Active or Not, Here It Comes!

Physical Activity

Big Question: What counts as physical activity?

What This Lesson Is About

This lesson helps you learn what "physical activity" really means. It is more than just sports teams, like football or soccer.

Physical activity also means:

• Fun fitness things, like swimming with friends or lifting weights
• Sports you can do your whole life, like golf or walking
• Everyday things, like walking your dog, dancing to a song, or mowing the grass

By the end, you will see that you already do physical activity every day. You might even feel excited to do more!

What You Will Learn to Do

• Tell the health benefits (good things) that come from physical activity
• Connect physical activity to many things, not just sports
• Keep a record of your own physical activity

What Students Often Think

Kids your age often care a lot about being good at physical things. Here are some things researchers have found:

• Being good at physical skills feels very important to kids.
• Boys often think being good at sports matters more than being good at schoolwork or making friends.
• Girls say they do physical activity mostly "to have fun." Other reasons are "to stay in shape," "because I like it," and "to learn new skills."
• Just telling girls to be active doesn't work as well as showing them (like an adult being active too).
• Girls who are not very active usually know less about why physical activity is good for them.
• Girls who are active often feel more confident about sports and schoolwork.
• Different groups of kids may feel more drawn to different sports, and may feel most skilled at different ones.
• Some students may not want to join organized sports if they don't feel the sport fits who they are.

What You Will Need

• Strips of paper (2 inches by 8 inches)
• Markers
• A video showing people being active
• A worksheet with a story (scenario)
• A physical activity log (a paper to write down your activities)

Staying Safe

You will need lots of open space to move around.

If you don't usually move around much, don't start hard exercise too fast — that can hurt your body. Tell your teacher if you have any health problems that might make it hard to do certain activities.

Always warm up first. A warm-up is gentle movement that gets your muscles ready. It slowly warms up your body and gets your heart beating a little faster.

Always cool down after. A cool-down is gentle movement that helps your body relax after exercise. It slowly brings your heart rate back to normal and helps stop your muscles from feeling stiff.

What We Will Do

Step 1: Get Started (about 5–10 minutes)

Your teacher will read you three words and what they mean:

• Exercise — a planned activity you do on purpose to help your body get stronger or healthier.
• Physical activity — any movement your body makes using your muscles that uses energy. It's good for your fitness.
• Physical fitness — how well your body can do physical activities. This includes: how your body is made up, how strong your heart and lungs are, how well you can stretch, and how strong your muscles are.

Your teacher will write some activities on the board. You will vote: is each one "exercise" or "physical activity"?

Step 2: Explore (about 20–25 minutes)

1. Work in a small group. Think of as many physical activities as you can. Try to think of activities that use different parts of the body. Remember — one activity can use more than one body part!
2. Write each activity on a strip of paper.

Step 3: Explain (about 30 minutes)

1. Your teacher will list body parts on the board or wall, like: heart and lungs, shoulders, arms, stomach, and legs. Sort your activity strips under the body part they use.
2. Talk about your choices as a class.
3. Watch a video of people doing physical activities. Try the movements yourself! Figure out which body parts each movement uses.
4. You may change your sorting if you learn something new.

Step 4: Dig Deeper (about 10–15 minutes)

Read a short story (scenario) about someone doing different actions, like climbing, stretching, or lifting. Then answer these questions:

1. Are these actions physical activity? Why or why not?
2. Which body parts do these actions use? How do you know?
3. What other things you do during your day might count as physical activity?

Step 5: Check What You Learned (10 minutes a day, for 3 days, at home)

Keep a log of your physical activities for three days. Write down how much time you spend on each activity. Then think about your activity level and what health benefits you noticed.

Teacher's Note: Kids your age should try to do physical activity for a total of 60 minutes a day, at least 5 days a week. Try lots of different activities!

Think About It

1. What good things (benefits) come from your physical activities?
2. Which body parts should you work on more? Why?
3. How does what you do compare to what is a healthy amount of activity?

Where to Learn More

BAM! is made by the CDC (a U.S. government health agency). It answers kids' questions about health and gives fun ways to be strong and safe.

KidsHealth shares health information for kids, teens, and parents, checked by real doctors. Visit: kidshealth.org

MedlinePlus has a page called "Exercise and Physical Fitness" with links to learn more about staying active and healthy.

The CDC has fact sheets about physical activity and young people, plus information from the Surgeon General's report on physical activity and health.