ABSTRACT
No organization has greater potential to affect physical activity in children and adolescents than schools. Schools enroll more than 95% of all children, and young people spend a high proportion of their days in school: on average, about 6.6 h/day and approximately 178.5 days/year (U.S. Department of Education 2007). This makes school second only to home as the most inuential setting to affect physical activity. However, the school day currently is, for the most part, a sedentary period in a young person’s daily routine. In the traditional classroom, a high priority is given to order and quiet. With the exception of physical education (PE) classes, recess, or other break times such as lunch and transitions between classrooms, students are expected to remain seated and focused on learning. However, each of these opportunities for physical activity has been reduced, limited, and threatened in recent years. PE requirements in many schools have been cut, and concerns have been raised that the amount of physical activity provided in many PE classes is insuf—cient. In addition, many schools have reduced or eliminated recess in an effort to increase classroom instruction time in response to high-stakes testing. Despite these disquieting trends, it is possible for all students to be more physically active during the school day, and
Introduction ............................................................................................................303 Coordinated School Health Model .........................................................................304 Speci—c School-Based Approaches ........................................................................305
