This manuscript describes a pedagogical proposal for the adherence to healthy eating in sixth-grade schoolchildren. The reason for the design lies in the high prevalence of overweight and obesity together with a growing current sedentary lifestyle, aspects that constitute a serious public health problem worldwide with an upward trend and pandemic…

Offering an in-depth exploration of the distinctive features of the play development and learning of toddlers, this book provides useful materials, strategies and tools that can be used by practitioners supporting toddlers at this significant age. The book explores the context and concepts of wellbeing and is ideal for early years practitioners,…

Child inactivity, overweightness, and obesity are recognized problems in the United States. Despite characterization as an "epidemic," children continue to fall short in meeting physical activity recommendations necessary to maintain proper health. Relevant literature indicates that after-school programs (ASPs) are viable options for…

BAckground: Reversing decline in physical fitness and increase in excess body weight in school children are considered major public health challenges. We evaluated a proposed model to integrate a screening and healthy exercise, eating, and lifestyle program (HEELP) into primary schools in Canberra, Australia. Objectives were: (1) to establish body…

Purpose: Parent-focused interventions (PFIs) are a promising method for supporting parents and promoting children's well-being. Few PFIs in the USA, however, include physical health promotion content and are universal programs. The purpose of this paper is to describe a universal health-promoting PFI for parents of elementary school-aged children…

Food assistance programs--including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, or food stamps), the National School Lunch Program, and the School Breakfast Program--have been remarkably successful at their core mission: reducing food insecurity among low-income children. Moreover, writes Craig Gundersen, SNAP in particular has also been…

Within the context of the education-care divide in the field, numerous studies have affirmed that preschool teachers feel unprofessional when they assume a caring role yet believe that love and care are central to their work. However, immigrant/refugee teachers may experience this tensionality more acutely since their own cultural beliefs and…

Early childhood educators currently provide content focused learning opportunities for children in the areas of well-being and environmental education. However, these are usually seen as discrete content areas and educators are challenged with responding to children's interests in popular-culture inspired food products given these influence their…

Childhood overweight and obesity are major problems in the United States, with important consequences for our nation's health and economy. Breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day, yet children, adolescents, and adults skip breakfast on a routine basis. This habit of breakfast skipping is related to weight gain, higher body mass…

According to a recent study reported by the BBC, 30% of children in England are overweight and a significant factor affecting this statistic is that children have limited understanding of food, including what should be consumed and in what proportions. Nutritional choices made by children in today's society can dramatically affect their health and…

Many states and communities are in chronic fiscal crisis. It is no surprise that beleaguered educators are ever more open to offers of corporate "partnerships" that might bring in additional money for their schools. Unfortunately, many school-business partnerships are little more than marketing arrangements that have few benefits for…

Over the past decade the issue of food and in particular, food consumed within schools has come to encapsulate a broad range of concerns regarding children and young people's health and wellbeing. In Australia, the UK and more recently the USA, attempts to ameliorate a range of public health concerns have provided the impetus for an unprecedented…

Students need more than just "any" lunch or breakfast to do well in school--the "quality" of these meals counts also. Studies have demonstrated the role healthy diets can play in students' academic achievement. That's why President Obama signed into law the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act in December 2010. This historic legislation provides free…

More and more research is showing that excessive sugars, dyes, preservatives, and possibly even milk and wheat products can affect activity level, attention, interactions, confidence, and sense of well being, all factors that impact a child's ability to learn. A child cannot be asked to make healthy food choices while the rest of the family makes…

This Report Card presents an overview of inequalities in child well-being in 41 countries of the European Union (EU) and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It focuses on 'bottom-end inequality' -- the gap between children at the bottom and those in the middle -- and addresses the question 'how far behind are…