chapter 4

1. chapter4 The Elementary School Physical Activity Program

2. The Comprehensive PA Program • Physical education • Required recess • Activity in the classroom • Lunch and before and after school • Brokering of student participation in community events and community programs • Parental participation

3. Why Should the School Take Responsibility? • Children need to be physically active to grow and develop normally. • Many children don’t have opportunities outside of school to go out and just play. • Putting young children in a seat and asking them to be still for 5 hours a day is difficult for the children and for the adults they work with. (continued)

4. Why Should the School Take Responsibility?(continued) • Recent emphasis on academic achievement in the school setting has negatively affected both the opportunities students have for physical education and other opportunities in the school day to participate in physical activity. (continued)

5. Why Should the School Take Responsibility?(continued) • Research clearly indicates that children who are healthy and who have opportunities for physical activity throughout the day will actually learn better and achieve more.

6. State and District Decisions • Many states and school districts do not have the resources at this time to provide PE every day. • Many states have mandated at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day to occur at school, through either physical education or other programs, as part of a school physical activity program.

7. What Physical Activity Does for All Children • Improves aerobic endurance • Improves muscular strength • Favorably affects risk factors for cardiovascular disease (e.g., body mass index, blood lipid profiles, and resting blood pressure) • Increases bone mass density among young people participating in weight-bearing exercise • Increases physical fitness and decreases degree of overweight in obese children

8. 2008 Guidelines for PA for Children Children and adolescents should do 60 minutes (1 hour) or more of physical activity daily. The activity time should include the following: • Aerobic: Most should be at either a moderate or vigorous intensity level and should include vigorous intensity at least three days a week • Muscle strengthening: At least three days of the week • Bone strengthening: At least three days of the week

9. Issues in Planning PA for Children • Children’s activity patterns are not those of adults. When left to play, children will alternate short bouts of strenuous activity with short periods of rest. • Frequent opportunities throughout the day for short bouts of physical activity are sufficient if they add up to at least 60 minutes. • Children need to participate in a variety of physical activities that are age appropriate and enjoyable.

10. Examples of Appropriate Activities: Aerobic Aerobic activities are those in which people rhythmically move their large muscles. • Aerobic activities increase cardiorespiratory fitness. • Running, hopping, skipping, jumping rope, swimming, dancing, and bicycling are all examples of aerobic activities.

11. Examples of Appropriate Activities: Moderate-Intensity Activity • Throwing and catching with a partner • Four Square • Active recreation, such as hiking, skateboarding, and in-line skating • Bicycle riding at a moderate pace • Brisk walking

12. Examples of Vigorous-Intensity Aerobic Activities • Active games involving running and chasing, such as tag • Bicycle riding on hills or at a faster pace • Jumping rope • Martial arts, such as karate • Running • Sports such as soccer, ice or field hockey, basketball, swimming, tennis

13. Examples of Bone-Strengthening Activities Bone-strengthening activities produce force on the bones that promotes bone growth and strength. This force is commonly produced by impact with the ground. • Games such as hopscotch • Gymnastics activities • Hopping, skipping, jumping • Jumping rope • Running • Sports such as basketball, volleyball, tennis, soccer

14. Examples of Muscle-Strengthening Activities Muscle-strengthening activities make muscles do more work than is usually done during activities of daily life. This effect, called “overload,” strengthens the muscles. For children, these activities can be part of daily unstructured play or structured activities. • Gymnastics activities • Rope or tree climbing • Sit-ups (curl-ups or crunches) • Swinging, hanging, climbing on playground equipment or bars • Carrying equipment such as mats or chairs

15. A Word of Caution Most children do not find calisthenics or forced participation in vigorous physical activity (e.g., running laps) fun or enjoyable; they are likely not to become participants if forced to exercise or to participate in activities not appropriate to their age group.

16. The Program Recommendations of Physical Activity Experts • Provide time for both structured and unstructured physical activity during school and outside of school. • Provide children and adolescents with positive feedback and good role models. It has been said that if you do not practice what you teach, you are teaching something else. (continued)

17. The Program Recommendations of Physical Activity Experts (continued) • Using physical activity as punishment does not help children to be active. • Help young people learn skills required to do physical activity independently and safely. • Promote activities that set the basis for a lifetime of activity.

