Physical Activity
Physical activity is crucial for improving health and preventing chronic disease. We offer ideas, backed by the latest healthy living research, to help Texans incorporate physical activity and exercise appropriate for people of all ages and fitness levels.
Related Departments: Nutrition
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Physical Activity
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Step Up Scale Down
Step Up Scale Down is a 12-week wellness program based on USDA guidelines and scientific research. Each week focuses on a different topic related to nutrition, healthy eating, exercise, and more to support you in your weight loss journey.
All Resources on Physical Activity
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Creating healthy habits is a critical element of quality early childhood programs. This course reviews practices that promote outdoor play and learning. It is aligned with Texas Healthy Building Blocks recognition criteria and was developed with support from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
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Creating healthy habits is a critical element of quality early childhood programs. This course introduces the Texas Healthy Building Blocks recognition program and was developed with support from the Texas Department of State Health Services.
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Literacy skills are essential to success. Students who enroll in this course will learn about the various components of emergent literacy, strategies for promoting early literacy development in children, and how to create a literacy-rich early childhood environment. This course qualifies for 1 clock hour of credit.
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Preschool children are capable of understanding concepts of living and non-living things. Explore ways to support children’s observation skills related to the life sciences. Delve into inquiry-based learning activities to encourage critical thinking. Use STEM concepts to test theories on living things and non-living things.
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“Getting the wiggles out” is not the sole purpose of outdoor play. This course helps teachers understand the importance of outdoor play and how to make it a priority. Safety aspects such as playground standards
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Developing a strong foundation in mathematics during the preschool years with high expectations regardless of gender, race, socioeconomic or language background is critical for all preschool children. Specific math materials which allow children to explore mathematical ideas throughout the classroom are provided.
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Experience a variety of counting activities and developmentally appropriate approaches for teaching addition and subtraction. Explore principles, objectives, and developmental stages of counting and examine ways to support children’s counting in everyday situations. Number and operations tasks for preschoolers are provided.
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Circle time, or large group time, is when children come together to learn and have fun, solve problems, and be part of a community. This setting helps children begin to look at the world from the perspective of ‘we’ and ‘ours’. Circle time experiences, transitions and strategies for keeping children engaged are introduced.
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Classroom management refers to skills teachers use daily to supervise and organize time, materials and activities, while keeping children safe. From the rules and routines to the activities, each component needs to be planned and followed through with children to ensure they are learning through play throughout the day.
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Maintaining the health of young children – and setting them up with lifelong healthy habits – are critical elements of a quality early childhood program. This course provides an overview of the Texas Healthy Building Blocks recognition program for early care and education settings that have demonstrated a commitment to promoting early childhood health. It is aligned with the guidelines of the Texas Healthy Building Blocks recognition program.