Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in Boston, MA

With so many hours in their early years spent in strollers, play pens, and car seats, young children are increasingly at risk for delayed motor and cognitive development, as well as sedentary preferences and childhood obesity, according to the National Association for Sports and Physical Education.  "Basic movement skills like running, jumping, throwing, and kicking don't just appear because a child grows older," says the NASPE, they require movement experience and opportunities like access to stairs (to learn stair climbing) or the chance to bounce and chase balls (to develop hand-eye coordination).

For this reason, the Association recently released the first physical activity guidelines for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers:

Guideline 1.Toddlers should accumulate at least 30 minutes daily of structured physical activity; preschoolers at least 60 minutes.

Guideline 2.Toddlers and preschoolers should engage in at least 60 minutes and up to several hours per day of daily, unstructured physical activity and should not be sedentary for more than 60 minutes at a time except when sleeping.

Guideline 3.Toddlers should develop movement skills that are building blocks for more complex movement tasks; preschoolers should develop competence in movement skills that are building blocks for more complex movement tasks.

Guideline 4.Toddlers and preschoolers should have indoor and outdoor areas that meet or exceed recommended safety standards for performing large muscle activities.

Guideline 5.Individuals responsible for the well-being of toddlers and preschoolers should be aware of the importance of physical activity and facilitate the child's movement skills.

What better way to provide the structured physical activity recommended by the NASPE than to practice yoga with your toddler or preschooler?  In the Itsy Bitsy Yoga??? classes that I teach, I have noticed that these guys truly are natural yogis.  Take a few moments to watch your kids and you'll see them entering into Down Dog, doing Bridge or Cobra Pose, and generally just inhabiting their body in a way that grown-ups have often forgotten how to achieve.  In my classes (and with my own newly toddling son), I use songs and games to reinforce what toddlers and preschoolers are already doing, and to provide new opportunities and challenges.

Not only does yoga get kids moving, it also gives them (and their parents) new tools for calming down in the face of frustration or upset.  Many parents have told me that they routinely use poses, breath games, and songs we've done in class to prevent or move through a tantrum.  And instead of fighting naptime and bedtime, one toddler whose family I teach now brings his parents a blanket when he is sleepy, in order to play a game called "blanket swing" that we do in class.

To learn more about the classes I offer in Arlington and Cambridge, visit the Namaste Baby Web site.  To find an Itsy Bitsy Yoga classes in other locations, visit its creator, Helen Garbedian's, Itsy Bitsy Yoga Web site.  You can also check out her book, Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers: 8-Minute Routines to Help Your Child Grow Smarter, Be Happier, and Behave Better.

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Lauren Bellon, owner of Namaste Baby, loves helping little ones make a great start in life. She trained with Helen Garabedian to teach Itsy Bitsy Yoga?? for babies, tots, and tykes as well as with Storytime Yoga creator Sydney Solis.  She is also a postpartum doula, educated by DONA International to support new parents.  Lauren has been practicing Ashtanga Yoga for eight years and is gearing up to pursue adult teacher training in 2009.  She has practiced Vipassana meditation for the past five years and has served as a course manager for children's meditation retreats.

Happily married to her best friend, Lauren is a joyful mom to their son Kai.  She loves hiking and spending time outdoors with her family and friends, preparing (and eating!) delicious food, and making laughter a daily practice.