Early care and education (ECE) teachers are constantly moving throughout their day with varying physical demands akin to those of athletes. Teachers are continuously bending, stooping, and squatting to lift and carry children as well as sitting on the floor or in child-sized furniture--all activities that require substantial fitness. This said,…

School-age children with overweight or obesity continue to be problematic in the United States, and are associated with many health, social, and financial problems. Schools provide an excellent venue in which to promote healthy weight in students, and school nurses are well-positioned to play an essential role in controlling obesity. The number of…

Family and educational institutions play a decisive role in learning and strengthening habits related to physical activity and health. School has a specific mission in this scope, especially at the first stage of education. Attempting to answer the question of how schools in practice realise these tasks, a study was conducted on the level of…

A high prevalence of medical conditions affects the typical motor development of learners in the West Coast District of South Africa. Given the strong correlation between motor skill performance and academic achievement, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of motor skill impairment among Grade R learners (5-7-year olds) enrolled in public…

This study tested the Wellness Enhancing Physical Activity in Young Children (WE PLAY) program, a 4-week online preschool teacher training, on children's moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). In this cluster RCT, six Head Start preschools were randomized to an intervention and comparison group. Children's MVPA was measured using…

Purpose: Schools provide opportunities for children to accumulate recommended daily moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). This study aimed to determine physical activity (PA) across the school day among elementary school children in Qatar. Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 181 Grade 1 (5.8 ± 0.4 years) and Grade 4 (9.0 ± 0.5…

Objective: The goals of this study were to (1) describe physical activity levels during school recess in 8-year-old children, (2) analyse the percentage of children who achieved physical activity recommendation at recess, and (3) examine if recess physical activity levels varied by gender, weight status, and parental educational level. Methods: In…

We examine separate and combined effects of children's body size and gender on school bullying victimization in the United States. Second-grade data for the 2012/13 school year from the US Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Cohort, 2011 were analyzed, hierarchical generalized logistic modeling was used, and three forms of school…

There is a growing body of evidence to support the benefits of physical activity on children's cognitions and behavior. Although children with ADHD are known to be at risk for deficits in cognitive processing, specifically executive functioning which controls the organization, regulation, and planning of behavior, little evidence exists about the…

Attitudes and biases toward body size perceived as fat and body size perceived as thin are present in young children (Cramer and Steinwert in "J Appl Dev Psychol" 19(3):429-451, 1998; Worobey and Worobey in "Body Image" 11:171-174, 2014). However, the information children have regarding body size and ways to modify body size…

Early childhood obesity is a serious worldwide problem, and fundamental movement skills (FMS) are very important factors in human movement. Thus, several advanced studies have examined the associations between FMS and body mass index (BMI). The purpose of this study was to investigate BMI and FMS (locomotion and object control skills) in Korean…

Purpose: Before-school programs, one of the least studied student-related comprehensive school physical activity program (CSPAP) components, may be a promising strategy to help youth meet the physical activity (PA) guidelines. This study's purpose was to examine: (a) how much PA children accrued during a before-school running/walking club and…

As the number of children affected by obesity increases in the United States, it is necessary to intervene with preventive and intervention techniques that will enact change. Because children spend a significant amount of their time in school, it is of particular interest to target strategies during the school day. Given the recommendations for…

Garden-based lessons are gaining popularity as a means of increasing fruit and vegetable intake among children. The study objective was to pilot test a garden-based preschool curriculum for feasibility and acceptability in Harris County Department of Education Head Start using qualitative and quantitative methods. A total of 103, 3- to 5-year-old…

Research to date has focused mostly on children's representation of their physical self as a prelude to the development of a theory of mind (ToM) and on their understanding of the self as distinct from others over time. Whether children approaching the well-known age of ToM mastery are also accurately appraising their own "body's"…