SCHOOL ACTIVITY ENVIRONMENT
ENACT STRATEGY: PE Teachers
Recruit the expertise of trained physical educators, or provide training to teachers, to lead high quality physical activity sessions
Qualified and trained physical education teachers are essential ingredients of a quality physical education program. Schools that are facing budget crunches often have to slash physical education budgets which makes it difficult to hire qualified instructors. A positive move is that California recently included in the 2006-07 California Budget Act, $40 million in new ongoing incentive grant funding for schools to hire additional credentialed physical education teachers at the elementary and middle school levels. For schools where students don’t have sufficient time in physical education, there are programs and trainings are available for teachers on how to incorporate physical activity into the academic curriculum.
Jump for Health (PDF)
The article “Jumping For Health, Jones County School Implement TAKE10” describes a successful implementation in Northern Carolina of a “K-5 classroom-based curriculum tool designed to promote physical activity, while at the same time supporting academic learning.”
Sports4Kids
“We are pleased to be able to offer the Sports4Kids Curriculum free of charge. The curriculum units each give an overview of why the subject matter is relevant, a vocabulary list to help focus planning and discussion and a set of games or activities to teach the subject. Additionally, the curriculum offers suggestions and sample documents that will help with the program's successful implementation.”
Physical Activity for Youth Policy Initiative (PDF)
Physical Activity for Youth Policy Initiative presented by The National Coalition for Promoting Physical Activity “seeks to provide a means for advocates and policymakers to address the issue of physical inactivity.” The article contains policy options and policies in action in the areas of after school programs, community programs and community design.
Recipes for Success: Nutrition and Physical Activity Workshop
“Are you frustrated by the eating and activity patterns of the youth you work with? Do you ever wish you could have a positive influence over their nutrition and exercise behaviors? If so, then this is the workshop for you. This interactive, hands-on workshop is designed for youth providers who work with low-income, multi-ethnic youth ages 10-14.”
San Francisco Unified School District Healthy School Nutrition and Physical Fitness Policy
The district’s comprehensive nutrition and fitness policy recognizes the importance of training PE teachers: “Professional development will be made available to all SFUSD staff on best practices and strategies to enhance physical activities and physical education.”
in ENACT Local Policy Database
PE Central
“Our goal is to provide the latest information about developmentally appropriate physical education programs for children and youth. To combat the high obesity rate, we offer programs like Log It and Get Active Stay Active where teachers register their schools and then students register so they can participate.”
Spark Programs
“While overweight and obesity levels climb, the minutes children spend in physical education (PE) has decreased. SPARK is designed to maximize class activity time, without sacrificing learning. The SPARK team of educators and researchers have spent years creating the tools you need to succeed, and now they are available to you.”
Project LEAN
“Browse through our consumer materials. You'll find brochures, tip sheets, recipes, lesson plans for use with high school students, and formative research on healthy eating and physical activity. You will also find Project LEAN's evaluation reports.”
North Carolina Physical Education is Active
“This web site is dedicated to keeping you informed about physical, education, health education, athletics, and sports medicine in North Carolina and the nation.” This website also provides lots of helpful information and resources