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Physical activity (PA) is an essential component of the physical education classroom, whether it is used to practice motor skills, increase motor competence, or provide experience and opportunities to nurture lifelong PA participation. This chapter outlines the history of PA in the school setting, beginning with physical education and expanding through a Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program model including PA during the school day (e.g., recess and classroom-based activity), PA before and after school (including active commuting), staff involvement, and family and community engagement. We begin by discussing the theoretical underpinnings of PA in the school setting and then outline previous research around PA implications. Ideas and suggestions for how the field of physical education and PA in schools can move the field forward together to embrace PA during the school day while being culturally and socially just are presented. Finally, future directions and implications for research are discussed.

Background: Principals are key to the promotion of physical activity (PA) in schools. The purpose of this study was to understand how school principals’ PA values, behaviors, and individual and school characteristics were associated with the presence of an active school. Methods: A representative sample of 1019 school principals in the United States was surveyed. Survey items addressed principals’ values and behaviors associated with PA, individual and school demographic factors, such as years of experience and school level, and a single item asking whether principals perceived their school to be an active school (ie, provides students with opportunities to be physically active before, during, and after the school day). Significant variables from a cross-tabulation and chi-square analysis were added to a hierarchical logistic regression model to assess the predictive properties of principal values and behaviors as they relate to the presence of an active school. Results: Approximately half of principals (47%) reported having an active school. The model significantly predicted the presence of an active school but accounted for only 6.6% of the total variance. Although values toward PA and more frequent personal PA behaviors were associated with the presence of an active school within the cross-tabulation and chi-square analysis, neither variable emerged as a significant predictor in the regression model. Conclusions: Principals’ personal PA values and behaviors contribute to the presence of an active school, but other variables, including years of experience and school contextual factors, are more powerful predictors.

This study investigated a reciprocal effects model (REM) of children’s body fat self-concept and physical self-concept, and objectively measured school physical activity at different intensities. Grade four students (N = 376; M age = 9.07, SD = .61; 55% boys) from the midwest region of the United States completed measures of physical self-concept and body fat self-concept, and wore accelerometers for three consecutive school days at the beginning and end of one school year. Findings from structural equation modeling analyses did not support reciprocal effects. However, children’s body fat self-concept predicted future physical self-concept and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Multigroup analyses explored the moderating role of weight status, sex, ethnicity, and sex*ethnicity within the REM. Findings supported invariance, suggesting that the observed relations were generalizable for these children across demographic groups. Links between body fat self-concept and future physical self-concept and MVPA highlight self-enhancing effects that can promote children’s health and well-being.