Changes to (primary) school recess and their effect on children's physical activity: an Australian perspective

Headlines greet us on almost a daily basis lamenting the declining health of Australian children. They are said to be inactive, unfit, overweight and lacking in fundamental motor skills. It is a disturbing picture. Calls have gone out to parents to encourage their children to be more active and for schools to counter these problems by allocating more time to sport and physical education however, in both instances, there are particular problems to be addressed. One aspect of schooling that is rarely considered in discussions about how to increase children's activity levels is recess. This article examines the problems facing physical education and offers some suggestions as to how schools might preserve and promote physical activity during recess breaks.

Twelve-month effects of a playground intervention on children's morning and lunchtime recess physical activity levels

Background: Recess is an opportunity for children to engage in daily physical activity. The aim of this study was to investigate the 12-month effects of a playground intervention on children’s moderate-to-vigorous (MVPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA) during morning and lunchtime recess.

Methods: Four hundred and seventy children (232 boys, 238 girls) from 26 elementary schools participated in the study. Fifteen schools redesigned the playground environment using playground markings and physical structures. Eleven schools served as socioeconomic matched controls. Physical activity levels were quantified using heart rate and accelerometry at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months post-intervention. A 3-level (time, pupil, and school) multilevel analysis was used to determine the effects of the intervention across time on MVPA and VPA.

Results: Positive yet nonsignificant intervention effects were found for MVPA and VPA during morning and lunchtime recess. Intervention children were more active during recess than control children. Interactions revealed that the intervention effect was stronger at 6 months than 12 months post-intervention.

Conclusions: A playground markings and physical structures intervention had a positive effect on intervention children’s morning and lunchtime MVPA and VPA when assessed using heart rate and accelerometry, but this effect is strongest 6-months post-intervention and decreased between 6 months and 12 months.

Physical activity levels of Hungarian children during school recess

Objective : The purpose of this study was to examine physical activity levels and patterns of physical activity across daily school recess periods, and the contribution of recess to daily physical activity.

Method : Ninety-eight children (61% boys) from three schools in Hungary had their physical activity quantified using uni-axial accelerometry every 5 s for three consecutive school days (Wednesday to Friday). The proportion of time spent in sedentary, light, moderate-to-vigorous, and vigorous physical activity during 5 daily school recess periods was determined using existing age-appropriate cut-points. The relative contribution of recess to daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was also determined. Data were collected between May and October 2008.

Results : Boys engaged in significantly more light (30.6 ± 5.2%; 27.7 ± 5.1%), moderate-to-vigorous (24.9 ± 8.9%; 17.5 ± 5.2%) and vigorous physical activity (7.6 ± 4.7%; 4.3 ± 2.9%) than girls during recess. Girls (54.8 ± 8.1%) engaged in more sedentary activity than boys (44.5 ± 10.2%). Physical activity levels were generally similar across multiple recess periods. Recess contributed more moderate-to-vigorous physical activity towards weekday physical activity for boys (13.1%) than girls (10.8%).

Conclusions : Since sedentary activity accounted for the largest proportion of recess, interventions may be needed across all recess periods to promote physical activity during the school day.

Long-term effects of a playground markings and physical structures on children's recess physical activity levels

Objective : The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of a playground redesign intervention across time on children's recess physical activity levels using combined physical activity measures and to evaluate the potential influence of covariates on the intervention effect.

Method : Fifteen schools located in areas of high deprivation in one large city in England each received £20,000 through a national £10 million Sporting Playgrounds Initiative to redesign the playground environment based on a multicolored zonal design. Eleven schools served as matched socioeconomic controls. Physical activity levels during recess were quantified using heart rate telemetry and accelerometry at baseline, 6 weeks and 6 months following the playground redesign intervention. Data were collected between July 2003 and January 2005 and analyzed using multilevel modeling.

Results : Statistically significant intervention effects were found across time for moderate-to-vigorous and vigorous physical activity assessed using both heart rate and accelerometry.

Conclusions : The results suggest that a playground redesign, which utilizes multicolor playground markings and physical structures, is a suitable stimulus for increasing children's school recess physical activity levels.

Assessing physical activity during recess using accelerometry

Background : Physical activity guidelines recommend children should engage in 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) a day. School recess presents an opportunity for children to be physically active during the school day. Limited research has investigated children's activity levels during recess and its contribution to physical activity recommendations. Moreover, no target for physical activity during recess has been set.

Methods : One hundred sixteen boys and 112 girls (aged 5–10 years) from 23 schools had their physical activity during recess quantified using a uniaxial accelerometer during three recess breaks on one school day. The percentage of time spent engaged in moderate, high, and very high intensity activity was calculated using existing thresholds.

