This special corner is dedicated to all our heart heroes who are passionate about keeping their hearts and brains healthy. Scroll down to discover and explore games, activities, and valuable resources that will help you understand the importance of practicing healthy habits and more about the Jump Rope for Heart program.
We challenge you to pick a healthy habit (or two!) and practice it every day. When you register online you can track your healthy habit right in your Participant Center. Here is our step-by-step guide to show you how. You can also track your healthy habit on our new EASY Healthy Habit tracker! We have a digital and printable version you can click below to download and get started:
Jump into these great resources and tools! Ready to download and print, our resources are designed to make the Healthy Habit program EASY and fun for all ages:
Screens for less than two hours
Yes to water, and no to sugary drinks
Play these fun online activities, games, and quizzes – a playful way to learn heart-healthy habits. Presented by Desjardins.
Did you know that it is recommended to eat at least five servings of vegetables and fruit a day?
Do you know the difference between a vegetable or a fruit? Let's try:
Is a tomato a vegetable or a fruit?
You are a superstar! That is right, a fruit is the ripe flower of a plant. So tomatoes are a fruit.
Not quite. Try again!
Do you want to continue to play? Click here for a fun printable game!
How many minutes or hours per day should children be energetically active to keep healthy?
You are right! Kids should be energetically active for at least an hour every single day. How long have you been active today?
Mhh, not quite right- try again.
Did you know that more than half of all 5 to 17-year-olds are engaging in more screen time than is recommended for their age group - which is 2 hours or less?
What counts as screen time?
Check all the boxes below that you think count as screen time (you can also select all):
You got it! All of these devices count as screen time.
Try again, one or more are missing!
Did you know that half of your body is made of water? That is why water is important and you have to make sure to get enough of it.
Can you guess what our bodies need water for? (You can also select all.) Our body needs water to:
Wow, you must be a scientist to know that. Well done!
Not quite, try again. One or more are missing!
How healthy was your lunch?
Food is the fuel you need to move and be healthy. As per the Canada's Food guide, every meal should have vegetables and/or fruit, protein and whole grain foods.
What was in your lunch box today? Take a piece of paper and make three columns:
1. Veggies/fruit, 2. Protein Foods and 3. Whole Grain foods. Now list the items in your lunch box that fall under each of these categories.
If you did not fill all buckets today, use this picture as a guide to pack a healthy lunch tomorrow. Remember that fruit or vegetables don't have to be fresh to be healthy- they can also be canned or frozen.
Let's play the "Find a new physical activity game"
Find an adult who has been on earth for more than 40 years, like Jump! (ex: parent, grandparent, teacher etc.) Ask them what some of their favourite physical activities were to do when they were your age until they've listed one you haven't tried! Ask them to teach you.
There are many fun ways to get your body moving and leave screens aside.
Pick one of the below suggested activities - or think of a new one - to play at recess today. After you have played, mark the challenge as completed.
You can modify each activity YOUR way. For example, complete a wheelchair race, or tie one end of the rope to a bench so you can swing the other end of the rope with your other arm, or move to the music and freeze when the music stops. There are many possibilities!
Which other activities can you come up with?
Here is your challenge for the day: Try not to drink any sugary drinks today, only water and unsweetened milk or plant based beverages! *
*Except for children with diabetes experiencing a low blood sugar
Challenge accepted? At the end of the day, ask yourself if it was it easy to only drink water? Could you do it again?
If you have completed the challenge and have picked "Y- Yes to water, No to sugary drinks" in your Healthy Habit Tracker, you can enter it as a streak in your healthy habit tracker. Simply log into your participant center and count your streak!
Let's play the "I am going on a picnic game" and pack a fruit or vegetable that begins with each letter in the alphabet.
You or a friend/classmate begin by saying "I am going on a picnic and I am bringing an apple". The next person repeats the line and adds a fruit/vegetable from the next letter in the alphabet. Continue playing from A-Z.
Not challenging enough? Try this version:
You or a friend/classmate begin by saying "I am going on a picnic and I am bringing an apple". Whatever letter the fruit/vegetable ends in, is the letter the next fruit/vegetable needs to start with. In this case, apple ends with an "e"- meaning the next player has to come up with a fruit/vegetable that starts with the letter "e".
