By Kristy Wise
Kids’ exercise is not exactly a top priority in America’s education system. Time spent at recess is considered leisure and should therefore come second to educational programs that exercise the mind. In addition, tighter school budgets and the need for higher test scores have caused many schools across the country to minimize the importance of daily physical activity.
Physical education programs vary with each state, county and school. While there’s no doubt some schools excel in keeping their students physically active, on the whole children exercise much less than they should during school hours.
A 2002 study observed 648 PE programs for third graders across the country. The average child spent 2.1 days a week in PE class for a total of 68.7 minutes. But even much of the time spent in PE classes is not used for exercise. Explaining the activity or getting the kids’ attention takes time. And when children are allowed free play, or unstructured activity, many don’t exercise and instead use that as a time to socialize.
PE teachers have noticed a difference in their students since kids exercise programs have been drastically cut. Eunice F. Sirianos of the New Bedford public schools in Massachusetts noticed a difference after only four years of less physical education. Originally, only one-third of her fourth-graders had weight issues.
“Now, over 50 percent of them are either at risk of being overweight or overweight,” Sirianos said.
While the lack of physical exercise in schools seems grim, there are some national and international programs to encourage schools to take physical health more seriously. For example, Project ACES (All Children Exercise Simultaneously) is a program created by Len Saunders in 1989 to promote kids exercise and healthy living.
Each May, a day is designated for schools and students to participate in fun exercise at the exact same time. The very first Project ACES successfully arranged 240,000 children across the country to exercise simultaneously. Today that number is in the millions and students participate all across the globe.
With the knowledge that most schools lack in the PE programs they provide kids, it’s important to know your significant role as a parent to make up for the gap. Kids need to be physically active to live a healthy lifestyle. If you don’t already know your child’s PE schedule, inquire about it. Then determine how you can get them to be more physically active outside of school. For some great kids exercise suggestions, visit http://www.myfamilyexercise.com/.
Other Kids Exercise Articles:
Return to kids exercise and nutrition articles
