Unlike traditional high school athletic teams, Unified Sports teams are designed to immerse students with intellectual disabilities in a facet of school culture that has largely eluded them. Nationwide, more than 2,000 schools in 42 states have the teams, where the ideal is for about half the athletes on each team to be students with intellectual…

The aims of this study were to 1) describe the children's physical activity (PA) patterns during the after-school period and 2) to compare the type and intensity of activity during the after-school period of children with or without participation in organized PA programmes. The participants were 456 children from four primary schools in Hong Kong.…

High-stakes testing combined with the notion that indoor and outdoor spontaneous play are a "waste of time" have contributed to the condition known as "play deprivation". This paper defines the term play deprivation and explores its negative effects on children and adults. Negative effects resulting from play deprivation…

Selecting competitive sports opportunities for a child is a challenging process. Parents have to make the right choices so that their young athletes will have many years of healthy, happy, active experiences. If parents make the wrong choices, their son or daughter will have, at the very least, a few unhappy hours, and worst-case scenario, could…

We investigated the culture of a responsibility-based physical activity program called Project Effort as well as the school culture of its participants. Five children who had at least one full semester of participation in the program participated in the study. We collected data from participants' individual interviews and observations of their…

In January 2005, AAPAR was born from the American Association for Active Lifestyles and Fitness (AAALF) and the American Association for Leisure and Recreation (AALR), thus providing a home for special-interest subjects that do not fit neatly into the other units of the Alliance. This article includes a brief history of AAPAR with a focus on its…

This article presents ideas and views of educators regarding the role of dance in the secondary physical education program. One educator believes that dance education is an excellent complement to the traditional physical education program at the secondary level. Another educator defines physical education as the "art and science of human…

In August and September 2005, two violent hurricanes--Katrina and Rita--hit Louisiana. Hundreds of thousands of residents were relocated to temporary living communities, where most of the economically poor remain today. This state's largest trailer community, "Renaissance Village," was erected almost overnight in a cow pasture in Baker,…

Recent attention to the childhood obesity and inactivity epidemics in the United States would seem to bode well for public school physical education. I argue that it is actually a mixed blessing. Its effect is mixed because it presents physical activity as an obligation or duty. This stands in stark contrast to movement in the broader liberal arts…

The social and cultural norms children learn in schools can have a powerful effect on a variety of lifestyle decisions that will affect their physical and mental health. In this article we examine research on social issues in elementary school physical education. We provide an overview of how teachers' actions and behaviors affect what children…

The history and popularity of clog dancing is discussed. (MM)

This article provides an insight into the world of professional play specialists and provides suggestions to parents on how to be more confident about their role in play. Play need not be work for moms and dads, but it should be a family priority that they enjoy and about which the feel just great when they have devoted time and energy to do it.…

This guide is divided into two sections. The first deals with bowling, and contains 11 articles concerning the mechanics and teaching of bowling. Some of the areas covered are (a) suggestions for teaching bowling, (b) how to practice with an automatic pinsetter, (c) bowling as a medium for learning for the handicapped, and (d) application of a…

Presented is a collection of articles by outstanding authorities on soccer and speedball for girls and women. The articles were selected from 1958-72 "Division for Girls and Women's Sports Guides." Articles are organized under a) Lead-up and Modified Games, b) Teaching and Coaching Techniques, and c) Evaluation and Officiating. (Author/JB)