A survey of children aged 9-13 years and their parents found that 61 percent of children
of those ages do not participate in any organized physical activity during their
after-school hours or on weekends, and 23 percent do not engage in free-time physical
activity during those hours. Intended to develop baseline information for an ongoing
campaign by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to increase the
physical activity of middle schoolers, the survey did not ask children or parents about
in-school exercise. For purposes of the survey, "organized physical activity" was
defined as "with an organized group that has a coach, instructor, or leader" and
free-time activity included any pursuit children engaged in on their own. Across age
groups, race/ethnicity, and gender, the three organized activities engaged in most by
children 9-to-13 years old were baseball/softball, basketball, and soccer. Most popular
free-time activities were bicycle riding and playing basketball. When asked about
barriers to their children’s participation in any of these activities, parents cited
transportation problems, lack of opportunities for exercise in their areas, expense,
lack of parental time, and concerns about neighborhood safety.
The CDC initiated a media campaign, "VERB—It's What You Do," in October last year, using
ads that portray physical activity as "cool" fun. Information about the campaign is
available at
www.verbnow.com for
children and
www.verbparents.com
for parents.
