Here are signs that your congregation can use to promote physical activity!

 

Action for Healthy Kids is a national non-profit organization aimed at improving physical activity and nutrition by focusing on changes in the school environment. Model wellness policy tools, and state by state information is provided on their website.

 

A program sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to create opportunities for active living by implementing changes to the built environment (places we live, work, learn, play and worship). Case studies, community profiles, and many resources to help you start initiatives in your own community.

 

This planning and resource guide – one of many resources for faith communities on this website –  provides African American church staff and members, health department staff, community partners and others with information and tools to plan and conduct multi-level nutrition and physical activity programs in the church.

 

The Alliance for a Healthier Generation is a partnership between the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation. The Alliance offers programs for both public and private partnerships to promote health.

 

The American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) is the largest organization of professionals supporting and assisting those involved in physical education, leisure, fitness, dance, health promotion, and education and all specialties related to achieving a healthy lifestyle.

 

The American Community Gardening Association (ACGA) is a bi-national nonprofit membership organization of professionals, volunteers and supporters of community greening in urban and rural communities. ACGA provides networking, publications, trainings and annual conferences to assist community garden organizations across the United States and Canada.

 

American Public Health Association (APHA) builds a collective voice for public health, working to ensure access to health care, protect funding for core public health services and eliminate health disparities, among myriad other issues. APHA communicates the latest public health science and practice to members, opinion leaders and the public. They also publish the American Journal of Public Health and the Nation’s Health.

 

California Center for Public Health Advocacy provides a number of resources for policy reform at the state and local level, trends and background reports on the national obesity epidemic and related chronic diseases, and tactics and strategies that build momentum for policy change.

 

The Center on Media and Child Health at Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School, and Harvard School of Public Health is dedicated to understanding and responding to the effects of media on the physical, mental, and social health of children through research, production, and education. The site provides the latest news and research on the issue and how families can use media in a healthy way.

 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides resources on many health topics, and intervention and promotional materials to help communities, non-profits, and government agencies prepare presentations, implement wellness practices, and conduct other health promotion interventions.

 

The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control aims to prevent injuries and violence, and reduce their consequences. This site offers injury reduction publications, research materials, and profiles of state programs.

 

CHP: OPHI, founded in 1999, is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to improve the health of Oregonians through advocacy and support of effective public health policy and activities. The organization’s current focus is on the prevention of childhood obesity.

 

Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon (EMO) is a regional faith-based group focused on interfaith dialogue, community services, advocacy and environmental ministries. The mission of EMO's Interfaith Food and Farms Partnership (IFFP) is to empower faith communities, farmers and neighborhoods to build urban-rural alliances and create innovative partnerships for just and sustainable food systems that promote community health. It provides on-line manuals for organizing farm-to-congregation partnerships to increase neighborhood access to fresh, local produce for all and on how to use congregational assets such as kitchens, land, meeting space and land to enhance food security at www.emoregon.org/food_farms.php.

 

The Congregational Wellness Project, which focuses on shifting the eating and physical activity environment at congregations through policies, practices and building and grounds use, was created by IFFP. The project website: faithandwellness.org, offers an assessment tool (Congregational Health Index), resources, and best practices for healthy eating and active living on your congregational campus. See EMO's fact sheets on: "Quick Tips for Healthy Eating," "Tips for Feeding Picky Eaters" and "Keep Your Family and Faith Community Moving."

Children's outdoor activities for schools, congregations, and families.  Ideas for any location and all ages, including sports and active games, gardening, and educational activities.

 

The Injury Free Coalition for Kids is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation comprised of hospital-based, community-oriented programs, whose efforts are anchored in research, education, and advocacy.

 

The site provides reasons parents may want to limit children’s screen time and other media use and gives practical tips on how to start cutting back along with alternative activities. You can download a toolkit in English or Spanish, with fact sheets, forms to track how much screen time and other media use kids are actually getting, and activities for screen-free weeks and campaigns for children, parents and teachers.

