Children of all ages should have a minimum of 30 minutes of physical activity during the school day. Students who participate in at least an hour of physical activity a day can improve their attention span and cognitive functioning, as well as maintain a healthy weight, sleep better, feel better, and function better in school and at home.
For Educators
Physical Activity Helpful Tips & Resources
Get Kids Moving
Make School a "Moving" Experience
This initiative is to help elementary schools incorporate more moderate to vigorous physical activity into the school week. Physical activity has a number of benefits for students, not the least of which is improved academic outcomes. Principals, teachers, and parents all play a key role in ensuring children are meeting the recommended one hour of physical activity per day.
Creating a plan for physical activity and how it can be incorporated into your current school schedule will help you find an additional 5-10 minutes, beyond Physical Education and recess, when your students can get up and move.
Help Kids Keep On Moving
Delaware Schools are Moving
Congratulations to all the schools who participated in the Keep on Moving Radio Disney challenge. You showed that all across Delaware, schools are finding creative ways to build physical activity into each and every day.
Resources for Educators
Information for Parents
Helpful Handouts
- The Benefits of Physical Activity (PDF)
- Physical Activity Brochure for Principals (PDF)
- Physical Activity Brochure for Teachers (PDF)
- Creating a Plan for Physical Activity (PDF)
- Top 10 Indoor Recess Tips (PDF)
- Physically Active Field Trips (Delaware) (PDF)
Related Programs
Energizers® From Be Active North Carolina, Inc.: a statewide initiative committed to empowering North Carolinians to live healthy, physically active lives.
CATCH®: Coordinated Approach to Child Health: an evidence-based, coordinated school health program designed to promote physical activity, healthy food choices, and the prevention of tobacco use in children. Understand CATCH's impact on academic achievement in the article: PASS & CATCH Improves Academic Achievement (Murray et al.).
TAKE 10!®: helps children understand the importance of fun, physical activity, and other healthful behaviors, including nutrition, while reducing sedentary behavior, improving attention, and promoting structured physical activity breaks during the school day. Learn more about this program by in the article: Ten Years of TAKE 10!®: Integrating physical activity with academic concepts in elementary school classrooms (Kibbe et al.).
Take 10! Curriculum Walk
Take 10!® Curriculum Crosswalk links TAKE 10! activities to Common Core State Standards and Delaware Content Standards. This resource can be used as a reference for incorporating physical activity into daily lesson plans, from kindergarten to grade 5.
- Kindergarten (PDF)
- First Grade (PDF)
- Second Grade (PDF)
- Third Grade (PDF)
- Fourth Grade (PDF)
- Fifth Grade (PDF)
Helpful Resources
Ideas & Resources for Encouraging Physical Activity
Nemours' Early Child Care Physical Activity Tools
- Nemours Child Care Wellness Policy Workbook (PDF)
Helps child care providers, families and communities work together to raise fit, happy children. This workbook guides you step-by-step to develop your own wellness policies for your child care program in the areas of nutrition and physical activity. - "Sometimes/Anytime" Game Cards (PDF): Instructions | Game Cards
Designed to help preschool children learn to differentiate foods and activities that can be eaten or done “Sometimes” or “Anytime.” Featuring large images of foods, activities and situations, these cards are an ideal tool for teaching kids how to select healthy food and activity choices on their own. - Sesame Street “Healthy Habits for Life” Child Care Resource Kit (PDF)
Provides tools to teach kids about physical activity. - KidsHealth in the Classroom
Provides articles and lessons on staying fit from the experts at Nemours' KidsHealth.org. - Best Practices for Physical Activity
More Resources
- Active Start: A Statement of Physical Activity Guidelines for Children from Birth to Age 5. These guidelines are presented by developmental stage including infants, toddlers and preschoolers. (Source: National Association for Sport and Physical Education)
- Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Active Children and Adolescents. This document offers specific physical activity plans for children and adolescents, ages 6-17. (Source: US Department of Health and Human Services, 2008)
- CATCH (Coordinated Approach to Child Health)
An evidence-based, coordinated school health program designed to promote physical activity, healthy food choices and the prevention of tobacco use in children. The CATCH Programs cover kids from preschool through 8th grade and has been implemented in thousands of schools and after-school organizations across America and Canada. - Fitnessgram
As part of a high quality, standards-based curriculum, this physical education tool that helps students learn how it feels to become more physically fit and how to value a physically active lifestyle. - Get Up and Do Something
Aims to increase regular physical activity and improve nutritional health. - Take 10!®
A program that gives all educators ideas for incorporating physical activity with academic concepts 10 minutes at a time.
Handouts & Resources
Searching for more ideas and handouts for students or kids in your care? Browse our comprehensive list of tools and resources for educators.
View All Resources for Educators »
Let's Move! Child Care
Nearly a third of kids in America are overweight or obese. As an educator you have the powerful opportunity to incorporate physical activity in everyday teaching and help prevent childhood obesity from the start.
As kids’ bodies and brains develop, they can form unhealthy habits that are hard to break. That’s why Nemours collaborated with former First Lady Michelle Obama’s initiative Let’s Move! Child Care, a nationwide call-to-action that empowers child care providers to make positive health changes in children that could last a lifetime.