School Health and Wellness

Physical activity during the school day is important for students, not only for their health, but also for their academic success. A physically active student will see improvement in cognitive skills, concentration, and attention — and their educators will see improvements in the classroom.

As educators, you’re with students for a large portion of their day. This is your opportunity to help increase their activity level and to also be aware of other activities that might have a negative impact on their safety, mental health, and ability to learn. Use these resources to ensure that physical activity and healthy behaviors are built into the school day, every day.

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School Physical Activity Toolkit

Open this helpful toolkit and make a bigger difference in students’ lives. It’s full of tips and advice on helping kids get healthier, happier, and more confident through improved fitness. Plus, success stories from educators highlight the steps they’ve taken and the positive results they’re seeing in children’s behavior, attention, and retention. What you learn here will help you develop a successful action plan for your own students. Download it now!

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The YRBS: An Accurate Report on Student Activities

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is a biennial (odd years), anonymous student survey (grades 6-12) that helps schools keep a finger on the pulse of what’s happening with their students’ physical, emotional, and psychological health. Its statistics, charts, and other data report not only on student trends in exercise but also on texting and driving, drinking, vaping, tobacco and drug use, bullying, social media use, and other behaviors.

If your school is not already participating in the YRBS survey, it should. Learn more about the survey at cdhs.udel.edu .

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Learn More About the YRBS

Email us to request a presentation about the YRBS and its importance to your school. Simply fill out the form below, and the Division of Public Health will contact you to discuss.

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Tips for starting a wellness committee at your school

It takes more than one person to help a student population. So reach out to parents, school health officials, and board members, as well as parents and the public, to join you in collectively assessing your school’s current programs and policies. Together, your committee can develop smarter ways to improve the health and academic success of students. Just follow these simple steps.

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Resources for Developing Healthier Student Habits

Learn about organizations that are making America’s next generation a healthier generation, state by state. They can help your school with everything from policy decision-making and student wellness to smarter cafeteria menus and playground practices to student recognition programs and more. These resources are proven to better engage and unite school staffs, parents, and communities in continuously improving learning environments for students.

Alliance for a Healthier Generation has created guides full of tips and tools to help convene, plan, and implement policies and practices.

• School Wellness Committee Toolkit
• Model Wellness Policy

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Springboard to Active Schools promotes physically active academic environments in school districts and schools across the country.

• Get information on the national Comprehensive School Physical Activity Program (CSPAP).
• Share Springboard-developed resources, training materials, and blogs.
• Support CDC-funded partners to promote schools that support physical education and physical activity, at the state, district, and local levels.

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The Virtual Healthy School is an interactive tool from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It’s full of tips, tools, and other resources that can be integrated into your school.

• Explore classrooms to learn what teachers are doing.
• Check out how they’re promoting healthy food choices.
• See what creative tools are being used during counseling sessions
• Observe a School Health Team meeting.

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The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors is ready to help schools promote health achievements with their new Step-by-Step Guide for Communicating School Health Achievements.

• See examples of how to create compelling messages.
• Learn about different communication platforms.
• Develop a plan to share success stories and statistics.

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Great Plans. Great Results. Wellness Benefits All Delaware Schools.

Here in Delaware, our schools are implementing a number of effective plans to keep our children healthy, with excellent results. Take a look below to see what other schools and districts are doing. We can all learn from and share with each other, to the benefit of all our students.

• Charter Schools
• School Districts

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