1. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
1
Youthful and Healthy-Improving the Physical Activity Among Our Children.
According to Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children should get 60
minutes of daily exercise in three categories: aerobic exercise which makes up the majority of
recommended exercise and muscle strengthening and bone strengthening three days/week
(2015). Since a majority of children ages 7-12 spend much of their time in school, the CDC has
conducted a State Indicator Report which involves the access students to physical education,
recess, and access of youth to parks, community centers, and sidewalks in the neighborhoods.
This report indicates the national percentage of youth with access to parks, etc. is just 50% with
the District of Colombia (D.C.) being the highest at 71.6% and Mississippi being the lowest with
only 24.7%. The report also indicates that 31 out of 50 states and D.C. do not provide scheduled
recess time for youth in school, but only 13 of 512 studied areas does not have a required
physical education curriculum (2010).
With reflection to the Mississippi statistic mentioned above, the CDC has also noted in
their Physical Activity Data-Fact Sheets, Americans in the south are less active than other
regions of the United States (US) (2015). If that is not enough to declare physical activity as a
needed improvement, let’s look at the obesity rates of today’s youth in Kentucky. According to
the Alliance for a Healthier Generation (AAHA), Kentucky is the seventh most obese state in the
US for children with 35.7% of children obese (2015). Also mentioned in the AAHA studies is
the physical inactivity rate of adults is 30.2% (2014), the adults are your children’s role models
and a great influence on their habits. The good news is, many of Kentucky’s schools are
improving their statistics by enrolling in the AAHA’s school health program.
Youthful and Healthy will reach to achieve and increase in the overall physical activity
rates of children ages 7-12. Within this program the participants will effectively demonstrate

2. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
2
50% improvement of health by 12 months; Participating children will perform one hour of
physical activity three days a week for 12 months; The participating children will demonstrate a
75% increase in knowledge of physical activity by the end of the 12 months, will effectively
demonstrate four physical mechanisms for exercise in 6 months, and effectively demonstrate
eight exercise mechanisms by the end of the twelve-month recurring program. As we may or
may not already know, healthy habits do not change overnight nor do they change just based on
education. It is essential to change the surroundings and breach the institutional and
environmental influences around our children. With that being said, school health programs will
implement one hour of physical activity or thirty minute recesses each day for their respective
school year. The overall effectiveness of Youthful and Healthy relies on children ages seven to
twelve being able to perform 75% more physical activity by the end of its twelve -month
activation period each year. The idea is that schools adopt this program as an alternative to, or in
combination with, the Alliance for A Healthier Generation’s School Health Program.
The Youthful and Healthy School Health Program will follow, in majority, the Social
Marketing Assessment and Response Tool (SMART) Model for Health Education Program
Planning. The program will utilize preliminary planning, consumer, market (described above
with AAHA), and channel analysis followed by the planning and implementation. Evaluation
will occur three times throughout the annual cycles (each four-month period). The priority
population is school children ages 7-12 throughout the United States with a special focus on
those who fall above the healthy weight ranges for children. Some activities that will be
recommended to the schools include track running, dodgeball, hop-scotch, sports games (i.e., tag
football, t-ball, and kickball), and pre/post exercise stretching and warm up activities for the
children. The purpose of this program is to serve as a fun way to educate our children on the

3. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
3
importance of their health now (in their youth years) to avoid harm later in life. For some school-
systems this may be primary prevention of childhood obesity, while others may fall within the
secondary or tertiary prevention categories which is why the program is very dynamic. We want
to reach as many as possible on different levels of experience. One other barrier to be overcame
in this program is students with disabilities such as multiple sclerosis and muscular dystrophy
which will be limited by the interaction of the Youthful and Healthy- physical therapy and
healthcare provider partnerships so that we can implement alternative activities which can be
used for them in Special Education classes. The program will deliver marketing via social media
and television campaigns along with fliers and banners for community transit and shopping
malls. Not only will this program reach a broad spectrum of the children, but also their parents
and other adult influencers.
Youthful and Healthy will be implemented throughout the school year at participating
schools and summer programs such as Boys and Girls Scouts, summer camps and other options
to keep our children active and healthy throughout the year. For the most part, schools can use
their everyday physical education materials for this program; however, there needs to be
institutional and environmental influence and reinforcement factors. For example, should a
student decide not to participate, they receive points off of their grades (negative reinforcement)
or students who participate in healthy activities, reaching certain weight/health benchmarks, etc.
are given extra credit. The Youthful and Healthy program will initially last 12 months (trial), if
effective it will be continued on a recurring basis. Physical Education Instructors, Athletic
Departments, School Administrators, and School Health Educators will be the forerunners of the
Youthful and Healthy Program; however, the regulations and standards will be reviewed and
approved based on the statistics related to the school district’s/state’s childhood physical activity

4. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
4
statistics as recorded by CDC. The program will take place during the school day with optional
school summer programs. During the summer periods children will be active throughout a 6 to 8-
week camp experience which will be facilitated by volunteers, Boys and Girls Club, Physical
Health Educators, and possibly Boys and Girl Scouts.
Evaluation of the Youthful and Healthy Program will consist of process, impact, and
outcome evaluations. The program, as mentioned previously, will be evaluated and improved
every four months in order to keep the effectiveness high. Each of the four-month evaluation
periods will consist of analysis of material, timing, professional commitment, community/school
cooperation, and staffing for the program. We will discuss improvements based on
comprehension of the students and their ability to effectively use our program and demonstrate
the healthier habits. Four main questions will be visited during each evaluation: Is the program
proving effective? Are there changes that need to be made? Are the schools effectively
implementing the program? If not, how can we improve their education so the students will
benefit from the program? Are the children enjoying our program? Each of these questions are
not only important to us as a program, but also our students who are involved. This program is
meant to be enjoyable and educationally rewarding, not just one of the two.
At the end of each four-month cycle representatives will observe and assess the
improvements the children have made while they are participating in the activities. The
representatives will measure height, weight, BMI, and bodily composition in order to determine
the children are healthy, and enjoying the activities. The representatives will also, observe and
evaluate the instructor of the physical education or recess activities in order to determine the
effectiveness and cooperation of the institutional staff and administrators in compliance with the
program goals and objectives. Another evaluation tool will be an online questionnaire/paper-pen

5. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
5
questionnaire in which the students will evaluate the program and their instructors. They will be
asked about their enjoyment, educational improvement, and other actions such as
recommendations for the program. The school may also choose to have this questionnaire
established for the instructors and parents to evaluate the program from their point-of-view and
their recommendations. The idea is the program and the schools will function as a well-oiled
machine in a fashion that they are integrated rather than viewed as two different environmental
influences. At the end of the initial 12-month period professional staff members (health
educators, Exercise Science Specialists/Physiologists, Health Educators, and Healthcare
Professionals will analyze the data from their regional schools and states in order to determine
whether or not the children are improving in fitness, knowledge, and overall health. Does the
75% need to be lowered, or was it met? Does the program meet at least half of it goals? Are the
students able to tell/demonstrate eight healthy physical activity mechanisms? Also, the
evaluation of outcome will be assessed using the parent, school professionals, and community
satisfactory scores (gathered from their evaluations every 4 months). The recess programs will be
evaluated based on how well the students involved have improved physically and mentally
regarding physical activity and fitness. The expectations of the program include at least 75%
satisfaction in order to be considered effective and functional. This data will determine whether
or not the program should be continued for the coming school years.

6. ChristopherFraley
Youthful andHealthy
November4, 2015
PH 261.700
6
References
Adding Physical Activity To Your Life. (2015, June 5). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from
cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adding-pa/activities-children.html
Healthier Generation Obesity Facts about Kentucky (2015). Retrieved November 5, 2015, from
https://www.healthiergeneration.org/about_childhood_obesity/in_your_state/kentucky/
How much physical activity does your children need? (2015, June 4). Retrieved November 2,
2015, from cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/children/index.htm
State Indicator Report on Physical Activity. (2010). Retrieved November 9, 2015, from
cdc.gov/physicalactivity/downloads/PA_State_Indicator_Report_2010