Priority 1 – Physical Education and Physical Activity

Schools can create an environment that offers many opportunities for students to be physically active throughout the school day. A Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) provides strong coordination for five components: physical education, physical activity during school (recess and classroom physical activity), physical activity before and after school, staff involvement, and family and community engagement.

Explore the resources below to support physical education and physical activity in schools. These resources include webinars, guides, articles, and ready-to-go handouts to share with staff and families.

Classroom Physical Activity and Recess Resources from the National Network of Public Health Institutes

 

Access recorded webinars and physical activity boosts that can be used any time of year.
A series of videos to model and show adaptations of some of the energizers activity cards found in the Classroom Physical Activity Ideas and Tips resource.
Tips for teachers on how to effectively engage students in active learning and printable sheets of easy-to-use and adaptable activity/energizer cards for different grade levels and learning settings (in-person vs. virtual). Note: This resource has been updated with 19 additional activity cards as of March 2021.
This resource provides district and school administrators, teachers, and parents/caregivers and families with practical ideas and considerations to safely and equitably incorporate physical activity into the school day in order to promote a culture of active engagement and learning.
This one-pager outlines some actions to take to address key equity considerations for classroom physical activity.
This guide provides key questions and activities, along with practical templates that teachers and other champions can use to help them adopt, promote, enhance, or sustain the strategies identified in Strategies for Classroom Physical Activity in Schools.
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) Data Brief.
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) Data Brief.
This article explains the health and academic benefits of classroom physical activity, describes strategies and resources to help schools integrate classroom physical activity throughout the school day, and highlights the possible role of physical educators in supporting the implementation of classroom physical activity strategies.
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) Data Brief.
A one-pager with simple tips and suggestions for parents/caregivers on how to support children and youth in getting 60 minutes of physical activity every day.
 
 
 
This online platform for integrating classroom physical activity in schools features a step-by-step guide, data briefs and infographics, helpful ideas, tips, and more.
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) Data Brief.
This Springboard to Active Schools Twitter account posts updates on our work, and the work of other similar organizations.
This Pinterest Board includes classroom physical activity cards and tips to support active school environments.
The Springboard to Active Schools YouTube Channel includes physical activity energizers and recorded trainings.
This document describes 10 evidence-based strategies for promoting and planning for classroom physical activity.
Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) Data Brief.

Physical Education and Physical Activity Resources from the Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE America)

 

A SHAPE America blog post written by Kate Holmes with Springboard to Active Schools.
This one-pager describes how health and physical education programs that include social and emotional learning can benefit students.
This document serves as a resource for those aligning social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies into the existing SHAPE America National Standards and Grade-Level Outcomes for K-12 Physical Education™ and allows physical education teachers to incorporate SEL competencies into their standards-based lesson plans.
The Health Education/ SEL Crosswalk shows how the NHES are aligned with the SEL competencies and sub-competencies developed by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) and can give teachers a pathway for planning a skills-based health education curriculum that aligns with social and emotional learning.
This guidance document outlines the essential components that provide the structure for an effective health education program, evidence supporting health education, and national recommendations and best practices for health education.
This Health Education Program Checklist is designed to help school administrators, principals, teachers of health education, and parents review their school health education program to ensure it addresses what SHAPE America has identified as the “essential components” of health education.
A SHAPE America blog post written by Kyle Bragg.
A SHAPE America blog post written by Aaron Beighle.
A SHAPE America blog post written by Jeff Danielsen.
PECAT Training Materials Dropbox Folder (includes resources for both virtual and in-person PECAT trainings)
Access the resources developed for both the virtual and in-personal Physical Education Curriculum Assessment Tool (PECAT) Training of Trainers in the Dropbox folder for the In-person PECAT ToT and the Virtual PECAT ToT.
SHAPE America has created a collection of resources to help you continue to provide effective, standards-based lessons during the pandemic.
Log-in with your free account to access 3+ hours of online courses including:
  • Roadmap to Adapted Physical Education
  • Essential Components of Physical Education
And many less than 1 hour webinars including:
  • The Why: A Look at How the Brain Deals with Stress
  • The How: How to Be Combative to Our Stress Levels
  • Foundations in Understanding and Building Cultural Proficiency (3 mini-sessions)
  • From Classroom to Playground: Practical Tips for Using Recess Resources
  • Introduction to the School Health Index
This document provides schools with recommendations and guidelines for school reentry for K-12 physical education, health education, and physical activity. It will be updated as necessary to incorporate changes in national guidance or recommendations.
The SHAPE America YouTube Channel contains interactive lessons and tips for K-12 physical education, health education, and physical activity.
Downloadable posters in both 8.5x11 and 16x20 sizes.
This poster series was created in partnership with National Association of Schools Nurses and highlights four of the most common chronic health conditions in school-age children, what a health emergency might look like, and what action steps to take.