Results : Boys engaged in more moderate, high, and very high intensity activity than girls. On average, boys and girls spent 32.9% and 23% of recess engaged in physical activity, respectively.

Conclusions : Boys engaged in higher intensity activities than girls. The results suggest that recess can contribute 28 min for boys and 21.5 min for girls toward the accumulation of recommended daily physical activity. However, the physical activity intensities that children engaged in were low during recess. On average, children in this study did not achieve 50% of recess time in physical activity. Interventions for increasing the physical activity of children in the playground are warranted.

Day-to-day and seasonal variability of physical activity during school recess

Objective : Children's physical activity levels are difficult to establish on a day-to-day or season-to-season basis. Most studies have attempted to measure reliability in habitual settings. This study investigated the variability in children's physical activity during recess.

Methods : Fifteen boys and 19 girls (aged 6 to 11 years) from 2 schools in North West England wore heart rate monitors for 5 consecutive days in summer and winter terms to assess day-to-day and seasonal variability during school recess. Data were collected in 2004. Repeated measures ANOVA's and intraclass correlations (ICC) analysed the day-to-day and seasonal variability in children's moderate-to-vigorous (MVPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA) data.

Results : There were no significant differences in children's MVPA and VPA across days and seasons. ICCs for MVPA across 2 days ranged from 0.75 to 0.85 in summer, and from 0.53 to 0.81 in winter. Three-day MVPA ICCs were 0.83 in summer and 0.71 in winter.

Conclusions : The results revealed no significant variation in children's recess physical activity levels across days and seasons. Whilst children were free to choose their recess activities in school, the results suggested that children were relatively consistent in their choices, limiting physical activity variability.

Children's physical activity levels during school recess : a quasi-experimental intervention study

Background : Recess provides a daily opportunity for children to engage in moderate-to-vigorous (MVPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA). Limited research has investigated the effects of recess-based interventions on physical activity using large sample sizes whilst investigating variables that may influence the intervention effect. The aim of the study was to investigate the short-term effects of a playground markings and physical structures intervention on recess physical activity. A secondary aim was to investigate the effects of covariates on the intervention.

Methods : 150 boys and 147 girls were randomly selected from 26 elementary schools to wear uni-axial accelerometers that quantified physical activity every 5 seconds during recess. Fifteen schools located in deprived areas in one large urban city in England received funding through a national initiative to redesign the playground environment. Eleven schools served as matched socioeconomic controls. Data were collected at baseline and 6-weeks following playground intervention. Recess MVPA and VPA levels adjusted for pupil- and school-level covariates (baseline physical activity, age, gender, recess length, body mass index) were analysed using multilevel analyses.

Results : Positive but non-significant intervention effects were found for MVPA and VPA when confounding variables were added to the model. Gender was a significant predictor of recess physical activity, with boys engaging in more MVPA and VPA than girls. Significant interactions for MVPA revealed that the intervention effect was stronger for younger elementary aged school children compared to older children, and the intervention effect increased as daily recess duration increased.

Conclusion : The playground redesign intervention resulted in small but non-significant increases in children's recess physical activity when school and pupil level variables were added to the analyses. Changing the playground environment produced a stronger intervention effect for younger children, and longer daily recess duration enabled children to engage in more MVPA following the intervention. This study concludes that the process of increasing recess physical activity is complex when school and pupil-level covariates are considered, though they should be taken into account when investigating the effects of playground intervention studies on children's physical activity during recess.

Physical activity levels of normal-weight and overweight girls and boys during primary school recess

Objective: This study aimed to compare moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) and vigorous physical activity (VPA) in normal-weight and overweight boys and girls during school recess.

Research Methods and Procedures: Four hundred twenty children, age 6 to 10 years, were randomly selected from 25 schools in England. Three hundred seventy-seven children completed the study. BMI was calculated from height and weight measurements, and heart rate reserve thresholds of 50% and 75% reflected children's engagement in MVPA and VPA, respectively.

Results: There was a significant main effect for sex and a significant interaction between BMI category and sex for the percent of recess time spent in MVPA and VPA. Normal-weight girls were the least active group, compared with overweight boys and girls who were equally active. Fifty-one boys and 24 girls of normal weight achieved the 40% threshold; of these, 30 boys and 10 girls exceeded 50% of recess time in MVPA. Eighteen overweight boys and 22 overweight girls exceeded the 40% threshold, whereas 8 boys and 8 girls exceeded the 50% threshold.

Discussion: Overweight boys were significantly less active than their normal-weight male counterparts; this difference did not hold true for girls. Even though nearly double the number of normal-weight children achieved the 40% of MVPA during recess compared with overweight children, physical activity promotion in school playgrounds needs to be targeted not only at overweight but at other health parameters, as 40 overweight children met the 40% MVPA target proposed for recess

Variables associated with children's physical activity levels during recess : the A-CLASS project

Background
School recess provides a daily opportunity for children to engage in physically active behaviours. However, few studies have investigated what factors may influence children's physical activity levels in this context. Such information may be important in the development and implementation of recess interventions. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between a range of recess variables and children's sedentary, moderate and vigorous physical activity in this context.