Did you know that kids who are active for a minimum of one hour daily are more likely to become healthy, active adults?
In order to keep you active, here is a fun game for you:
How many consecutive skips of a jump rope can you do in 40 seconds?
Done? Now try to beat your best number or challenge your parent/ friend / classmate.
Of course we invite you to modify this challenge YOUR way!
Want to add more fun: For more skipping alternatives, check out this Skipping Skills Guide !
Power's out Challenge
Imagine the power is out all weekend and there are no screens. What activities could you do if the light goes out?
Make a list of at least three activities and share those with your family or classmates!
"Spot the less sugary beverages" challenge
Tip: Always try choosing beverages with the lowest amount of sugar, and that is the most healthy in terms of nutrition. Be cautious with artificially sweetened beverages, since they contain no nutrients (and therefore no nutritional benefit), in addition to stimulating a taste for sweet foods and having a high level of acidity.
To help drink less sugar from drinks:
Welcome to the healthy and yummy breakfast cooking challenge!
Make your own delicious "Easy Bake Cheese Strata." Watch 2020 Food Network Junior Chef Showdown winner, Audrey, prepare this quick, healthy and delicious breakfast recipe.
What you need for this recipe are two slices of whole grain bread, broccoli, cheese, ham and parsley (optional).
If Audrey can do it - you can do it too! And maybe you make enough to share with your parents or classmates?
Tip: If you look for an even easier solution to make your breakfast more healthy: top off your breakfast cereal with sliced bananas, fresh or frozen berries or a handful of nuts for an added boost of energy and vitamins.
Play Snakey!
What you need: one or more friends, a parent or classmates:
Two kids wiggle a skipping rope along the floor like a slithering snake. Others try to jump over the snake without stepping on it. Take turns wiggling the rope.
Don't have a rope? Take a scarf instead!
For even more skipping alternatives, check out this Skipping Skills Guide !
For this challenge you need to know your favourite TV show and your favourite song. Ready?
Turn off the TV at your favourite show time today and get up to create a dance choreography of your favourite song. Not a dancer? Use cans, containers or pots to create drums and beat to the rhythm of your favourite song!
To add more fun: teach your family and friends!
The exotic water experiment
Water is good for your body and can also be fun for your taste buds. You can add herbs, fruit or yes, even vegetables to it. Try adding fresh, frozen or canned strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pears, cucumber or even mint leaves to your glass of water. To release the most flavour, try crushing or chopping the fruit/vegetables.
Let's play a game: "Can you guess the flavour of the water?"
Add different kinds of fruit that you may have in your fridge (they can be frozen too) to different water glasses. Next, find a friend or a parent/guardian, blindfold them and have them try to guess the flavour of each glass. Try as well and see if you have the same favourite!
When you fundraise and track your healthy habits online you can collect cool badges! Badges are displayed on your fundraising page for all your friends and family to see. This year there are 10 fundraising badges and 7 healthy habit badges. Collect them all!
As our heartfelt thank you for your support, you will receive an online gift card* – from Toys “R” Us, Indigo, Amazon or Walmart – based on the
fundraising levels.
Get inspired by our
Wishlist and start dreaming about what you could purchase with your gift card at each level.
*Gifts are non-cumulative. One Thank You Gift Card will be awarded based on total donations collected online. Some participating schools reserve the right to opt-out of individual gift cards for students. Please check with your school to see if they are offering gift cards.
We collect your personal information as part of your involvement in Jump Rope for Heart. We may maintain a record and share details of your interaction and contact information to run Jump Rope for Heart and for donor-related, promotion, follow-up, administration of prizes and tax receipting purposes, where required. Please see www.heartandstroke.ca/privacy for more information. Occasionally, we may contact you with mission-related or program related communications. If you wish no further contact or have any questions or concerns regarding the privacy of your personal information, please contact the Privacy Officer at 1-888-HSF-INFO (473-4636) or ON_privacyoffice@heartandstroke.ca.
™ The Jump Rope for Heart and the heart and / Icon on its own and the heart and / Icon followed by another icon or words are trademarks of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.
© 2024 Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. All rights reserved.
Charitable number 106846942RR0001