Celebrate with the World's Largest PE Class!

Project Aces is a great way to celebrate May's National Physical Fitness and Sports Month and National Physical Education Week (May 1-7)!

Project ACES (All Children Exercise Simultaneously) is a signature program of the Youth Fitness Coalition, Inc. Project ACES was created by physical education teacher Len Saunders in 1989 as a method of motivating children to exercise, as well as show the importance of physical education.

ACES takes place on the first Wednesday in May as part of National Physical Fitness and Sports Month along with National Physical Education Week. It has been labeled as "the world's largest exercise class" by the media. Since 1989, millions of children from all over the world exercise together to promote proper health and fitness habits. With the obesity epidemic facing the youth of the world, children's fitness plays a major role in fighting heart disease. Project ACES hopes to address these issues with its big event in May, as well as schools that participate in daily Project ACES Clubs throughout the year.

PE4life is a big supporter of Project ACES.....please visit their web site to sign up your school! www.projectaces.com

Pressure to Perform Academically Results in PE Cuts in MN

Here's an excellent article on an issue that is very familiar to us all - pressure for students to perform academically resulting in less time and money for PE. Although this article is specific to Minnesota school districts, it's occurring all across the country.

Increased pressure to perform on academic tests is forcing state schools to cut physical education classes

WASHINGTON — After multiple layoffs, 30-year-old physical education teacher Ryan Weber has had a front-row seat in watching the decline of physical education in Minnesota schools.

Weber is out of work again as of Thursday after finishing a short-term stint in an Anoka summer program for special needs students

“Only 10 of the 25 people I graduated from college in physical education with are doing anything related to their degree because they can’t find jobs, kept getting cut and just can’t do it anymore,” Weber said.

Education providers are under increasing pressure to measure up on standardized tests, which means that many schools are trading school day hours for academics over physical education to ensure they will meet requirements to lock in funding.

It’s a trend that experts say threatens to undermine first lady Michelle Obama’s central initiative: a campaign aimed at improving the health of America’s youth, in part by expanding physical education and extracurricular activities.

As a result of repeated cuts in physical education across the state, teachers like Weber are looking for work while the waistlines of Minnesota students only get bigger.

“Over the last 10 years, schools have been under intense academic pressure to add more time in their school day for reading and math, and there is only so much time in the school day; time is finite,” said Charlie Kyte, executive director of Minnesota Association of School Administrators. “Physical education is what has been squeezed.”

Read the full story on the MinnPost website.

What's the first "bold action" Congress should take in solving the childhood obesity epidemic?

James S. Marks, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, recently wrote a powerful article titled "We Need Bold Action on Childhood Obesity" in the Huffington Post. In the article, he highlights some statistics that have made headlines lately. You've probably heard or seen a few of them at some point, but seeing the facts presented together is astonishing:

• Adult obesity rates rose in 28 states over the past year and declined only in the District of Columbia.
• Nearly one-third of children are obese or overweight, placing them at higher risk for diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and a host of other serious chronic illnesses.
• 84% of Americans believes the childhood obesity epidemic is a serious problem -- Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and Tea Party supporters agree.
• 56% believe we should launch a comprehensive national program to prevent childhood obesity, even if we have to invest billions of dollars now to prevent hundreds of billions in costs later.

As physical educators or advocates of quality physical education, you guys are the ones that see first-hand the toll childhood obesity is having on our children. So, we want your input on a few questions:

1. If the study is right and 85% of Americans believe childhood obesity is a serious problem, then what can we do, as individuals, to help solve this crisis?

2. Marks suggests strengthening the National School Lunch Program as the first "bold step" Congress should take in combating the childhood obesity epidemic. What do you recommend as the first "bold step?"