Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP)

Children and adolescents should participate in 60 minutes or more of physical activity daily. The resources below provide expanded information on this recommendation.

• Comprehensive School Physical Activity Programs: Helping All Students Achieve 60 Minutes of Physical Activity Each Day
  SHAPE America recommends that all schools implement a comprehensive school physical activity program (CSPAP).
• Educating the Student Body: Taking Physical Activity and Physical Education to School
  The Institutes of Medicine establishes that school physical activity programs are needed so that schools can ensure they are providing students with 60 minutes or more of vigorous or moderate-intensity physical activity per day.
• Evidence-Based Physical Activity for School-Aged Youth
  Research supports national recommendations that youth should be active for 60 minutes per day.
• School Health Guidelines to Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity
  CDC guidelines for promoting healthy eating and physical activity that are based on an in-depth review of research, theory, and best practices in healthy eating and physical activity promotion in school health, public health, and education.
• Youth Physical Activity: The Role of Schools
  This document provides the rationale for engaging youth in physical activity throughout the school day.
• Supporting Quality Physical Education and Physical Activity in Schools brief
• Supporting Recess in Elementary Schools
• Springboard Data Briefs (Strengthen PE in Schools and Keep Recess in Schools)
• Increasing Physical Education and Physical Activity: A Framework for Schools
• More CDC resources

State and national surveillance mechanisms provide valuable data about the current policies, practices, and behaviors related to nutrition, physical activity and physical education programs. The resources below enable the user to access relevant data.

• 2016 Shape of the Nation Report: Status of Physical Education in the USA
  The 2016 Shape of the Nation Report: Status of Physical Education in the USA provides a current picture of physical education in the American education system.
• National Youth Physical Activity and Nutrition Study
  NYPANS provides nationally representative data on behaviors and behavioral determinants related to nutrition and physical activity among high school students.
• Physical Education Profiles
  Physical Education Profiles summarizes the current state of the physical activity and the physical education policies and practices of secondary schools across 26 jurisdictions (18 states, 6 large urban school districts, 1 territory, and 1 tribe).
• School Health Policies and Practices Study
  SHPPS is a national survey periodically conducted to assess school health policies and practices at the state, district, school, and classroom levels.
• School Health Profiles
  The School Health Profiles is a system of surveys assessing school health policies and practices in states, large urban school districts, territories, and tribal governments. Profiles surveys are conducted every 2 years by education and health agencies among middle and high school principals and lead health education teachers.
• Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System
  YRBSS monitors six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability among youth and adults, including inadequate physical activity. YRBSS also measures the prevalence of obesity and asthma among youth and young adults.

A growing body of research has focused on the association between school-based physical activity, including physical education, and academic performance among school-aged youth. The resources below translate those findings into recommendations for school physical activity programs.

• Active Education: Growing Evidence on Physical Activity and Academic Performance
  A new Research Brief updates the evidence on the role of physical activity in academic performance.
• Active Education: Physical Education, Physical Activity and Academic Performance
  This research shows that children who are physically active and fit tend to perform better in the classroom and that daily physical education does not hurt academic performance.
• Health and Academics
  The academic achievement of America’s youth is strongly linked with their health. CDC has developed guidelines and strategies for schools to address health-risk behaviors among students and creates tools to help schools implement these guidelines. Visit this webpage for resources that support schools in explaining how to improve academic achievement through healthy eating and physical activity.
• Health and Academic Achievement
  Download this CDC resource to share the link between healthy eating, physical activity, and improved academic achievement to engage stakeholders in working together to support healthy school environments.
• The Association Between School-Based Physical Activity, Including Physical Education, and Academic Performance
  CDC report synthesizes the scientific literature that has examined the association between school-based physical activity, including physical education, and academic performance, including indicators of cognitive skills and attitudes, academic behaviors, and academic achievement.
• Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviors and Academic Grades
• Health-related Behaviors and Academic Achievement Among High School Student MMWR Report