Rutherford, GayleForan, Christine2015-12-222015-12-222015-12-222015Foran, C. (2015). Health Promotion Through Physical Activity in the Classroom: Exploring Teachers' Perceptions (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/26344http://hdl.handle.net/11023/2696Children are becoming increasingly sedentary, contributing to increased childhood obesity and negative health outcomes. Schools are ideal environments to target increasing physical activity (PA), because it is important for students’ developing brains and improving their learning. Some teachers routinely incorporate PA into their classrooms, despite challenges meeting curriculum requirements. Using constructivist grounded theory methodology, I interviewed seven teachers to understand their perceptions of the factors and processes instigating and sustaining their use of classroom PA. Teachers used PA because their students demonstrated enhanced focus in classroom activities following PA. Four factors influenced teachers to prioritize PA: 1) culture of movement, 2) comfort with activity, 3) personal responsibility for student learning, and 4) teaching philosophy. These teachers approached PA as an integral and positive influence on their students’ learning. School nurses can facilitate the knowledge translation of peer experiences, empowering other teachers to adopt similar strategies.engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Education--ElementaryNursingPublic HealthPhysical Activitygrounded theoryconstructivismteacher perceptionsSchoolPublic Health NursePhysical Activity in the classroommaster thesis10.11575/PRISM/26344