Break times

Morning, lunchtime,
sometimes in afternoon
Accounts for nearly 25% of
primary school day
No guidelines for activity
during breaks previous
studies suggest 35% of
time spent in M!A
Physical education
PE squeezed out of school
day by classes
Much of time in PE is not
spent in activity
New guidelines encourage
daily PE (2 hours per
week)
Children should be active
for >50% of class time
Opportunities for Physical Activity at school
0
5000
10000
15000
20000
25000
Most
Active
Least
Active
Out-of-school
in-school
A
Activity Level Grouping
M
e
a
n
S
t
e
p
s
Cox et al (2006). Pedometer steps in primary school-aged children:
a comparison of school-based and out-of-school activity. J Sci. Med.& Sport, 9:91-97
Physical Activity:
School & Out-of-school
New Zealand children Boys= 45; Girls = 46; (5-11 yr)
!edometry
3"day period
These results suggest that physical activity outside of the school environment is a key contributor to a
child's overall level of physical activity, reinforcing the need for interventions targeting the family and
community as well as the school environment.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
p
a

(
u
n
i
t
s
/
w
e
e
k
)
Private Rural City
Boy
Girl
3 schools#
" $ private %&hr !'(,
" $ rural %2)2hrs !'(,
" $ city %$)*hrs !'(
+ days using
Boys= 85; Girls = 74; (7-10 yr)
,esults# -espite different timetabled !', all children did
similar amounts of activity
Contribution of PE to physical activity levels
Mallam et al (2003) BMJ
PE Classes: 90 min. vs 45 min.
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
AULA TRANS AULA-EFE AULA-MVPA
Activities
Wang et al. (2005) J.Sp.Med & Phys.Fitness. 45 (2):171-177
P
e
r
c
e
n
t
a
g
e
m

(
%
)
PE classes contibution to MVPA
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
MVPA-total EF/MVPA-T
EF
ASA
S
t
e
p
s
/
m
i
n
-1
Flohr et. al. (2006), Res. Q.SP.Exerc, 77(3):309-315
Boys, N= 19; girls n=25; =12.7 yr
Pedometer
2 consecutive weeks
These data indicate that youth involved in ASA accumulated a greater number of steps
on all days, weekend days, and health education days when compared to youth not
involved in ASA.
PE Classes vs. Playground(recess)
0
0,1
0,2
0,3
0,4
0,5
0,6
0,7
Edu. Fsica Recreio
Mascul
Femin.
C
o
u
n
t
/
m
i
n
-1
Sarkin et. al. (1997) Gender differences in physical activity during fifth-grade
physical education and recess periodsJ. Teach. Phys. Educ, 17:99-106
&$ fifth"grade children from .outhern /alifornia
accelerometer
%/altrac(
3 days
0he results suggest that structured !' classes may provide similar amounts
of physical activity for both genders
23 schools
Measured during
all breaks using
Actigraph
recording at 5
second epochs
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
%

r
e
a
k

i
n

p
a
!o"erate #ery $i%$
Boy
Girl
Ridgers et al (2004) Prev Med
Physical activity levels during break times
Boys= 116; Girls = 112; (5-10 yr)
,esults# 1oys spent 32)&%, girls 25)3% of break time in M!A
32,3
37,7
16,2
18,9
6,2
7,6
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Masc Fem
RT MVPA/ Total RT RT MVPA/ RT MVPA/ Total MVPAdia
Prescio associada Sade
%
Participao MVPA durante Intervalos
Mota et al.(2003). Physical activity and school recess time: J. Sp. Sci., 23(3): 269-275
%$2 boys, $2 girls( aged * $2 years
accelerometer
The results of this study suggest that school recess time is an important setting to promote MVPA and
contributes to daily physical activity in young children, especially in girls
Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour
Home & School
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
DEITADO SENTADO DE P ACTIVO MT. ACTIVO
CASA ESCOLA
Johns and H (1999) - RQES, 70(3):319-323
Percentage of time spent by participants in activity at home and school
40 children, aged 6-8 observed for 4*1-hr and 6*20-min observation times
Because of the dense population resulting from unusually concentrated urban
development, children in Hong Kong are extremely limited in the extent to which they can
enjoy active lifestyles.
Physical Activity:
According age and gender
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
8-9 anos 10-11 anos 12-13 anos
Mascul Femin.
I
n
d
e
x

