Students at Building Blocks Learning Center in Dallas Township were “shaking it all about” on Jan. 25 in observance of National Healthy Weight Week.

Youngsters aged 1 to 5 participated in a program that emphasized the importance of moving around and eating healthfully.

Administrative Director Jennifer Gimble said the center’s staff always focuses on eating right and exercise, but the Healthy Weight Day was devoted to learning about different movements the kids could do on their own and how to enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables.

“We enforce this behavior every day by eating fruits and vegetables at snack time,” said Gimble.

The tykes shimmied and shook to pop hits and even danced to the Hokey Pokey after performing some traditional exercise movements.

The idea is to get the kids learning these behaviors while they’re young, said Gimble, so they become a permanent part of their lives.

The healthy intervention may be happening just in time - national statistics on childhood obesity have skyrocketed in the past 30 years. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention chalks up the changes to the availability of more calorie-dense foods and increasingly sedentary lifestyles.

The issue has become so pressing that First Lady Michelle Obama wagered a campaign called “Let’s Move!” in early 2010 to encourage children to practice healthy habits.

According to the CDC, being overweight or obese as a child poses a great risk of carrying extra weight in adulthood, which could eventually lead to the development of health disorders such as cardiovascular problems, type 2 diabetes, cancer, stroke and osteoarthritis.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health published a survey of children’s body mass indexes during the 2008-09 school year, revealing that out of the 23,747 Luzerne County students in kindergarten through sixth grade surveyed, about 17 percent were overweight and about 18 percent were considered obese.

Pre-kindergarten teacher Courtney Novajosky, 23, of Monroe Township, grew up playing outdoors almost nonstop. Being involved in sports at an early age also led her to value the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

“If kids are taught at a young age, that’s what they know, and then they can teach their kids and their grandkids,” she said of forming healthy habits.

Novajosky said it’s also important to lead by example when trying to incorporate health-conscious behaviors into a tot’s routine.

“It definitely has to be more hands-on because kids are active, not stationary,” she said. “You need to be enthusiastic about it because if you’re not into it, they won’t be.”

Novajosky leads the students in exercises daily, from push-ups and sit-ups to freestyle dancing. She keeps the activity pressure-free, so the children don’t have to do a certain amount of exercises within a certain time and they can be comfortable with the movement.

Parents can get involved in the action, too. “Parents are allowed to come to class to see what the kids are learning any time they want,” she said. “We post the snacks so they can see what their kids are eating.”

Jamie Lynn Timlin, 4, of Shavertown, enjoyed dancing to Justin Bieber songs rather than toe touches or sit-ups.

“Exercising gives you energy and it makes your heart happy,” she said.