Why Active Schools?
Regular physical activity helps students succeed in school – and in life!
In addition to keeping kids healthy and strong, being active for 60 minutes each day has been shown to:
- Increase concentration and focus
- Improve classroom attendance and behavior
- Boost academic performance
As the places where kids spend a majority of their time, schools are important places for kids to experience and enjoy being active. That’s why, in collaboration with the groups below, the First Lady kicked off the Let’s Move! Active Schools program to help schools across the country make quality physical activity a part of every kid’s day.
Let’s Move! Active Schools is a comprehensive program that empowers school champions – P.E. teachers, classroom teachers, principals, administrators, and parents – to create active environments that enable all students to get moving and reach their full potential.
A Let’s Move! Active School provides opportunities in 5 key areas:
- Physical Education
- Physical Activity During School
- Physical Activity Before and After School
- Family & Community Involvement
- Staff Involvement
Let’s Move! Active Schools provides individual champions with a clear roadmap to meet their goals in the 5 key areas above. After signing up at www.letsmoveschools.org, school champions are guided through a simple, 6-step process that helps them build a team, make a plan, and access free resources and tools, including in-person trainings, program materials and activation grants, and direct, personal assistance from certified professionals. Once they’ve achieved their goals in the five areas above, schools will be publicly recognized and celebrated.
XHED: Get Involved
Every school needs a champion - anyone can be that champion.
Whether you’re a parent, teacher, administrator, or interested community member, you can make a difference. Everyone has a role to play, and by working together, we can help our schools get moving and our kids lead active, successful lives.
Visit www.letsmoveschools.org to learn more and get started.
Let’s Move! Active Schools brings together organizations across sectors to increase physical activity in schools. The following groups are joining Let’s Move! to kick off this effort:
- American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance (AAHPERD)
- Alliance for a Healthier Generation
- GENYOUth Foundation
- Kaiser Permanente
- NIKE, Inc.
- Partnership for a Healthier America
- President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition
- U.S. Department of Education
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services