 

The Let’s Move! campaign, started by First Lady Michelle Obama, has an ambitious national goal of solving the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation so that children born today will reach adulthood at a healthy weight. Let’s Move! is a comprehensive approach that engages every sector impacting the health of children and provides schools, families and communities with simple tools and suggestions to help kids be more active, eat better, and get healthy. You can sign up to receive email updates and tips for healthy living.

 

The National Association for Sport and Physical Education’s mission is to enhance knowledge, improve professional practice, and increase support for high quality physical education, sport, and physical activity programs through research, development of standards, and dissemination of information. 

 

On this website in the Get Outside section, you can use the “NatureFind” searchable database to find outdoor activities or events, parks and open spaces in every part of the country.  Search by state, zip code, type of recreation, and type of natural area.  The web page also offers general ideas on how to enjoy the outdoors to “refresh us and reconnect us with nature and wildlife” such as by observing wildlife, gardening, exercising, camping and through nature photography. Volunteer opportunities and actions families and institutions can take to make a difference for wildlife and nature are also featured.

 

Nature Rocks is a national program to inspire and empower families to play and explore in nature. Its mission is to make it easy for you to have fun in nature, and connect with others to do the same.

 

Nochildleftinside.org (at the time of printing, this website was temporarily shut down). See: http://www.ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=3900&q=335880&depNav_GID=1642 if that is still the case.   

No Child Left Inside ® is a national program launched in 2006 to reconnect children to the wonder of nature – for their own health and well-being (since research shows kids suffer health problems, including obesity, from too much sedentary time indoors) and for the future of environmental conservation. If children are not familiar with the outdoors, they will not be inspired to protect nature. The program, which is carried out by varying public and private organizations state by state, grew out of Richard Louv’s 2005 book Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. Congress is currently considering the No Child Left Inside Act (H.R. 2054/S.866) that would provide national funding for environmental education and for designating the topic as a core subject area, so that students will be prepared to understand future environmental challenges. Check the above websites or do a general web search to find NCLI programs in your area.

 

Resources on the Oregon Department of Human Services’ website will give you tools to improve the health of your employees and make your organization a healthier place to work. Try the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services’ workplace wellness page too: http://www.dhhs.state.nh.us/DHHS/NHP/worksite.htm and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Healthier Worksite Initiative page: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/hwi/index.htm.

The purpose of the Peaceful Playground Program is to introduce children and school staff to the many choices of activities available on playgrounds and field areas and to help schools implement them.  The organization offers activity guides, blacktop stencils, tips on grant writing to fund new equipment and “playground blueprints” to assist schools with measurements, layout, spacing and game placement.

 

www.sofasandsectionals.com/after-school-activities 

After a long day at school, watching TV or playing video games might seem like the best way to unwind. However, the best way to fight the stress is to get active. Participate in after school activities. There are many different ways to do this that can benefit students of all grades, personalities, and cultural aspects. There are many programs that are sponsored by schools and the community that are completely free. There are also other programs that are available that cost money. Either way, there is something available for everyone.

Take a Child Outside Week happens from September 24—September 30 annually.  The program is an initiative of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and is held in cooperation with partner organizations across the U.S. and Canada. The program is “designed to help break down obstacles that keep children from discovering the natural world. By arming parents, teachers and other caregivers with resources on outdoor activities, our goal is to help children across the country develop a better understanding and appreciation of the environment in which they live, and a burgeoning enthusiasm for its exploration.”  Suggested lessons and activities available on the site include: simple activities for all ages and seasons, animal signs and observations, Trees and Other Plants: Activities that facilitate the exploration of woods and fields and After the Sun Goes Down: Activities that involve discovering the night world.

 

The USDA provides a number of wellness resources for governments, schools, and communities, including physical activity guidelines and recommendations and promotional materials. The above link is an online program using an “Activity Pyramid” to plan physical activity for all ages.

 

The Consumer Product Safety Commission provides standard safety guidelines for product and equipment usage, and announcements about product recalls.  You can sign up for recall alerts.