d
e

A
c
t
i
v
i
d
a
d
e

F

s
i
c
a
Guerra e col (2001): Eur.Phys.Educ.Review:267-279
*
*
Idade
GENDER DIFFERENCES IN HEART RATE RESPONSES
TO DIFFERENT TYPES OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN
PHYSICAL EDUCATION CLASSES
Sarradel et al., 2011 - Motricidad. European Journal of Human Movement. 26, 65-76
Girls were significantly more active during PE than boys.
Team sports in both sexes, and tennis in the case of the girls, fulfil the
recommendations to occupy at least 50% of PE class time doing MVPA.
The results suggest that structured PE classes may provide different amounts of
physical activity for both genders.
37 secondary school children (19 boys, 18 girls)
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Sedentrio Baixo Mdio Elevado
Baixo Mdio Elevado
Actividade Fsica vs. Estatuto Scio-Econmico
Mota & Esculcas(2002):Int.J.Beh. Med, 9(2):111-121
Active Travel to School and
Phsical Activit !evels
Murtagh and Murphy, 2011 - Active Travel to School and Physical Activity Levels
of Irish Primary Schoolchildren. Pediatric Exercise Science, 23, 230-236
$32 children aged &$$ years from four urban 4rish schools
/hildren 5ho 5alked or cycled to school had higher daily step counts than those
5ho traveled by passive modes)
Active commuting to school may therefore represent a 5orth5hile
strategy for improving children6s physical activity levels)
7ama8
-igi5alker
.9"222
Children and youth are more active during school days than on weekend days.
Children are more active on physical education days than nonphysical education days
These findings suggest that increased physical activity programming and
interventions during weekend days may be needed to increase physical activity.
Brusseau et al., 2011 - Childrens Step Counts on Weekend, Physical Education, and
Non Physical Education Days. Journal of Human Kinetics volume 27:125 135
Step Counts
Weekend, PE, and Non PE Days
Pedometer
7 consecutive weeks
363 fourth and fifth grade children, aged 8-10
Fernandes and Sturm, 2011 - The Role of School Physical Activity Programs in
Child Body Mass Trajectory. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 8, 174 -181
Physical Activity and Body Mass
*23: children in &+2 schools
Boys and girls who do not meet NASPE recommended levels have a higher predicted
BMI percentile than those who do; however the difference is only statistically significant
for boys.
We find evidence that meeting the national recommendations for PE and recess is
effective in mitigating body mass increase among children.
Estudos de
Interveno
Opportunities for Physical Activity
Intervention
Ex: Weekdays of my daughter 2 grade - 7yold

45h Sleep
44h30min School
26h30min Class
12h30min breaks
1h PE
1h30min Music
1h30min Drama
1h30min English
30h30min residual
7h30min Extracurricular
1h30min Homework
!"com#uter
$ocial
2h30min Dinner

"#lticolor $lagro#nd mar%ings on children&s
$hsical activit level d#ring recess
Stratton and Mullan (2005) The effect of multicolor playground markings on childrens
physical activity level during recessPreventive Medicine 41: 828 833
Time spent in MVPA and VPA increased significantly in intervention schools as a result
of playground painting.
Multicolor playground markings can be a low-cost method of increasing childrens daily
physical activity levels in the short term
9 months intervencion at school
Carrel et al. (2005), Improvement of Fitness, Body Composition, and Insulin Sensitivity in
Overweight Children in a School-Based Exercise ProgramArch Ped. Adol. Med, 159:963-968
Children enrolled in fitness-oriented gym classes showed greater loss of BF,
increase in cardiovascular fitness, and improvement in fasting insulin levels than
control subjects.
The modification to the school PE curriculum demonstrates that small but
consistent changes in the amount of PA has beneficial effects on body
composition, fitness, and insulin levels in children.
52 over5eight middle school children %2+ in 4ntervention ;roup(
M-SPAN MVPA During Physical Education
McKenzie et al., 2004 - Evaluation of a Two-Year Middle-School Physical Education Intervention: M-SPAN
A standardized program increased MVPA in middle schools without requiring an
increase in frequency or duration of PE lessons.
Program components were well received by teachers and have the potential for
generalization to other schools. Additional strategies may be needed for girls.
Public middle schools (N =48, grades 68); 24 schools (12I+12C) 2 yr intervention
GORTMAKER et al, 2012 - Effect of an After-School Intervention on Increases in
Childrens Physical Activity. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 44, No. 3, pp. 450457
2$2 children, ages 5$$ yr
Results indicate significant increases in daily physical activity among children in
intervention versus control sites. This study documents the effectiveness of an
environmental change approach in an applied setting.