Tips For Keeping Your Kids Active And Entertained Over The Summer

With summer quickly approaching and school almost over, you’re probably looking for ways to keep your kids active and entertained this summer. If you’re lucky enough to be able to stay home with your kids over the summer months, make sure to plan a couple activities each week that are different and will keep your children engaged and away from the television. 

• Take a bike ride to a park a fair distance from home, bring and lunch and make a day of it. Pick up a friend or two on the way and create a cycling caravan! 
• You could also walk through the park and bring a book on wildlife so you can learn about the animals and plants you see. 
• The Peel/Halton region also has a multitude of conservation areas where you can go for an easy walk or a challenging hike, take advantage of the nice weather and see what’s in your backyard.

For those of you who are unable to stay home with your kids over the summer, or even for those who can, but are looking for a more structured program to keep your kids active, the Sports Training Academy is a great way to keep kids active over the summer. They offer 5 daily and weekly sport camps for children ages 2-13 including: multi-sport, hockey, golf, junior academy and gymnastics. All of their camps are a wonderful way to teach your kids new sports, keep them active and have fun this summer!

Synthetic Ice Surface

Trampoline/Tumbling Track

The Sports Training Academy prides itself on developing well-rounded athletes. The 25,000 sq ft indoor multi-sport facility comprises of a synthetic ice rink/skating treadmills, driving range/golf simulators/putting green, turfed field, fitness zone and gymnastics studio which allows athletes of all ages and stages to try their hand at a variety of sports. With everything you need under one roof, the Sports Training Academy is a one-stop shop for all of your children’s sport training needs. One child can be in the gymnastics studio learning a new tumbling routine, while another can be on the ice learning a wrist shot, or on the field perfecting their soccer dribbling skills. 

Many of the programs offered at the Sports Training Academy also focus on multi-sport instruction. The after school program, Junior Academy and the Summer/PA/Winter break camps all allow child athletes to test their skills at many sports each day. At the end of the day, it is their goal that a child will go home with a desire to learn more about a new sport, or tell mom and dad how they were finally able to hit a baseball without a tee!

At the Sports Training Academy, all accomplishments are recognized and the positive reinforcement from coaches and trainers steer athletes in the direction of success. The coaches are all trained in their fields (including university or national level athletes) and each department is run by individuals who also have extensive experience competing in each sport, as well as many degrees related to their department. Coaches and teammates work together to develop the best all-round athletes.

Check out their website for more pictures and information on how to register for their programs.

Oakville's Junior Academy Fitness Program for Kids Gets A Top Score!

For the past few weeks, momstown Oakville moms and kids were lucky enough to be able to participate in The Sports Training Academy's new Junior Academy programs.  While it was obvious that the kids were having a blast, I wanted to chat with the head coach, Carly Isic, to find out more about their programs.

Q:  What is the Junior Academy?
The Junior Academy was developed to facilitate the growth and development of children aged 2-5 and to encourage them to participate in sport and fitness activities that will lead to adopting a healthy, active lifestyle now and into the future. It is a day-time program that incorporates the fundamentals of sport, exercise and health (flexibility, strength, endurance) with the basic skills pertinent to healthy growth and development (such as hand-eye co-ordination, balance, gross motor skills, and spatial and body awareness).

The program introduces children, through weekly one-hour sessions, to the fun and exciting world of sport and exercise while at the same time building on developmental skills. The activities and games played at the Junior Academy are age appropriate using a variety of child-sized equipment making it easier for their little bodies to work with. The child’s self-confidence is enhanced through encouragement from coaches and class-mates, and feedback from coaches guides children to success!

Q:  Tell us how your background augments the programs being offered?
I (Head Coach Carly) have masters in Pediatric Exercise and Health and so Junior Academy programs offer more than just sport instruction. I am able to apply my knowledge of how children exercise, how their bodies adapt to exercise, and what affect physical activity has on children to the program to make it the most beneficial it can be.

Q:  What have kids loved best so far about your programs?
The kids have loved using their imagination and turning exercise into play. Jumping on the trampoline has proven to be a popular warm-up!

Q:  When are the next sessions starting?
A 7-week program runs from Monday February 4 - Friday March 29, 2013 (excluding March Break).  The cost of the 8 week program is $120, plus HST. For more information, I encourage you to visit our website.

The classes were very energetic and engaging and allowed the kids to enjoy every activity.  Here is what some of our members had to say:

"This is so much fun!!! Went today and my son had a blast!"

"Carmelo loves the Junior Academy class. The instructor Carly is great with the kids and the activities are fun."

Thanks to the Junior Academy for such a great time!