There's your toddler's motor development to consider. How can he possibly acquire and refine his motor skills if he's not up and moving around? How is he to build his bones and muscles, become coordinated and develop confidence in his physical abilities? Without all this he's unlikely to participate in physical activity or sports later in his life, which means he could well become an overweight adolescent or adult. Additionally, all the recent brain research is confirming that motor development is tied to brain – and intellectual – development!

What can you do about it? Plenty! To begin, you can encourage your toddler to be active. Research has shown that the children who are most active are those whose parents have encouraged them to be active. Here are some other tips:

• Demonstrate enthusiasm for physical activity. Children learn by watching the important adults in their lives. If you spend the majority of your time in sedentary activities, that's what your child will want to do, too. But if you spend time playing with her, she'll have a wonderful role model.
• If rainy or cold weather has forced your child indoors, assure her you know how to brighten her day and play a rousing game of Follow the Leader. If the weather's good and your little one needs to burn some energy, tell her it's time to go for a walk! Then, with all the excitement you can muster, set off to see and hear everything you can in the neighborhood. If you have a playful, enthusiastic attitude toward physical activity, you form a positive association with it in your child's mind.
• Arrange the environment to allow for movement. Is there room indoors for you and your toddler to dance or roll a beach ball back and forth? To set up an obstacle course? Or to put down a couple of hoops you can jump in and out of? What about the outdoor environment? Does it include open areas for running, jumping, rolling and the like? Is there equipment for safe climbing, hanging and swinging? If the answer to most of these questions is no, your child will soon understand that movement is not a priority.
• Buy equipment and toys with movement in mind. If your child has more active than sedentary toys, it will limit his choices – in a good way. When it's time for gift giving, select items like balls in a variety of shapes, sizes and textures; "juggling" (chiffon) scarves for practice throwing and catching; a shovel and pail; a little red wagon; or a wading pool or swing set. When shopping for games, Twister has more to offer than Chutes and Ladders. And CDs with lively music are a better choice than movie videos.

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