Physical Activity at School

RWJF Priority: Increase the time, intensity and duration of physical activity during the school day and out-of-school programs

Schools play a critical role in helping children lead active, healthy lives. By requiring active participation in daily physical education classes, providing activity breaks throughout the day, and supporting walking and bicycling to school, schools can increase students’ physical activity. After-school programs located in schools, parks and recreational centers also can develop innovative ways to help children be active.

The resources below, from RWJF grantees and partners, highlight recent efforts to examine and develop programs and policies that help children be active before, during and after the school day.

Childhood Obesity Policy Priorities

Featured

Kids Get Moving with Playworks

During recess, students at schools participating in the Playworks program engaged more physical activity that was, on average, more intense.

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From the New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids

Creating a Healthy Place for Kids in Trenton, NJ

"A long time coming." The New Jersey Partnership for Healthy Kids helped make Monument Elementary School in Trenton a healthier place for students by leading efforts to build a new playground and install a salad bar in the cafeteria.

Watch the video

From Active Living Research

Study: P.E. Could Mean 23 More Minutes of Physical Activity for Kids

Requiring daily physical education in school could help young people be active for 23 minutes per day, which is more than a third of the total amount of daily physical activity experts recommend for young people.

Read the study

From Active Living Research

Do Short Physical Activity Breaks in Classrooms Work?

Providing short physical activity breaks during the school day can increase physical activity in students, help improve on-task behavior, and improve some measures of health.

Read the brief

From the Alliance for a Healthier Generation

Terence C. Reilly School No. 7: Healthy Schools Program Gold National Recognition Award Winner

Principal Jennifer Cedeno chalks up her students' attention spans—and their academic performance—to an innovative physical activity and nutrition program.

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From Active Living Research

Policies and Standards for Promoting Physical Activity in After-School Programs

After-school programs can contribute to children’s overall daily physical activity, but their potential impact is far from being realized. This brief examines offers recommendations for changing standards and policies to better promote physical activity in after-school programs.

Read the brief

From the Safe Routes to School National Program

Safe Routes to School: Helping Communities Save Lives and Dollars

By getting more children to walk and bicycle to school, Safe Routes to School initiatives can reduce traffic congestion around schools and increase children's physical activity levels.

Read the report

Health Policy Snapshot

Do Students Who Are More Active Do Better in School?

Physical activity is linked to cognitive and behavioral benefits for students, such as improved concentration, better school attendance, and fewer classroom disruptions.

Read the brief

More Research and Resources on Physical Activity at School

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Childhood Obesity Program Area

RWJF is committed to tackling one of the most urgent threats to the health of our children and families—childhood obesity. Our goal is to reverse the childhood obesity epidemic by 2015.

Active Living Research

August 28, 2013 | Program Results Report

Active Living Research is an ongoing program to identify environmental factors and policies that can substantially increase levels of physical activity and to provide policy-makers with evidence about how to create more activity-friendly communities.

Association Between State Physical Education (PE) Requirements and PE Participation, Physical Activity, and Body Mass Index Change

August 1, 2013 | Journal Article

State physical education laws with specific time requirements may increase attendance in physical education classes and overall physical activity particularly among girls.

Afterschool Program Participation, Youth Physical Fitness, and Overweight

March 1, 2013 | Journal Article

The children who most need fitness-focused afterschool programs may not be participating in them.

Neighborhood Perceptions and Active School Commuting in Low-Income Cities

October 1, 2013 | Journal Article

Improving neighborhood environments to make them more pleasant are likely to increse active travel to and from school.

Does the 'Built Environment' Affect Children's Activity Levels?

August 28, 2013 | Story

Researchers Cheryl Kelly, PhD, MPH, and Michael R. Elliot, PhD, used an RWJF Active Living Research grant to study the impact of an improved built environment on children's activity levels in one St. Louis neighborhood.

Withholding Recess From Elementary School Students

August 1, 2013 | Journal Article

In this study, strong school district policy was associated with increased odds of not withholding students from recess for poor behavior or completing schoolwork.

Walking School Bus Programs in U.S. Public Elementary Schools

July 1, 2013 | Journal Article

This study examines the impact of school characteristics, district policies, and state laws on school-organized Walking School Bus (WSB) programs. Both district policy and state law were significantly associated with the presence of a WSB program.

A Scientist Studies Physical Activity and Healthy Eating in Out-of-School Time Programs

December 20, 2012 | Story

More than 8 million children attend out-of-school time programs, which can play a role in addressing childhood obesity. Georgia S. Hall, PhD, studied how these programs address physical activity and healthy eating, and barriers to good practices.

Active Living by Design

February 4, 2013 | Program Results Report

From 2001 to 2009, 25 community partnerships across the country pursued projects designed to revamp the built environment and change public policies to make physical activity part of everyday life.

The Influence of Public and Green Spaces on Physical Activity Among Blacks and Whites

May 2, 2013 | Story

Rashawn Ray, PhD, a Scholar in RWJF's Scholars in Health Policy Research program (2010–12), examines patterns of exercise and use of public spaces by people of different racial and economic backgrounds.