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Rockville Elementary receives physical education award

Originally published May 19, 2019 in the Miami County Republic.

By Doug Carder

Rockville Elementary has received a statewide award for its excellence in physical education.

The Kansas Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance tabbed Rockville for its Model School Gold Award, which will be presented at the 2019 KAHPERD state convention in Pittsburg. Rockville Elementary’s physical education program also will be highlighted in the Spring 2020 issue of the KAHPERD Journal. Read More

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Encourage Teens to Work Out for Better Learning

Originally published June 7, 2019 in Health Day.

By Len Canter

Exercise is important for all kids, because it boosts their overall health and wards off excess weight. But it holds added benefit for teens: According to a study in The Journal of Pediatrics, it improves their attention, which can help them do better in school.

The greatest payoff came from about an hour a day of moderate-to-vigorous activity, the study found. It seems that sustained exercise at a moderate level releases a specific protein that improves numerous brain functions. But overly vigorous activity could make teens too tired to focus on learning. Read More

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Improving kids’ bodies – and minds – by requiring recess

Originally published March 24, 2019 in the Rome News-Tribune.

By Andy Miller, Georgia Health News

Kids love school recess: Kicking a soccer ball, clambering up a jungle gym, chasing each other on a playground.

And such unstructured play is not just fun, researchers say. Recess can help improve academic performance and reduce fidgety behavior and negative conduct in the classroom, health experts say. Read More

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Gym Class Is Dead—But Long Live Physical Education

Originally published Jan. 1, 2019 by the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

By Ingrid Johnson and Mike Ginicola, Principal Leadership Article

Students emerge from the locker room in their lime-green trainers, knee-high tube socks, black shorts, and white  T-shirt—it’s time for gym class!

By now you’re probably envisioning gym teachers from the many satirical movies that portray physical education class as an environment of jocks versus geeks where only the strong survive. You might even be thinking about your own childhood experiences. In either case, it’s time to end the old-school misconceptions of gym class. Read More

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Let’s get physical — Why Penn should offer for-credit physical education classes

Originally published Nov. 1 in The Daily Pennsylvanian

Editorial

At an academically competitive school like Penn, it isn’t hard to find a student whose most dreaded high school course was [physical education]. [P.E.] class was often a bizarre interlude in an otherwise normal school day. Jerry Seinfeld described it well: “You had English, Social Studies, Geometry, then suddenly you’re in ‘Lord of the Flies’ for 40 minutes.”

However, beyond the clear physical benefits of exercise, college students who regularly work out are often more focused, less stressed, and have sharper memories. For these reasons, we believe that Penn should utilize its existing athletic facilities and offer for-credit physical education elective courses. Read More