This study adopted a case study design with mixed methods to examine Chinese kindergarten children's body size perceptions. Forty-two Chinese kindergarten children between ages five and six were interviewed through child-friendly language. Results showed majority of children could describe the image provided to them and explain the differences…

This study examined weight concerns and body dissatisfaction among female kindergarteners and assessed their relationships to body mass index (BMI) and parental, peer, and media influences. A total of 90 girls in South Korea were recruited and two-step cluster analysis was used to examine body image concerns and their association with diverse…

The Ready for School, Ready for Life initiative in Guilford County, North Carolina, aims to support interconnected programs and services for young children and their families with the goal of having children enter kindergarten ready for learning. The initiative aims to strengthen connections among existing programs in Guilford County and provide…

Children's ideas, which differ from a scientific view, are termed as alternative conceptions (AC). AC are extremely resistant to change and arise from everyday experience. Investigation of children's AC about weight gain and their ability to discriminate between healthy and unhealthy foods is important, because it can help teachers reduce obesity…

Taking into account the psychophysical development of a young person, a child in particular, attention should be paid to forming certain habits related to physical activity, health, nutrition, hygiene, and aesthetics during the preschool period as such habits will be of utmost importance in his/ her adult life. Physical activity of children…

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…

The study aimed to explore how weight changes from childhood to adolescence influenced the performances of physical fitness. The participants (N = 115) were pre-tested when they were in kindergarten, first, or second grades (mean age = 7.25). The same participants were post-tested again after 6 years. The President's Challenge test battery was…

Background: Studies of body mass index (BMI) change have focused on understanding growth trajectories from childhood to adolescence and adolescence to adulthood, but few have explored BMI trajectories solely in elementary (grades K-5) school children. This report complements these studies by exploring changes in obesity status using analytic…

Background: We examined prevalence, incidence, and trajectory of obesity from kindergarten through grade 8 in one of the first states to implement annual surveillance. Methods: Participants included 16,414 children enrolled in kindergarten in Arkansas in 2004 with complete body mass index (BMI) measurements in kindergarten and eighth grade.…

We present evidence of a positive relationship between school starting age and children's cognitive development from ages 6 to 18 using a fuzzy regression discontinuity design and large-scale population-level birth and school data from the state of Florida. We estimate effects of being old for grade (being born in September vs. August) that are…

Background: Evidence suggests that children gain more weight during the summer months compared with the school year. To examine the impact of the school and summer environment on children's weight further, we conducted a 5-year longitudinal study examining changes in standardized BMI (zBMI) of students entering kindergarten. Methods: Heights and…

This study assessed the anthropometrics and acanthosis nigricans (AN) in a sample of 7,337 children at two assessments. Four groups of children were identified based on the presence of AN at both time points: those who never had the marker, those who gained the marker, those who lost the marker, and those who maintained the marker. Group…

This study tests a mediated model of boys' and girls' weight status and math performance with 6,250 children from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study. Five data points spanning kindergarten entry (mean age = 68.46 months) through fifth grade (mean age = 134.60 months) were analyzed. Three weight status groups were identified: persistent…

For more than 25 years, the Annie E. Casey Foundation has used the data-based advocacy of KIDS COUNT to raise the visibility of children's issues and to inform decision making at the state and local levels. Building on this work and the efforts of other groups nationwide that are using indicator analysis to contribute to positive change for…

Poor academic performance during childhood predicts later adverse outcomes, and could be targeted for improvement if detected early. This study used population-based record linkage to examine the association between early life risk factors and academic achievement at two different stages of development using two different cohorts: a kindergarten…