18. The Physical Education Program: The Foundation of the PA Program • Is conducted by a certified physical education teacher • Offers a curriculum to educate students for a physically active lifestyle • Is standards based and provides students with the skills, knowledge, and values they need to lead a physically active life

19. Before- and After-School and Lunchtime Programs • Opportunities to provide many students with physical activity (clubs, intramurals, special events, walking programs, and morning exercises that begin the school day) are conducted successfully by many schools. • Can be formal or informal • Can be conducted by the physical education faculty, other faculty within the school, community and parent volunteers

20. Recess • Recess provides opportunities for physical activity. • It provides opportunities for children to be children. • Physical play helps children develop the confidence and social skills they need to be and feel successful. It is a critical part of their “life” education. • Schools have an obligation to provide adequate resources in terms of permanent and manipulative equipment for children and adequate, safe play spaces.

21. Breaks in the Classroom and Movement Opportunities to Teach Academic Content In addition to daily recess breaks, the classroom teacher can provide physical activity in a number of ways: • Short activity breaks as a transition between content areas • Going for a walk • Using physical activity to enhance the learning of academic content

22. Working With the Community • Recognize the importance of collaborative relationships. • Help community groups involve schoolchildren and their families. • Link community opportunities to the school Web site. • Sign students up for participation and help with transportation arrangements. • When more people participate, they create a need for more opportunities.

23. Working With Parents • Educate parents on the importance of providing physical activity opportunities for their children. • Facilitate opportunities through school events that involve parents. • Keep parents informed on the opportunities being provided by the school and the community for students to be involved in physical activity. (continued)

24. Working With Parents(continued) • Involve parents as volunteers or paid workers for various parts of the program. • Communicate with parents at PTA/PTO meetings as well as special events. • Use school Web sites with links to resources.

25. The School Physical Activity Program: Who Is Responsible? School district wellness councils were mandated by the federal government to play the major role in the establishment of school physical activity programs. Programs involve the following: • Most likely the physical education teacher as the physical activity director • Classroom teachers trained to work with students in the classroom and supervise at recess • Parent and community volunteers involved in various aspects of the program

26. Administrators A physical activity program will be only as effective as the support it gets from the school administration.

27. Designing and Maintaining Playgrounds and Outdoor Areas • Safety on playgrounds is the responsibility of the students who use them, the teachers who supervise them, and the administrators who design and oversee their maintenance. • Playgrounds should be designed such that the area designated for recess is separate from the outdoor areas used by physical education classes.

28. The National Program for Playground Safety Four elements that make a playground safe: • Safe surfacing • Supervision • Age-appropriate design • Equipment maintenance

29. Safe Surfacing • Suitable materials for landing: • Loose fill such as pea gravel, sand, and wood chips and fiber • Fill maintained at a depth of 12 inches where children are likely to fall or jump • Frequently, surfacing has been installed appropriately but school does not maintain its depth as the playground ages or as erosion occurs, or does not place the surfacing where it is most needed.

30. Supervision of Playgrounds • The best way to prevent accidents on playground equipment is to make sure that adults are present and actively supervising play. • Adults should be in a position to be able to see what all children are doing. • Post signs indicating that adult supervision should be present.

31. Teaching Children How to Play Safely on the Playground: Rules • Play responsibly. • Make sure an adult is present when you play. • Tell an adult if playground equipment is broken, and do not play on it until it is fixed. • Have FUN!

32. Safety on Specific Playground Equipment: Rules • Safety on swings: • Sit down while you swing. • Slow down before you get off of a swing. • Do not walk near someone who is swinging. • Safety on climbers: • Use both hands when you climb. • Climb only on dry equipment; you could fall if it is wet. (continued)

33. Safety on Specific Playground Equipment: Rules(continued) • Safety on slides: • Never climb up the front of the slide. • Slide down with your feet first. • Only one person should slide down at a time.

34. Age-Appropriate Design • When young children play on equipment designed for older children or older children play on equipment designed for younger students, accidents can result. • Many schools separate playground equipment for kindergarten and the primary grades. • Most composite structures are not appropriate for students above the third grade. Older students will need equipment they can use to participate in sports and games. Both paved and field space need to be available for upper elementary children.

35. Maintenance of Playgrounds • The school administrator is ultimately responsible for playground maintenance and will delegate the care of the playground to a district or school maintenance team. • Schools will want to do careful planning of the playground facilities so that they are safe and more easily maintained.