It’s summer time! And kids’ thoughts naturally turn to ways to have fun and enjoy themselves! Moms, on the other hand, want kids to continue to learn and develop their skills while they enjoy the lazy days of summer. The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge is an online game that meets the needs of moms and kids. The game inspires kids to jump into good nutrition and have fun while learning. It also helps kids to make good food choices and encourages them to be physically active between events to warm them up for the next challenge and to celebrate!
In this online game from USDA, kids pick their player and progress through four track and field events including the javelin, high jump, long jump, and the dash. To win, players must quickly pick the right answer to questions about healthy eating and nutrition. As players advance from one event to the next, they are encouraged to be active: “Now jump up and down five times to celebrate!” When kids answer correctly, their players get a medal at the end of the game. Questions are randomly selected so kids can play multiple times to get a better score or “go for the gold” on the winner’s stand.
Moms can feel good knowing that this video game reinforces the healthy eating habits they want their kids to develop. The game is also a fun, interactive way for moms and kids to enjoy their time together while learning about whole grains, fruits, vegetables and foods made with low fat milk. The Track & Field Fuel-Up Challenge also provides practical ways mom and child can apply what they learn. The kids’ activity sheets reinforce the skills kids learn in the game, and are an excellent “quiet time” activity for rainy summer days!
Check out the Especially for Moms resources; this page includes kid-friendly recipes, videos, fact sheets and easy, low-cost ways to make fruits, veggies, low-fat milk and whole grains a part of family meals and snacks.
Nutrition.gov provides easy, online access to government information on food and human nutrition for consumers and is managed by the USDA National Agricultural Library (NAL) Food and Nutrition Information Center (FNIC). More resources about nutrition, healthy eating and physical activity can be found at www.Nutrition.gov.
