Healthy Habits, Healthy Body
If you’ve ever tried to convince a very opinionated 4-year-old to brush their teeth, wash their hands, or eat a vegetable — you already know the struggle. I know it well, too. (And this is why we now have the Healthy Body Homeschool Unit Study.)
Lil Miss Mouse (our sweet and spunky 4-year-old) is full of life, imagination, and a strong will. And while I absolutely love her firecracker spirit, I’ll be honest — it has made some things really challenging. Like… convincing her to brush her teeth without a fight. Or getting her to wash her hands after using the bathroom without a dramatic sigh. Or asking her to eat something green without the dreaded, “I don’t like that.”
I get it. To her, brushing her teeth just feels like an annoying task I was forcing on her. Washing her hands is boring. Eating healthy isn’t as fun as eating dessert. But I worry about her health when all she wants is junk and she resists brushing her teeth, ya know?
And honestly? I don’t want healthy habits to feel like a power struggle — I want them to feel natural for her. Something she actually wants to do.
So… I got an idea.
What If I Made Learning About Good Habits for a Healthy Body FUN?
One night I had a thought: What if I approached this differently?
What if I turned healthy habits into something she could explore, play with, and learn about in a hands-on way — instead of something I just nagged her about every day?
I know that kids learn better and remember more when they learn through playing. I decided to create a few little activities to help her understand why we brush our teeth, wash our hands, eat healthy, and stay active.
But then… I did the ADHD thing and I researched and hyperfocused and next thing I knew, I was elbows deep in a unit study.
The more I brainstormed, the more I realized there was SO much I wanted to teach her about taking care of her body — not just hygiene, but also nutrition, exercise, and rest. And the more excited I got, the more I kept adding to it.
And then, BOOM!, I had a fun, full, (and fabulous) Healthy Body Homeschool Unit Study.
And honestly? It turned out way better than I expected.
The Best Part About the Healthy Body Unit Study – She Likes It
When we sat down at the table for the first lesson of the healthy body unit study, Lil Miss Mouse was immediately drawn to the pages on brushing teeth. We talked about germs (bacteria,) cavities, and brushing teeth before diving into the activities. And you know what? She had fun! She drew and erased and cleaned food bits off the teeth at least a dozen times. She did the same with the flossing activity. For each, I demonstrated the correct technique and had her practice.
The next day we did a lesson about healthy foods. We sorted foods into “more healthy” and “less healthy” categories. For many reasons, we are just sorting foods into things we should eat more often and foods we should eat less often. (We do have things we avoid altogether, like artificial food dyes, but that’s a whole different lesson.) After that, she started pointing out healthy choices during meals or asking “mom, is this more healthy or less healthy?” Making wise food choices became just a little bit easier.
Funny: when I asked her to circle all the ways she likes to play and move on the exercise page, she circled all of them. Every single one. (She hasn’t even ever played tennis!) But I’m not surprised because this girl loves to move. Inspired by that activity, I decided to get a kite from Dollar Tree and teach her how to fly a kite. We have had great weather for it, she loves it, and now we have one more way to get fresh air and exercise together. =)
We’ve Still Got a Ways to Go, But We’ve Made a Good Start
Now don’t get me wrong — we didn’t magically solve everything overnight. There are still moments when she sighs dramatically about stopping to wash her hands.
But good habits take TIME.
She understands why we do these things. She knows that brushing keeps her teeth healthy, eating fruits and veggies makes her body strong, and washing her hands keeps her from getting sick.
And while we’re still working toward consistency, I can tell you this:
- She’s brushing her teeth without a meltdown most days.
- She’s willingly adding more healthy choices to her diet.
- She MIGHT be arguing less about letting me brush her hair each night (I’ll get back to you on that one.)
And honestly? That’s more than I hoped for when we started.
And Now It’s a FULL Healthy Body Homeschool Unit Study (and It’s in the Shop!)
I ended up turning everything we did — all the lessons, hands-on activities, and printable worksheets — into a Healthy Body Homeschool Unit Study for kids ages 4-6 complete with a parent/teacher guide. SIXTEEN pages of unit study, SIX pages of parent guide, and about two weeks’ worth of lessons (should you choose to space it out that much.)
It covers things like:
- Brushing teeth (and why it’s important)
- Washing hands (to keep germs away)
- Eating healthy foods (and making good choices)
- Exercise and movement (and why our bodies need it)
- Getting good sleep (and how it helps our bodies grow)
And also? It’s just… fun. Short lessons. No lengthey lectures. Just play-based learning that helps kids understand why their health matters.
It’s On Sale Through the End of March
Since I know so many other homeschool moms face the exact same struggles I did, I put the Healthy Body Unit Study up in my shop — and it’s on sale through the end of March.
If you want to check it out, you can grab it here:
Healthy Body Unit Study
And if you do end up using it with your kids, please tag me on Instagram or Facebook [@ClassicHousewife] — I’d love to see it in action in your home.
It’s nice how something that started out as me trying to solve a problem turned into some way that I can help other families do the same. Isn’t that one of the good things about having a homeschool community?
Anyway — I just wanted to share our little win and pass this resource along to you in case you need it too.
Happy homeschooling,
Amber
