Recommended Website:
USDA’s Eat Smart, Play Hard!
Kids’ Page
Age Range: 6-11
The United States Department of Agriculture features this website for
children to learn about healthy nutrition and the importance of exercise.
When you get to the site, you will see a colorful drawing of a town center.
Click on the buildings to find activities, worksheets, games, and other
helpful information. Your host, Power Panther (the mascot of good nutrition
and exercise) will guide you throughout the site. Here are some of the
highlights you will find:
- Town Library: Power Panther tells stories of his own experiences, in order
to encourage children to get off the couch and into the playground. For
online viewing, you may like to select the individual cartoon panels.
Questions follow each story, to ensure comprehension and retention. Here you
will also find clip art, activity sheets, and even food experiments. Note:
the “MyPyramid for Kids” link goes to the TeamNutrition website, where you
can download some lessons and also order a CD with a game on it; all of this
is also available for free on the MyPyramid website referenced further down. - Theater: Power Up Moves – Dance along with Power Panther :)
- Fitness Center: Printable activity sheets (also available in Spanish)
- Power Tunes: Get up and move to these rock songs. Lyrics and sheet music
are also provided. - Post Office: Printable Power Panther themed greeting cards and posters.
- Eat Smart Grill: Recipes you can try at home!
- Fun Times Arcade: This is where you will find the MyPyramid Blast Off Game
(and if you go to this game you will also find links to the lessons
referenced earlier, along with some visually pleasing presentations about
food choices, serving sizes, recommended daily allowance, and so forth.)
Under “Games” you will find an interactive gardening game, where you try to
keep the garden well watered and free of pests and weeds. (This one is
challenging!) This section also features online mazes and scrambled word
puzzles. “Links to other fun stuff” leads to a website especially designed
to help girls keep their bones strong. - Travel: Among other things, this section has a printable Grocery Store
Treasure Hunt you can take with you next time you go shopping! - Farmer’s Market: Under “Other Fun Stuff” you can play the “Agventure Game”
or make your own fruit and vegetable diary. - House: Don’t miss the house in the foreground, where you will find tips for
families, help for growing your own vegetable garden, printable worksheets,
and more! - Playground: Last but not least, if you click on the kids playing in the
foreground, you will get suggestions for activities and games you can do to
stay healthy (these require getting up from the computer).
Enjoy!
