Each child should get at least one hour of physical activity every day. Regular physical activity helps kids stay focused in and out of school and protects both kids and adults from developing heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and osteoporosis. Improving physical activity environments in schools, afterschool programs, and communities are critical ways to help kids be more physically active.
Curricula & Trainings
Eat Well & Keep Moving
Citation: Cheung LWY, Dart H, Kalin S, Otis B, Gortmaker SL. Eat Well & Keep Moving: An Interdisciplinary Elementary Curriculum Nutrition and Physical Activity (Third Edition). Human Kinetics, Champaign, Illinois, 2016.
Newsletter Handouts
Newsletter handouts to send home (educators can send home these sample newsletters to inform parents and complement the Eat Well & Keep Moving lesson topic being taught in the classroom). Newsletter handouts related to physical activity:
–Keep Moving!
–Tune Out the TV
Trainings
Training Workshop for Teachers
Six training sessions provide teachers with an overview of the Eat Well & Keep Moving program as well as a review of the curriculum’s classroom lessons. The training workshop is designed to last a total of six hours.
Food & Fun Afterschool
Full, 600-page Food & Fun Afterschool curriculum
This curriculum includes all units, planning tools, recipes, and parent materials. Units related to physical activity:
–Unit 2: Physical Activity—Get Moving!
–Unit 9: Physical Activity—Play Hard!
–Unit 11: Food & Fun Finale!
Staff Training
Food & Fun Afterschool has several training strategies to help afterschool staff learn about and implement the curriculum, including a training video.
Staff Planning Tools
These planning tools can help staff create healthy changes in out-of-school settings.
Newsletter Articles, Emails, & Handouts
These tools help reinforce the messages in Food & Fun. All are available in English and Spanish, and the handouts are also available in Chinese.
Parent Handouts
These handouts – available in English, Spanish, and Chinese – include topic area information and tips for success for parents to create healthier environments for their children. Parent handouts related to physical activity:
–Activate Your Family
–Take Control of TV
Learn more about Food & Fun Afterschool here.
Planet Health
Citation: Carter J, Wiecha JL, Peterson KE, Nobrega S, Gortmaker SL. Planet Health: An Interdisciplinary Curriculum for Teaching Middle School Nutrition and Physical Activity (Second Edition). Champaign, Illinois: Human Kinetics; 2007.
Learn more about Planet Health here.
Fact Sheets
Get the Facts: Movement Breaks in the Classroom (Grades K-5)
The team at the Prevention Research Center on Nutrition and Physical Activity and the CHOICES Project team, along with input from key partners, present fact sheets that align with our priority areas. This fact sheet highlights the importance of incorporating movement breaks in school classrooms, grades K-5.
Get the Facts: Physical Activity is Key for Young Kids’ Health (Ages 3 through 5)
The team at the Prevention Research Center on Nutrition and Physical Activity and the CHOICES Project team, along with input from key partners, present fact sheets that align with our priority areas. This fact sheet highlights the importance of physical activity for young children, ages 3 through 5.
Out-of-School Nutrition and Physical Activity (OSNAP) Initiative
Tip Sheets
These tip sheets, informed by out-of-school/afterschool program experiences, can help afterschool and other out-of-school-time programs make sustainable changes to program practices. They are practical guides designed to simplify healthy changes and describe promising practices for out-of-school/afterschool staff. OSNAP tip sheets related to healthy eating:
–Physical Activity
–Turn Off that Screen!
–Healthy Staff, Healthy Kids!
Learn more about OSNAP here.
Tools & Guides
Food & Fun & Family
A Guide to Help Busy Families Develop Healthier Habits at Home
This guide contains lots tips and ideas for meals and activities that are healthy and fun for the whole family.
Learn more about Food & Fun here.
Out-of-School Nutrition and Physical Activity (OSNAP) Initiative
Fast Maps
These tools are designed to help out-of-school/afterschool program staff overcome systematic challenges that go beyond the site level. For example, addressing issues of limited space for physical activity in out-of-school/afterschool programs might involve meeting with school principals or partnering with nearby community spaces. OSNAP Fast Maps related to physical activity:
–Improving Moderate Physical Activity
–Improving Vigorous Physical Activity
Practice Assessment Tool
This form can help out-of-school/afterschool program staff see where their program is currently at regarding the OSNAP standards. This form will help identify areas an organization can take action on to improve the health of kids.
Learn more about OSNAP here.
Research Briefs & Reports
Childhood Obesity Intervention Cost-Effectiveness Study (CHOICES)
CHOICES Discussion Paper: Cost-Effective Strategies to Prevent Obesity and Improve Health Equity
This discussion paper is designed to help public health professionals and community members identify feasible and cost-effective strategies that can prevent future obesity cases among children while improving health equity.
Healthy Eating Research Brief: The Cost-Effectiveness of Interventions for Reducing Obesity among Young Children through Healthy Eating, Physical Activity, and Screen Time
The brief provides an overview of the goals of cost-effectiveness analysis, the evidence thus far on the cost-effectiveness of different strategies to prevent obesity in the places where very young children (0- to 5-year-olds) live, learn, and play, and the evidence that is still needed for informed decision-making. This brief compiles research conducted by the CHOICES Team on interventions that impact young children.
Learn more about CHOICES here.
Examining Practices that Promote Access to Safe Routes to School Programs in Vulnerable Communities
Safe Routes to School programs in multiple states have adopted several approaches to reduce barriers faced by schools in communities that experience low income. Given the differences in state programs and policies, these materials highlight findings from this study on which of these practices for equitable funding were successful in promoting SRTS implementation within vulnerable communities.
–Research brief: Examining Practices that Promote Access to Safe Routes to School Programs in Vulnerable Communities
–Research report: Examining Practices that Promote Access to Safe Routes to School Programs in Vulnerable Communities
–Presentation: Examining Practices that Promote Access to Safe Routes to School Programs in Vulnerable Communities
Learn more about this project here.
Evidence to Inform a Cycling & Walking Investment Strategy
This research brief summary and full report uses national data on financial investment in pedestrian and bicycle programs and infrastructure to evaluate the evidence for how funding can support more walking and cycling over time.
–Research brief summary: Evidence to Inform a Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy
–Full research report: Evidence to Inform a Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy
Learn more about this project here.
Massachusetts CHOICES (MA-CHOICES) Project
Research Brief: Boston, MA: More Movement Program in Early Child Care Settings
–View as a webpage
–Download as a PDF
Research Brief: Boston, MA: Movement Breaks in the Classroom
>Note: A version of this brief was published in May 2022. This brief was updated in August 2022 to reflect revised projections for Boston’s population
–View as a webpage
–Download as a PDF
Learn more about MA-CHOICES here.
External Resources
The Nutrition Source, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
–Staying Active
–Active Communities
Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity (DNPAO), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Physical Activity Policy Research and Evaluation Network (PAPREN)