Methods
One hundred and twenty-eight children (39% boys) aged 9-10 years old from 8 elementary schools had their physical activity levels observed during school recess using the System for Observing Children's Activity and Relationships during Play (SOCARP). Playground variables data were also collected at this time. Multilevel prediction models identified variables that were significantly associated with children's sedentary, moderate and vigorous physical activity during recess.

Results
Girls engaged in 13.8% more sedentary activity and 8.2% less vigorous activity than boys during recess. Children with no equipment provision during recess engaged in more sedentary activity and less moderate activity than children provided with equipment. In addition, as play space per child increased, sedentary activity decreased and vigorous activity increased. Temperature was a significant negatively associated with vigorous activity.

Conclusions
Modifiable and unmodifiable factors were associated with children's sedentary, moderate and vigorous physical activity during recess. Providing portable equipment and specifying areas for activities that dominate the elementary school playground during recess may be two approaches to increase recess physical activity levels, though further research is needed to evaluate the short and long-term impact of such strategies.

Differences in physical activity during school recess

BACKGROUND: School recess provides a daily opportunity for physical activity engagement. The purpose of this study was to examine physical activity levels during recess by gender, ethnicity, and grade, and establish the contribution of recess to daily school physical activity levels.
METHODS: Two hundred and ten children (45% boys) from grades 3 to 6 in 4 elementary schools had their physical activity during school quantified using uni-axial accelerometry every 5 seconds for 5 consecutive school days. Data were collected in fall 2009. The proportion of time spent engaged in physical activity during daily school recess was determined using existing age-appropriate cutpoints. The relative contribution of recess to school day physical activity was also determined.
RESULTS: Boys were more active than girls during recess. Girls engaged in more sedentary activity than boys. No main effects for ethnicity were observed. Children in grades 3 and 5 were more active than children in grades 4 and 6. Recess contributed 17.9% and 15.5% toward boys’ and girls’ school day moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, respectively.
CONCLUSION: Children engaged in physical activity during recess, though interventions may be needed to increase the intensity of activity in this context.

Five-year changes in school recess and lunchtime and the contribution to children’s daily physical activity

Objective To investigate the longitudinal changes in children's recess and lunchtime physical activity levels and in the contribution of recess and lunchtime to daily physical activity levels over 5 years among 5–6- and 10–12-year olds.

Methods Data were drawn from two longitudinal studies that were conducted in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. Boys and girls (n=2782) aged 5–6 years and 10–12 years participated in baseline (T0) measures. Physical activity (n=2490) was measured every 60 s for eight consecutive days using hip-mounted accelerometry. Subsequent measurements were taken at 3-year (T1; n=773) and 5-year (T2; n=634) follow-up. Physical activity intensities were derived using age-adjusted cut-points. Sedentary time was defined as 100 counts/min. Longitudinal data were analysed using three-level (time, child, school) multilevel analyses, stratified by sex and cohort, and adjusted for potential confounding variables.

Results Significant decreases in recess and lunchtime moderate and vigorous physical activity were observed (p<0.001), with larger decreases occurring in the older cohort. Associated increases were observed in sedentary time over time (p<0.01). Although the contribution of recess to daily moderate intensity physical activity increased in the younger cohort over time (p<0.001), significant decreases were observed in the older cohort (p<0.001).

Conclusion Physical activity levels during recess and lunchtime decreased in both cohorts over time. Decreases in the contribution of recess and lunchtime to older children's daily physical activity were also observed. Interventions are needed in both primary and secondary schools to promote physical activity levels during recess and lunchtime, particularly during the early years of secondary school.

School and individual-level characteristics are associated with children's moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity during school recess

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify school environmental characteristics associated with moderate to vigorous physical activity during school recess, including morning and lunch breaks.

Methods: Accelerometry data, child-level characteristics and school physical activity, policy and socio-cultural data were collected from 408 sixth grade children (mean age 11 years) attending 27 metropolitan primary schools in Perth, Western Australia. Hierarchical modelling identified key characteristics associated with children's recess moderate to vigorous physical activity (RMVPA).

Results: Nearly 40% of variability in children's RMVPA was explained by school environment and individual characteristics identified in this study. Children's higher daily RMVPA was associated with newer schools, schools with a higher number of grassed surfaces per child and fewer shaded grassed surfaces, and the physical education coordinator meeting Australian physical activity guidelines.

Conclusions: Characteristics of the school physical and social environments are strongly correlated with children's MPVA during recess.