Resources

Educational Training

The Vision: The vision of the Center for ActiveWV is to increase the physical activity levels of both children and adults in our state to meet or exceed the national physical activity recommendations (2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans) and to, therefore, improve the health and quality of life of all West Virginians.

The Mission: The overarching goal of the Center for ActiveWV is to provide an effective statewide physical activity framework that will promote sector input and collaboration, facilitate physical activity research among multidisciplinary teams, and guide state and local policy and practice.

Webinars

Toolkits

Informational Resources

Worksite Wellness Poster Campaign

West Virginia business and industry leaders play a crucial role in promoting physical activity and healthy lifestyles among their workforce. The West Virginia Physical Activity Plan provides a road map for different sectors to provoke active living and is divided into five Priority Areas. The focus of this Poster campaign is Priority Area Two: public awareness and social marketing within business and industry. To promote public awareness and social marketing, our goal is to involve business and industry leaders in physical activity awareness campaigns by developing messaging and prompts for employers to promote physical activity in the workplace – businesses, schools, and communities.

This poster campaign is part of a bigger program, the Active SWV Workplace Wellness program, focused on improving the health of the workforce by providing a structured program free to workplaces in southern West Virginia.

To download all the posters for your worksite, go to: https://activeswv.org/workplace-wellness/.

Check out some of our informational resource documents to learn about physical activity, related benefits, and more.

Recommendations

Physical Activity Recommendations for Children and Adolescents: More Important Than Ever

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about many changes to society – including limiting the opportunities children and adolescents have to be physically educated and active in schools, at home, and in communities. We have yet to understand the full impact of COVID-19 related school closures, cancellations of youth sports and other after-school and community-based physical activities on children and adolescents’ health. Disparities and limited access to resources have also accentuated the existing inequities that leave youth with fewer opportunities to be active. However, the lessons learned from these experiences have better positioned stakeholders to adjust and better advocate for improvements to promote physical activity in children and youth.

The Physical Activity Alliance is proud to release a series of papers, “Physical Activity Recommendations for Children and Adolescents: More Important Than Ever”, with recommendations specific to each developmental level – elementary, middle school, and high school as well as sports across all developmental levels. The purpose of this series of papers is to outline key considerations for influencers, decision makers, and the public overall from all societal sectors of our population to take action to change or enhance the landscape of physical activity promotion for the overall health of our children and youth.

Read the Executive Summary.

Walk. Run. Dance. Play. What's your move?

Everyone needs physical activity to stay healthy. But it can be hard to find the time in your busy routine.

The Move Your Way® tools, videos, and fact sheets on this page have tips that make it easier to get a little more active. And small changes can add up to big health benefits!

No matter who you are, you can find safe, fun ways to get active — to move your way.

Find tools and resources here.

(Move Your Way® and the Move Your Way logo are registered trademarks of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.)

The U.S. National Physical Activity Plan

The U.S. National Physical Activity Plan is based on a vision: One day, all Americans will be physically active, and they will live, work and play in environments that encourage and support regular physical activity.

The National Physical Activity Plan is a comprehensive set of policies, programs, and initiatives designed to increase physical activity in all segments of the U.S. population. The Plan aims to foster a national culture that supports physically active lifestyles. Its ultimate purpose is to improve health, prevent disease and disability, and enhance quality of life.

Learn more about the NPAP here.

The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans

The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans provides evidence-based guidance to help Americans maintain or improve their health through physical activity.

To learn more about the benefits of physical activity and the recommendations for the amount and types of physical activity you should participate in each day, visit: https://health.gov/our-work/nutrition-physical-activity/physical-activity-guidelines/current-guidelines

Online Educational Modules

WV Healthy Kids Educational Lesson

WV Healthy Kids is a web-based educational lesson for teachers and other leaders to implement as part of their instruction related to physical activity, good nutrition, and overall health. In addition to the lesson content, learners will have opportunities to answer questions to check for understanding, analyze their own physical activity level and dietary intake, and consider setting goals to improve their health.

The lesson is designed for use with 5^th-8^th graders in a variety of settings: academic, health program, or community-based program. The lesson can be done in the classroom or at home User information is not collected or identifiable, except for the name of the state, county, and school.

WV Healthy Kids was created and piloted in May 2021. Teachers that used the lesson during the pilot indicated that WV Healthy Kids is very useful, clearly formatted and simple to navigate, developmentally and age-appropriate, and a resource they would be interested in using again in the future.

Go to www.wvhealthykids.com to view instructions for use, lesson objectives, and a preview of the WV Healthy Kids lesson can be found here.

Active Academics Professional Development for K-8 Teachers

Members of the Center for ActiveWV and the College of Applied Human Sciences at West Virginia University have launched a new online professional development resource for teachers, administrators, program coordinators, parents and others with an interest in promoting physical activity among youth. This free Active Academics® Training was created to help reach members of our educational communities with a resource to learn about physical activity recommendations and benefits, as well as tips for integrating physical activity in the classroom and throughout the day.

The training was developed in response to a changing climate, as more and more learning opportunities are now being offered through virtual platforms. The development team envisioned this resource as an innovative way to reach individuals nationwide who can use the knowledge and tools to become physical activity advocates in their schools, programs and communities.

Request access to the training here: Active Academics® Training Request Form.