Schools
Sonoma Schools Fail at Fitness
Less than 25 percent of Sonoma fifth and seventh graders measure up to state fitness standards, according to state data released Thursday.
Nearly 75 percent of Sonoma Valley Unified School District fifth and seventh graders failed to measure up to the state's six fitness benchmarks, according to the California State Physical Fitness results, released Thursday.
Ninth graders fared better: over 50 percent met state standards in all fitness areas, and over 75 percent met standards for aerobic fitness - the area experts consider most important for overall health.
Other students in Sonoma county scored similarly to SVUSD, with slightly more fifth and seventh graders meeting all six standards county wide and ten percent fewer ninth graders making the mark.
Find out what's happening in Sonoma Valleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Statewide, 28.7 percent of the students in grade five, 34.6 percent in grade seven, and 38.5 percent in grade nine scored well on all six measures. For the fifth graders, fitness levels actually dropped for the first time since 2006.
“Nothing is more important than the health of our children, and today’s results show that many of them need a helping hand to get fit and stay in shape,” said State School Chief Tom Torlakson in a statement. “The Team California for Healthy Kids campaign will help students adopt the healthy habits that will help them succeed in the classroom today—and help them stay healthy over a lifetime.”
Find out what's happening in Sonoma Valleyfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Students were tested on six areas designed to measure overall fitness, including aerobic endurance, abdominal strength, flexibility, upper body strength, and body composition - measured by Body Mass Index and fat percentage.
Sonoma Valley Unified:
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZTotal1
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZTotal1
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZ Aerobic Capacity 345 67.8 32.2 348 66.7 33.3 350 75.7 24.3 Body Composition 345 63.5 36.5 348 64.7 35.3 350 75.1 24.9 Abdominal Strength 345 79.4 20.6 348 75.3 24.7 350 92.9 7.1 Trunk Extensor Strength 345 90.4 9.6 348 67.2 32.8 350 93.1 6.9 Upper Body Strength 345 79.1 20.9 348 65.8 34.2 350 81.4 18.6 Flexibility 345 64.3 35.7 348 73.9 26.1 350 86.3 13.7 Grade 5Grade 7Grade 9 Number of Physical Fitness Areas
Meeting the Healthy Fitness ZoneNumberPercentCum. PercentNumberPercentCum. PercentNumberPercentCum. Percent 6 of 6 fitness criteria 103 29.9 29.9 87 25.0 25.0 184 52.6 52.6 5 of 6 fitness criteria 93 27.0 56.9 75 21.6 46.6 79 22.6 75.2 4 of 6 fitness criteria 70 20.3 77.2 79 22.7 69.3 40 11.4 86.6 3 of 6 fitness criteria 34 9.9 87.1 43 12.4 81.7 23 6.6 93.2 2 of 6 fitness criteria 29 8.4 95.5 39 11.2 92.9 16 4.6 97.8 1 of 6 fitness criteria 11 3.2 98.7 19 5.5 98.4 6 1.7 99.5 0 of 6 fitness criteria 5 1.4 100.0 6 1.7 100.0 2 0.6 100.0 Total tested 345 100.0 348 100.0 350 100.0
Sonoma County:
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZTotal1
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZTotal1
Tested% In HFZ% Not in HFZ Aerobic Capacity 5,020 68.1 31.9 5,030 75.2 24.8 4,715 71.4 28.6 Body Composition 5,020 69.2 30.8 5,030 71.0 29.0 4,715 76.4 23.6 Abdominal Strength 5,020 84.3 15.7 5,030 85.1 14.9 4,715 89.3 10.7 Trunk Extensor Strength 5,020 87.4 12.6 5,030 86.3 13.7 4,715 89.4 10.6 Upper Body Strength 5,020 73.8 26.2 5,030 73.9 26.1 4,715 75.4 24.6 Flexibility 5,020 65.5 34.5 5,030 73.1 26.9 4,715 82.9 17.1
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