Making Physical Fitness Fun at Summer Camp
Attending a camp is a common item on many summer to-do lists. The Health, Sport, and Exercise Sciences department at the University of Kansas offered two camps: the Sports Skills and Physical Activity Camp, and the Jayhawk Performance Camp, both emphasizing fun and fitness.
The Sports Skills & Physical Activity Camp, provided through the Well-Fit Center for Youth Wellness and Fitness, is aimed to help children in grades 3–6 develop sports skills and achieve a good level of physical fitness. The camp offered experiences in a group setting with expert leadership and supervision. Dr. Ken Murfay, Assistant Teaching Professor and Director of the Physical Education Plus Program, serves as the camp director. He notes that the camp’s design focuses on keeping youth active and building their confidence in physical activity.
The Sports Skills and Physical Activity Camp is a two-week camp and runs for 3 hours, 9am-12pm, Monday through Friday. Each day features a warmup, an introduction to two sports and a conditioning segment. Activities included basketball, baseball, bowling, football, frisbee, hockey, soccer, resistance training, volleyball and more.
The camp also gives the counselors hands on experience of working with youth.
Jayhawk Performance is also conducted thru the Well-Fit Center for Youth Wellness and Fitness. Dr. Quincy Johnson, Assistant Professor of Exercise Science and Assistant Director of the Jayhawk Athletic Performance Laboratory, is the program coordinator and says the program is designed to build long term athletic development, utilizing strength and conditioning to develop youth and prepare them for sporting success.
Jayhawk Performance is a year around program. The summer sessions are two 4-week sessions that meets twice a week. Each session begins with a fun event and warmup. There are 3 segments that focus on strength, power and speed. The emphasis is on exercise technique and motor ability to develop habits that will carry over to adulthood.
Jayhawk Performance also collects data to track the progress of each participant. The data is used in the research on the effect of exercise and physical activity among youth.
