Increasing adolescents' physical activity levels through a comprehensive school-based physical activity program: study protocol of the cluster randomized controlled trial Active School.

Background: The positive effects of regular physical activity on children and adolescents' physical and mental health are well-established. Despite these health benefits, most Swiss adolescents do not meet WHO's recommended level of physical activity, which includes a daily minimum of 60 min of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. Due to their inclusivity, schools are identified as a key setting to promote physical activity.

Boost your brain, while having a break! The effects of long-term cognitively engaging physical activity breaks on children's executive functions and academic achievement.

Classroom-based physical activity (PA) is gaining attention in terms of its potential to enhance children's cognitive functions, but it remains unclear as to which specific modality of PA affects cognitive functions most. The aim of the study was to examine the effects of qualitatively different PA breaks on children's cognitive outcomes. Children (N = 142) aged between 7 and 9 years were allocated to a 20-week classroom-based PA program, with either high physical exertion and high cognitive engagement (combo group), high physical exertion and low cognitive engagement (aerobic group), or low physical exertion and high cognitive engagement (cognition group).

A classroom intervention to improve executive functions in late primary school children: Too 'old' for improvements?

Background: Given the strong relationship between executive functions and academic achievement, there has been great interest in improving executive functions. School-based group interventions targeting executive functions revealed encouraging results in preschoolers and young school children; however, there is a paucity of studies in older primary school children (age 10-12). This is surprising considering that deficits in executive function performance can often be observed in this age group.

Disentangling the relationship between children's motor ability, executive function and academic achievement.

Even though positive relations between children's motor ability and their academic achievement are frequently reported, the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. Executive function has indeed been proposed, but hardly tested as a potential mediator. The aim of the present study was therefore to examine the mediating role of executive function in the relationship between motor ability and academic achievement, also investigating the individual contribution of specific motor abilities to the hypothesized mediated linkage to academic achievement.

Cognitively Engaging Chronic Physical Activity, But Not Aerobic Exercise, Affects Executive Functions in Primary School Children: A Group-Randomized Controlled Trial.

Although the positive effects of different kinds of physical activity (PA) on cognitive functioning have already been demonstrated in a variety of studies, the role of cognitive engagement in promoting children's executive functions is still unclear. The aim of the current study was therefore to investigate the effects of two qualitatively different chronic PA interventions on executive functions in primary school children. Children (N = 181) aged between 10 and 12 years were assigned to either a 6-week physical education program with a high level of physical exertion and high cognitive engagement (team games), a physical education program with high physical exertion but low cognitive engagement (aerobic exercise), or to a physical education program with both low physical exertion and low cognitive engagement (control condition).

DELAYED POSITIVE EFFECTS OF AN ACUTE BOUT OF COORDINATIVE EXERCISE ON CHILDREN'S ATTENTION (1).

Since attention is an important prerequisite for learning, it is particularly worthwhile to promote it in schools, through specific interventions. The present study examined the effects of an acute bout of coordinative exercise in physical education on the attention of primary school children. A total of 90 fifth grade primary school children (41 boys, 49 girls; M = 11.