🎓 Skills Your Child Will Develop

• 🧠 Brain-Body Connection — Research consistently shows that physical activity directly improves concentration, working memory, and academic readiness — making fitness time one of the highest-return educational investments in a preschooler's day.
• 🌱 Lifelong Active Habits — Children who have joyful physical experiences in the preschool years are dramatically more likely to be active adolescents and adults — making every positive movement experience an investment in lifelong health.
• 🏃 Gross Motor Skills — Running, jumping, hopping, and climbing build the large muscle strength, coordination, and body control that physical activities, sports, and even handwriting readiness depend on.
• 🧭 Spatial Awareness — Moving through and around obstacles, understanding where their body is in space, and following directional instructions develops the spatial body awareness that sports, dance, and coordinated movement require.

Movies can provide inspiration for preschool fitness activities – case in point, look no further than the latest Pixar Films release, Happy Feet. The premise is great, the characters are adorable, and the music is fun and upbeat. Together, you have all of the makings for some fun preschool Happy Feet activities.

The Film

Happy Feet takes place in Antarctica, where viewers learn about the Emperor penguin – a species which each has a heartsong to attract a mate. One of the penguins, Mumble, is unable to sing, but tap dances brilliantly. His inability to sing makes him an outcast from the other penguins, but he finds his way and is ultimately accepted for his unique talent.

The Music

The Happy Feet Soundtrack will keep your preschooler moving. Just try and sit still when these songs are playing! With songs from Prince, Pink, and Brittany Murphy (who plays Gloria in the film), as well as the song "Jump n' Move" by The Brand New Heavies, you can easily encourage your preschooler to get involved in Happy Feet activities.

Happy Feet Activities

Based on the movements of penguins, you and your preschooler can come up with a lot of different ideas that encourage fitness. Here are a few – with the soundtrack playing in the background, there are endless opportunities to “jump n’ move”!

Do a Little (Penguin) Dance – get your best penguin waddle moves on and groove out like a penguin!
Waddle Race – on your mark, get set… waddle! Your preschooler will love the silliness of racing from the starting line to the finish, all at a waddle’s pace.
Penguin Egg Carry – establish a start and finish, then place a large plastic easter egg on your preschooler’s feet. Let them race by shuffling along with the egg on their feet – just like the penguins do!
Happy Feet Tap Dance – dance like Mumble from the movie! With Mumble tap shoes, your child can recreate Mumble’s movements. For an inexpensive homemade tap shoe, use bottle caps from an iced tea bottle and attach to your child’s shoes. Punch holes into the caps with an awl, thread string through and tie around your preschooler’s shoe.

Let your preschooler's imagination be your guide for these fun Happy Feet activities. There are also a lot of learning opportunities to discuss while you dance, waddle and flap!

I'm Wendy Michaels, the Preschool Fitness writer and associate editor for PreschoolRock.com. With an active preschooler of my own, I've experienced how easy it is to include exercise and healthy habits into a preschooler's daily activities. I'd love to hear more about your ideas for promoting fitness with your own preschooler. Please contact me with any suggestions, ideas or questions.