Looking for ways to reduce childhood obesity? Here's the good news. Schools make a difference. Yet another study indicates that school policies have a positive effect on children's eating. A new study released in Sweden by the medical university Karolinska Institute indicates that childhood obesity rates fell by 6 percent for kids from 6-10 year olds when their school introduced specific rules for sweets and food/drinks. The researc…

Children’s fruit consumption was measured in two schools by observation. In the intervention school, cafeteria workers provided the verbal prompt, “Would you like fruit or juice with your lunch?” as the children stood in line in front of the fruit serving options. The control school had the same fruit and 100% juice options available, but the cafeteria workers did not provide a verbal prompt to take a fruit serving. Two variables were assessed: …

As the weather gets warmer and we all start to spend more time outside it’s a good opportunity for us AND the children we supervise to ensure we are getting a healthy amount of physical activity.

Children need to be active every day to promote their healthy growth and development. We also know that people who establish a healthy lifestyle pattern at a young age will carry those habits with them into adulthood.

A healthy lifestyle is something we …

CARLSBAD, NM — Recess at Sunset Elementary just became a little more fun, and a lot more educational. Students and teachers held a groundbreaking for the school's new Peaceful Playground Program Tuesday morning. The school's parent council funded the program, which cost almost $10,000, Principal Rita London said. The Sunset playground now has a blacktop area featuring colorful markings, new games and equipment. The project isn't comp…

By: Barbara Lantin

How much energy children expend may be determined by their genes, a study suggests, implying that they find their own activity level no matter what we tell them to do Chloe Harris prefers reading to sport and would rather travel to school by car than walk. Sean Bowden does at least 13 hours of exercise a week, including basketball, football, swimming and PE, and would take on more if his parents let him. Yet analysis indicat…

Boys and girls who have better motor abilities are more physically active and less likely to be sedentary than children with poorer coordination, research conducted with children between the ages of 8 and 10 at the University at Buffalo has shown. Results of the study appear in the December issue of the journal Pediatrics. For the article visit: http://www.buffalo.edu/news/fast-execute.cgi/article-page.html?article=83120009

"It was particu…

According to Rae Pica, author of A Running Start: How Play, Physical Activity and Free Time Create a Successful Child, "Today, we have considerable research supporting that . . . movement, play, and physical activity contribute to brain and intellectual development." Too often, she contends, we’re so focused on "achievement" and "competition" that we’re not allowing our children just to have their childhoods. We buy…

Playing sports can help boost gradeIt turns out that physical activity can improve not just kids' health, but also their grades. A study released by the American College of Sports Medicine found that 20 minutes of vigorous activity at least three days every week was needed for children to excel academically."Physical activity may reduce boredom and increase attention span and concentration," says Dawn Coe, lead author of the study …

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Division of Adolescent and School Health (DASH) in collaboration with the Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity (DNPA), the CDC Foundation, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJ) are undertaking a collaborative project to identify and assess policies or programs that have been implemented with apparent success in improving the eating habits and physical activity levels of chi…

A nearly free resource in the obesity crisis is the local school or park playground according to a study released by the Rand Research Corporation.
Girls who do not live within a half-mile radius of a school playground that is accessible when school is not in session have a 3-percent higher body mass index than girls who do have playgrounds within a half mile of where they live. Each additional open playground resulted in further weight decrease,…

The California PE Teacher Incentive Funding supports ongoing incentive grants for school districts to hire more credentialed physical education teachers in elementary and middle schools, (K-8th grade). The purpose of the program is to help address the rising incidence of obesity and its effects by ensuring that schools have trained experts to provide the required number of instructional minutes in physical education. The funds are to be used to …

TV-Turnoff Network is a nonprofit organization that encourages children and adults to watch much less television in order to promote healthier lives and communities. TV-Turnoff Week is April 23-29, 2007.

Go to: http://www.tvturnoff.org/ to find interesting fact sheets, a free 30 page online activity book, and 101 screen-free activities you can use. Learn about TV's effect on our health, family time, and children's academic success and sha…

The shootings yesterday at Virginia Tech bring to the forefront the issue of school violence. One might jump to conclusions and assume that school violence is on the rise. However, University of Virginia psychologist Dewey Cornell the director of the Virginia Youth Violence Project, suggests otherwise in an interview in October 2006.

Dewey Cornell: The recent school shootings have aroused a lot of fear and concern. There have been news report…

National Health-Through-Fitness Day in March a success. Advocates walked the halls of Congress campaigning for two physical activity initiatives - the Carol M. White Physical Education Program (PEP) and the PHIT (Personal Health Investment Today) Bill.

PEP provides grants to local school districts to purchase equipment and train teachers in innovative physical education methods. The PEP program has successfully enhanced K-12 physical education …

This is the spot for your questions and discussions around topics covered in the Play Nice Newsletter. I hope you'll take advantage of your opportunity to visit often.

Wamp, Simmons pump up exercise for school kids.U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., joined by fitness guru Richard Simmons, on unveiled House legislation aimed at making physical education a part of the federal No Child Left Behind education law’s core curriculum. This year Congress must reauthorize the measure, which uses annual standardized tests to hold schools accountable in science and math. He said the lack of physical activity among the nation…

Peaceful Playgrounds is pleased to support local community events planned by Hands On Inland Empire and LA Works. Both organizations support local schools in the Southern CA area.

One such example is Hands On Inland Empire Day! On June 9th, hundreds of volunteers will gather at multiple project sites in Redlands, Yucaipa, Ontario, Victorville and Pomona to enrich our schools and raise money for Inland Empire United Way's Hands On Inland Empi…

The $500 Million in funds provide Districts/schools in California with an important one-time opportunity to invest in physical education and visual and performing arts instructional programs. Funds may be used for professional development, equipment, and supplies for physical education and visual and performing arts in kindergarten through grade twelve.More information is available on the California Department of Education Website at:
http://www.…

The California Department of Education has announced the release of the K-8 Physical Education Teacher Incentive Funding application. These applications and further information can be downloaded at http://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/profile.asp?id=952

Funding supports ongoing incentive grants for school districts to hire more credentialed physical education teachers in elementary and middle schools, kindergarten through grade eight. The purpose of the …

Welcome to the Peaceful Playgrounds Blog. We will use this spot for discussions on Peaceful Playgrounds topics covered in the monthly Play Nice Newsletter. Check back often for new announcements. Brief descriptions of recently released research will also be shared on topics such as playgrounds, childhood obesity, physical activity and recess.