kids) did this, the small primary school would raise around £2,000 for their chosen local children’s charity.
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| Dinton Santa Dash 2017 |
The big winner for me is Health. Physical health and mental health. Kids learning better, having conversations about being active, and being happier. As the article says...
Sitting Still Kills, whereas not sitting still Builds Skills,
but also, healthy habits that will be with kids for life.
Find out more, sign-up and start a team for your school, club, or workplace at www.challengeforchange.org.uk
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