Physical education has always been a part of the United States school systems. However, spending cuts and rising academic requirements have put this fundamental activity in jeopardy. As a result, many parents, teachers, students and other education officials are crying out to save physical education, and make it mandatory in schools across the nation.

There are several reasons why physical education is an important part of children’s development. These reasons should be more than enough to convince any skeptic of the importance of physical education. The main benefits of mandatory physical education include:

• Physical education supports healthy habits. Not only does immediate physical education allow children to get exercise and learn about healthy behaviors, but it also helps them practice healthy eating, exercise and hygiene habits later in life. Students with continual instruction in physical education are less likely to develop disease, diet issues, diabetes or other serious health complications. They typically have stronger muscle mass, better metabolisms and improved overall fitness. This also means that children with regular physical education are less likely to develop weight problems.
• Physical education improves self-esteem. Sports activities and other physical exercises not only improve children’s health, but it improves their confidence. Kids that regularly undergo physical education activities find that these activities bring out their best qualities, drive them towards excellence and teach them self-discipline. Students are less likely to succumb to negative peer pressure or make poor decisions when they have high self-esteem and self-confidence.
• Physical education improves interpersonal skills and behaviors. It has been routinely proven that children with frequent physical education activities have better sportsmanship skills and healthier attitudes than those that don’t. Children learn to support each other in a variety of endeavors and respect their fellow classmates. By working as a team in some sports, games or activities, they also learn to cooperate more affectively with their teammates. Students that have extensive physical education are more likely to be goal-oriented and work better on teams, academic or otherwise.
• Physical education improves academics. May studies have shown a direct correlation between physical activity and improved grades. In a physical sense, this kind of activity increases blood flow and allows the brain to function more efficiently when tackling academic concerns. In some cases, this physical activity provides an energy release that helps keeps kids from getting distracted when in the classroom.

Physical education has innumerable benefits to children, and cutting back on this educational area lowers any student’s ability to succeed. By requiring physical education, families and students can ensure their children learn in optimal conditions.