Test Your Knowledge: The Role of Physical Activity in Schools
Student Well-Being & Movement Quiz

Test Your Knowledge: The Role of Physical Activity in Schools

By Sarah D. Sparks & Laura Baker — March 21, 2025 2 min read
Students in Robyn Newton’s P.E. class run across the gym at Vergennes Union Elementary School in Vergennes, Vt., on Nov. 18, 2024.
Students in Robyn Newton’s P.E. class run across the gym at Vergennes Union Elementary School in Vergennes, Vt., on Nov. 18, 2024. In this K-5 school, movement breaks are incorporated in classrooms, hallways, and on school grounds as a regular part of a students' day.
Jaclyn Borowski/Education Week
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Physical activity is more than just playtime—it’s a key factor in children’s health, well-being, and academic achievement. Research shows that students who engage in regular movement throughout the school day tend to have better focus, stronger cognitive skills, and improved academic performance. Exercise increases blood flow and oxygen to the brain, boosting concentration and helping them stay on task in the classroom.

Yet, despite these well-documented benefits, many students do not get the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Schools play a crucial role in shaping lifelong habits, but policies and practices for promoting movement vary widely across districts and states.

How well do you know the role of physical activity in schools? Take this quiz to test your knowledge on the impact of movement in education—and the challenges and opportunities schools face in keeping students active.

1. Physical activity is crucial for children’s overall development and well-being.

Pick the one true statement below.

2. Schools should be part of the solution to get kids more active because they spend most of their hours there during the day and week.

Pick the false statement below.

3. State policy plays a crucial role in determining whether schools help students meet the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity through physical education requirements, recess mandates, classroom activity integration, before- and after-school programs, and joint-use agreements with the community.

Pick the one true statement about state policies below.

4. Physical inactivity is linked with increased risk for obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, among other chronic health conditions, after accounting for factors like family history. What share of school-aged children and and adolescents have at least one chronic health condition?

Pick the correct answer below.

SOURCES:
https://www.kheljournal.com/archives/2024/vol11issue1/PartD/11-1-42-344.pdf

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39378265/

https://www.acsm.org/blog-detail/acsm-certified-blog/2020/01/17/10-myths-about-youth-physical-activity
https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1186/s12889-023-16021-y.pdf

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK201496/#:~:text=Few percent20data percent20sources percent20provide percent20clear,the percent20past percent2040 percent2D50 percent20years.

https://www.edweek.org/leadership/withholding-recess-as-a-punishment-declines/2015/04

https://www.shapeamerica.org/Common/Uploaded percent20files/uploads/2021/advocacy/position-statements/Physical-Activity-Should-Not-Be-Used-as-Punishment-and-or-Behavior-Management.pdf

https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/bmjosem/6/1/e000677.full.pdf

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07303084.2024.2383526

https://paamovewithus.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2024-U.S.-Report-Card-on-Physical-Activity-for-Children-and-Youth_FINAL-11.2024.pdf

Sarah D. Sparks
Assistant Editor,  Education Week
Sarah D. Sparks covers the teaching profession and pedagogy for Education Week.
Laura Baker
Creative Director,  Education Week
Laura Baker is the Deputy Managing Editor, Creative, for Education Week focused on developing visual and immersive storytelling across platforms.
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Maya Riser-Kositsky, Librarian and Data Specialist contributed to this article.

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