Let’s Move!, a nationwide initiative to set children on a path to a healthy future was launched by Michelle Obama. Like the Lets Move Museums in CT our state and the east coast has seen incredible commitments from parents, business leaders, educators, elected officials, community and faith leaders, and kids themselves to improve the health of our nation’s children.
Let’s CELEBRATE what we have achieved together — the national conversation we have started, the changes we are seeing at every level from families’ homes to grocery stores to schools and communities.
Let’s CHALLENGE each other to dig deeper and do more to support our kids’ health. While we have come a long way, there is still a long way to go to ensure all kids have the opportunity to grow up healthy.
Let’s CHAMPION this issue for the long term. Let’s continue to innovate and collaborate to nurture our children into the future.
As you celebrate, challenge, and champion these efforts this year, join all along the way through Facebook and Twitter!
What’s at risk? Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled, and today, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or obese. The numbers are even higher in African American and Hispanic communities, where nearly 40% of the children are overweight or obese. If we don’t solve this problem, one third of all children born in 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives. Many others will face chronic obesity-related health problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, and asthma.
Engaging in physical activity as a family can be a fun way to get everyone moving. Studies show that kids who believe they are competent and have the skills to be physically active are more likely to be active. And those who feel supported by friends and families to become active, or surrounded by others interested in physical activity, are more likely to participate.
A break from traditional activities INDOORS can be a visit to a MUSEUM for your family, youth group, scout troop to get started on a path to a healthier lifestyle! Through the Let’s Move Museums & Gardens initiative museums, zoos, public gardens, historic sites and science and technology centers have joined the call to action. Here are the Lets Move Museums in CT and other sites for CT kids and families:
Imagine Nation Museum, Bristol
Bruce Museum of Art & Science, Greenwich
Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford
New Britain Youth Museum at Hungerford Park, Kensington
Lutz Children’s Museum, Manchester
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center, Mystic
New Canaan Nature Center, New Canaan
Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, New Haven
Children’s Museum of Southeastern Connecticut, Niantic
Blue Slope Country Museum, North Franklin
Stepping Stones Museum for Children, Norwalk
Florence Griswold Museum, Old Lyme
Stamford Museum & Nature Center, Stamford
Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens, Stamford
Mattatuck Museum, Waterbury
And nearby is Springfield Museums
America’s Move to Raise a Healthier Generation of Kids
