My Classroom Physical Activity Pyramid: A Tool for Integrating Movement into the Classroom Overview The classroom teacher is a critical team member in a Coordinated School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP) and an
activity-friendly school environment. Students spend more time in the classroom than in any other school setting or
environment. Classrooms are busy places though, and each school day classroom teachers make decisions about how
to make the best use of their time with students. The My Classroom Physical Activity Pyramid was developed as a
teaching tool specifically for classroom teachers. It is an easy to understand graphic organizer to assess the many ways
in which physical activity can be accumulated throughout the school day through existing routines, academic lessons or
used as a brain energizer. The classroom physical activity pyramid framework came from the activity pyramid within the
Ohio Physical Education Academic Content Standards Evaluation System.
The categories of the classroom physical activity pyramid reflect five different categories for integrating physical activity
into classroom routines: everyday activities, activity breaks, integrated lessons, active games & celebrations, and
physical education. Public health professionals, directors of physical activity and physical educators can use the
pyramid to help teachers identify the numerous opportunities for activity integration, track progress and organize a plan
to meet the recommendation for daily physical activity. The broad categories of the pyramid create a flexible structure
that allows teachers to tailor physical activity goals and integration to their classroom context – in other words, “to make it
their own.” Teachers are encouraged to set daily goals and track classroom-based physical activity via the My
Classroom Physical Activity Pyramid (see side 2). Students shade one block for every 10 minutes of activity.
Create a Classroom that Moves! The My Classroom Physical Activity is connected to a larger project - Create a Classroom that Moves! Classrooms that
Move! consists of grade-level nutrition lessons that align to select Common Core State Standards in English Language
Arts and the National Health Education Standards. The three-lesson units are geared for the busy elementary classroom
teacher who would like to integrate nutrition and physical activity into the classroom. Teachers are supported through
easy to read fact sheets, and ready to go assessments and handouts. The following grade-level health behavior
outcomes are shaped:
Kindergarten: Eat a variety of healthy foods.
Grade 1: Eat foods from the five food categories of MyPlate.
Grade 2: Eat food of a variety of colors.
Grade 3: Eat foods from the five food categories of MyPlate.
Grade 4: Eat snacks from the MyPlate food categories.
Grade 5: Decrease sugar-sweetened beverage intake. Physical Activity Break Cards Ten basic activities that are highly modifiable across content areas are included with
Classrooms that Move! PA Breaks operate as activity breaks and are shown with
integrated content. Each activity is printed on an easy to use card with the basic
activity on the front, and four content integrations on the back of the card.
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K-2 Breaks: See Spot… Order Up, Freeze Frame, When I Go on Vacation,
Make it Count! Red Light – Green Light, GO – GO, Yoga, Quick Hands,
Let’s Move BINGO
Grade 3-5 breaks: Order Up, IF… Circle Up, Make It Count! GO – GO, Yoga, Quick Hands, Hit the
Deck, Shoot, I Know That! Let’s Move BINGO
Ohio Action for Healthy Kids, Learning Connection Summit – May 2013
Wright State University
Acknowledgements Materials are available for download from the Ohio Department of Education website www.ode.state.oh.us/. Click
“Learning Supports” and then “Food and Nutrition” and “Resources and Tools”.
Recommended citation: Orlowski, M., Lorson, K., Lyon, A., & Minoughan, S. (2012). My Classroom Physical Activity
Pyramid [Classroom materials]. Columbus, Ohio: Ohio Department of Education.
We would like to thank Terry Fink for his assistance with the graphic design, Team Nutrition Coordinator Susan Patton
MS RD LD for her input, and graduate student Kate Henschel for her assistance in editing and formatting materials.
This project was funded by a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2010 Team Nutrition Training Grant
administered through the Ohio Department of Education. We Need You – Help Us Collect Evaluation Data Join the Movement – we are currently looking for schools and public health departments to partner with us for
dissemination and evaluation sites for Classrooms that Move! and/or My Classroom Physical Activity Pyramid.
Contact Marietta Orlowski at Wright State University for more information: [email protected] or (937)
258-5551.
Ohio Action for Healthy Kids, Learning Connection Summit – May 2013
Wright State University