Food Security

The mentorship provided by a great coach can change a kid's life. A well-trained coach can help children develop a love for physical activity and encourage them to stay involved in sports over a longer period of time, while boosting their self-esteem and helping them get along better with peers. Team up for youth recently created a Coach Fact Sheet that collects valuable research on the measureable impact of trained coaches.

Active Living Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, contributes to the prevention of childhood obesity in low-income and high-risk racial/ethnic communities by supporting research to examine how environments and policies influence active living for children and their families. Their website contains access to grants, multiple research studies, and information for policy makers and advocates.

To view this website click the following link: http://activelivingresearch.org/home_page

This brief was created by Active Living Research, a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in the Fall of 2007. The brief concludes that students who are more physically active tend to perform better academically, and that sacrificing physical education to increase classroom time is not effective in improving academic performance.

To view this research brief, click the following link: http://www.activelivingresearch.org/files/Active_Ed.pdf

This paper, created by Action for Healthy Kids, outlines the economic, educational, and health impacts of poor nutrition and lack of physical activity for youth. The paper summarizes research regarding nutrition and physical activity and its impact on attendance and academic achievement.

This publication created by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) provides information on enrolling in child nutrition programs, incorporating farm to school, menu planning resources, information on combining food service with education programs, and other important logistics regarding incorporating local foods into after school and summer programs. The document also outlines a successful program model.

To view this document, click the following link:http://frac.org/pdf/produceguide.pdf

This publication created by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) and the National Dairy Council provides background information on the importance of after school and after school nutrition programs as well as the resources necessary to access such nutrition programs. The document outlines a myriad of Federal funding opportunities for after school nutrition programs, the unique policies of each program, and how to participate in each.

To view the Food Research and Action Center child nutrition policy brief, "Nutrition for Learning: Recent scientific research on the link between children’s nutrition and academic performance" click the following link: http://frac.org/pdf/cnnl.pdf

To access the California Project LEAN fact sheet on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Academic Achievement click the following link:

http://www.californiaprojectlean.org/Assets/1019/files/Nutrition%20%20Ph...

To access the Team Up For Youth Fact Sheet About Youth Sports and Educational Outcomes click the following link
http://www.teamupforyouth.org/dynamic/attachables/media_filename_93.pdf

Team Up for Youth recently released the report Learning to Play and Learning to Learn: Organized Sports and Educational Outcomes. This report analyzes several distinct strands of research on the effects on youth of participation in organized sports. The report concludes that high-quality organized sports engage students, teach them important skills, draw them into the task of learning, and connect them to fellow students and caring adults. Along with the report, Team Up for Youth has also released two fact sheets.