There is growing evidence that increased physical fitness and physical activity (PA) rates are positively associated with academic achievement. Recent efforts toward Comprehensive School Physical Activity Programs (CSPAP) include the use of PA breaks during academic learning activities. This study examined the acute and chronic effects of PA…

This study investigated the effect of a skating unit on cardiovascular fitness, eyes-closed static balance, explosive power, and agility in fifth graders. During a 6-week skating unit (12 lessons), 71 students (M[subscript age] = 10.34 years, range: 10-12 years) participated during regularly scheduled physical education classes. Three classes were…

Despite the prominence of fitness testing in school physical education (PE), there is a sparsity of research examining the antecedents of students' affective experiences during fitness testing lessons. This study aimed to investigate the associations among task- and ego-involving motivational climates, perceived physical competence, physical…

It is estimated that less than 20% of young people worldwide are receiving the recommended 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) per day (Riley, Lubans, Holmes, & Morgan, 2014). Delaware and many other states around the country use FITNESSGRAM to assess students' overall physical fitness. The FITNESSGRAM® is a physical…

Most actions targeting children's health behaviors have limited involvement of children in the development, potentially contributing to disappointing effectiveness. Therefore, in the 3-year "Kids in Action" study, 9- to 12-year-old children from a lower-socioeconomic neighborhood were involved as coresearchers in the development,…

Background/Purpose: Before school exercise programs (BSEPs) give students time for breakfast and add time to their daily physical activity. However, the effects of BSEP on physical fitness and academic achievement in the classroom remain unclear. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of BSEP on cardiorespiratory fitness and academic…

Background: Although physical literacy is explicitly defined and integrated into Canadian provincial physical education curricula, limited empirical evidence substantiates the development of physical literacy in elementary physical education. Despite physical education curricular expectations, developing and assessing physical literacy in students…

Background: The effectiveness of school-based physical activity interventions for improving cardiopulmonary fitness (CPF) of overweight and obese children is not well established. In this study, we evaluated whether overweight and obese children had similar changes in body mass index (BMI) and CPF as normal weight children after participating in a…

Purpose: To identify the role of content specificity in moderating situational interest and its relationship with physical activity (PA), we examined the between- and within-content relations of situational interest and PA in an urban elementary physical education context using fitness and basketball as comparative contents. Method: Fourth and…

Previous research in children has shown that higher cardiovascular fitness is related to better executive functioning. However, the available literature is hampered by methodological limitations. The present study investigates the relationship between cardiovascular fitness and executive functioning in a large sample of healthy children (N = 814).…

The purpose of this article is to highlight how a community partnership between a Northeastern U.S. university and a racially/socioeconomically diverse local elementary school (58.3% students on free/reduced lunch) impacted learners in both physical education programs. Based on the Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program model, community…

Purpose: This study examined the test-retest reliability and feasibility of select fitness assessments in 7-12 year old children on the autism spectrum. Method: Participants (N = 14; n = 1 female; Mage = 9.5 ± 1.7 years) completed 7 fitness assessments, administered in a random order, on two occasions--Bruce protocol; Modified 6-minute walk test…

Exergames (video games that promote cognitive and physical activity simultaneously) benefit executive function (EF) in elderly populations. It has been suggested that exergames may induce larger effects than cognitive or exercise training alone, but few reviews have synthesized the causal factors of exergames on EF from experimental research with…

The aim of the present study was to compare the effects of four warm-up protocols on agility, strength, static and dynamic flexibility in primary school students. The participants were forty-four students of a primary school (19 boys and 25 girls) and the mean age of the children was 11.7±0.47. All of them executed, in four different days, one of…

This study used self-determination theory to provide a better understanding of learner motivation in a physical education program. Students participated in a sports unit with choice in activities, equipment, partners, and competition as opposed to a traditional teacher-led activity unit. The objective was to determine differences in motivation and…