This week, we present research and programmatic approaches to understanding and improving children’s social interactions through physical activity:

Forget Goofing Around: Recess Has a New Boss (Source:  New York Times) Urban schools are instituting organized, mandatory physical activity during recess. 

Research shows link between physical activity and social skills in children (Source:  University of Michigan Health System) Research presented to the American College of Cardiology suggests a link between social skills and physical activity in children.

How can programs maximize both physical activity benefit and social development?  Share your thoughts!

This week, we spotlight two national efforts to promote community-level change:

HHS Secretary Sebelius Announces the Availability of Recovery Act Funds for Community Prevention and Wellness Initiative  (Source:  U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)  Ten million dollars of Recovery Act funds have been allocated to help communities decrease smoking and obesity, increase physical activity and improve nutrition.

First Lady Michelle Obama joins U.S. Soccer Foundation...support of the Soccer Foundation’s 25 city Passback Tour in partnership with the National Alliance for Hispanic Health  (Source:  U.S. Soccer Foundation)  First Lady promotes the partnership responsible for establishing free soccer clinics/health screenings in communities across the country.

In your opinion, how can the Federal government most effectively leverage its resources to promote change at the community level?

 Welcome Fellow Bloggers,

We are so excited about the Be Active Your Way Blog!

As you might remember, the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion  (ODPHP) launched the blog on November 4, 2009. The purpose of the blog is to be an interactive site designed to stimulate dialog among individuals and organizations committed to promoting physical activity according the Physical Activity Guidelines (PAG), professionals with a mission of encouraging physical activity, and the general public who wish to contribute to the goals of the guidelines.

Just to bring everyone up to speed, the blog supports the mission of the Physical Activity Guidelines Supporter Network: to encourage Americans to get the physical activity they need based on the PAG for Americans. The blog is written by 13 organizational contributing bloggers from leading physical activity organizations. These diverse voices allow supporters to learn from and connect with each other regarding successes and lessons learned—both through the blog post content and comments. 

Since our launch, ODPHP has surpassed its initial goals!!!  We are grateful to you—our fellow readers—for your support.  So far, we have:

• Gathered and trained a group of physical activity experts from across the country to become bloggers;
• Surpassed our initial goal of weekly blog posts—we have 26 entries available online;
• Garnered over 130 subscribers; and
• Received nearly 90 published comments so far.

We have had a successful launch, but we want to expand the blog’s reach. We’d like to know whether we are meeting your needs as readers. To accomplish our goals and move forward, we need your feedback. In essence, we’d like to gauge if this blog has been effective resource for you. Please take a moment and comment on this post.

Thank you in advance for your comments and continued support! Be sure to tell a colleague or friend about the Be Active Your Way Blog. And, remember, you can subscribe to our feed to keep up to date on all of our posts.

Yours in Health and Fitness,

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion