Current News & Information

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PE4life in the News   

PE4life: Exercising the body and mind - ROGERS, AR - A group of educators and business leaders pushed back their banquet plates and paired up for an active math game at the Doubletree Guest Suites & Convention Center on Thursday night.  Read more

One School Tackles Childhood Obesity Statistics: NAPERVILLE, Ill. - Odds are you haven't heard of Naperville, Illinois. But the residents there might be on to something when it comes to fighting a national epidemic. Read more.

Deskercise: Staying Jazzed and Focused at School - Students at Mitchell Elementary School in Charleston, S.C., don't just write their multiplication tables. They jump them. Read more.

School PE Program Fights Childhood Obesity - KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Leaders of one school think the solution to childhood obesity starts in the classroom.Teachers at Rosedale Middle School say students are learning to take care of their bodies on a daily basis. Read more.

Going Beyond the Gym - Schools can't do it all. Sometimes the community has to help. Kim Mason retired last spring as the physical-education director of Rogers Public Schools and immediately went to work for a nonprofit organization that's goal is to change not only physical education programs in schools but also the way communities approach fitness. Read more.

Feature: Reading, Writing... Physical Education - September 2008 - Local schools implement national program to improve student health - Because of the health implications of childhood obesity, children today have a shorter life expectancy than their parents for the first time in 100 years. A startling number of American children are obese or at risk of becoming so, while locally more than one-third of Arkansas’s children are overweight or at risk. Unless they begin eating less and exercising more, our children will continue to face the threat of diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, asthma and other significant health problems. Read more.

PE News and Videos

Daily PE Lesson to Help Kids Fight Battle of Bulge - Like children across the country, youngsters in Beijing returned to class Monday, but kids in the capital have one new subject to deal with - how to trim their expanding waistlines. Read more.

Gym Classes Aren't What They Used To Be - November 1, 2008 - When you hear the words "gym class," what do you picture? If it's a red rubber orb flying straight at your face during a game of dodgeball, you're dating yourself. In today's schools, physical education has changed drastically from the good ol' days. Read more.

New Center Boosts Student Fitness - October 27, 2008 - Moanalua High School's physical education students arrived on campus this year to an eye-catching treat: the school's new $300,000 fitness center. The center was built using funds from a two-year federal Carol White Physical Education Program grant, according to Moanalua High School Athletic Director Joel Kawachi. Construction began near the end of last school year and was completed over the summer. Read more. - 10/13/2008 - America is facing a crisis of pandemic proportions, some researchers argue, as childhood and adult obesity rates continues to rise.

Obesity Rates on the Rise Throughout County, State - According to a study by the Trust for America's Health, a non-profit, non-partisan organization which is dedicated to the prevention of diseases, adult obesity rose in 31 states with 22 states experiencing an increase for the second year in a row. New York finished at 40th. No state saw a decrease in its rates. Read more

Obesity 

TV Ads Contribute to Childhood Obesity, Economists Say - New York Times November 21, 2008 - Banning fast food advertisements from children’s television programs would reduce the number of overweight children in the U.S. by 18 percent and decrease the number of overweight teens by 14 percent, economists have estimated in a new study. Read more.

Five Tips for Parents to Prevent - or Prevail Over - Childhood Obesity - November 8, 2008 - In the last few decades, obesity has become a big problem among little people. According to the Centers for Disease Control, the rate of obesity among children ages 6 to 11 reached 17 percent in 2006 — more than double 1980's level of 6.5 percent. Read more.

PE4life Featured in New Book- SPARK: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by Dr. John Ratey
SPARK features PE4life and highlights academic improvements at PE4life Academies in Titusville, PA and the Naperville, IL 203 District. You'll hear about pioneering PE4lifers Phil Lawler, Paul Zientarski, and Tim McCord in this new book. SPARK is available for purchase in the PE4life Pro Shop. Visit Dr. Ratey's website. To learn more about booking Dr. Ratey for a speaking engagment, please contact Shanna Goodman at sgoodman@pe4life.org.  

Additional exercise and the brain resources:
Wanna Boost Kids' Grades? Get them Moving! - MSNBC, August 18, 2008 - Want to help your kids do better in school this fall? Get them moving. That’s the message from a growing field of research linking physical activity with better academic performance. Read more.
 

State Legislative News
California Task Force Report
Florida Law Requires Daily PE
Kentucky Gets Kids in Shape
Mississippi Makes Room for Exercise
Ohio Hopes for Daily PE