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Background: The Nutrition and Physical activity Self-Assessment in Child Care (Go NAP SACC) is an evidence-based intervention developed to positively impact childhood obesity in early childhood education (ECE) facilities. One focus of Go NAP SACC is the development of physical activity best practices. However, little research has examined differences in achievement of best practices based on age of child and geographic location. Purpose: To examine differences in the achievement of physical activity best practices between urban and rural childcare facilities by age-specific recommendations (infants, toddlers, and preschoolers) and in the overall physical activity environment. Urban (n=207) and rural (n=218) ECE facilities completed the Go NAP SACC process. Scores of the post intervention self- assessment were used for comparison. Data were analyzed using an ANCOVA. Results: A majority of facilities reported exceeding best practices (79.5%). Of the 45 items assessed, significant differences were found for 18 best practices with urban facilities outscoring their rural counterparts on 17 of these items. A comparison by age found that urban facilities reported higher achievement of best practices among infants (60%) in comparison to toddlers (40%) or preschoolers (30%). Discussion: Urban ECE facilities scored significantly higher than their rural counterparts on 40% of the items assessed. Thus, there is a need to develop and identify relevant resources for continued improvement of best practices based on geographical location. Future studies should continue to explore the rural-urban context of physical activity practices across the early childhood age groups to ensure healthy physical development of children. Funding: This project was supported by the Cooperative Agreement Number NU58DP004819, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services. This work was also supported by a Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Child Care and Development Fund, USDA Nebraska Team Nutrition, and a Title V Maternal and Child Health Block Grant., The Health & Fitness Journal of Canada, Vol. 14 No. 3 (2021): Proceedings from the 8th International Society for Physical Activity and Health Congress

The purpose of this study was to examine the physical activity environment in childcare programs across type (childcare centers [CCCs] and family childcare homes [FCCHs]) and geographic location (urban and rural) as assessed by physical activity best practices according to the Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-assessment in Child Care. Results showed CCCs compared with FCCHs reported higher achievement of best practices. Further, urban childcare programs (CCCs and FCCHs) reported higher achievement of best practices in comparison to rural childcare programs. There is a need to deliver targeted interventions that promote children's physical activity in FCCHs and CCCs in rural areas.

ObjectiveTo determine if family childcare homes (FCCH) in Nebraska meet best practices for nutrition and screen time, and if focusing on nutrition and screen time policies and practices improves the FCCH environment.DesignA pre–post evaluation was conducted using the Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Childcare (Go NAP SACC).SettingFCCH in Nebraska, USA.SubjectsFCCH enrolled in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP; n 208) participated in a pre–post evaluation using Go NAP SACC.ResultsAt baseline, all FCCH met the minimum childcare standards for fifty-four of fifty-six practices in nutrition and screen time. After the intervention, FCCH demonstrated significant improvement in fourteen of the forty-four Child Nutrition items and eleven of the twelve Screen Time items. However, FCCH providers did not meet best practices at post-intervention. Lowest scores were found in serving meals family-style, promoting visible support for healthy eating, planned nutrition education and written policy on child nutrition. For screen time, lowest scores were reported on the availability of television, offering families education on screen time and having a written policy on screen time.ConclusionsFCCH in Nebraska were able to strengthen their policies and practices after utilizing Go NAP SACC. Continued professional development and participation in targeted interventions may assist programmes in sustaining improved practices and policies. Considering the varying standards and policies surrounding FCCH, future studies comparing the current findings with childcare centres and non-CACFP programmes are warranted.

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine if the Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment in Child Care (Go NAP SACC) intervention was effective in improving best practices in the areas of infant and child physical activity and outdoor play and learning in family child care homes (FCCHs) in Nebraska.Methods: FCCHs (n = 201) participated in a pre–post evaluation using the Infant and Child Physical Activity and Outdoor Play and Learning assessments from the Go NAP SACC validated measure to assess compliance with best practices.Results: At post, FCCHs demonstrated significant differences in 85% of the Infant and Child Physical Activity items (17 of 20) and 80% of the Outdoor Play and Learning items (12 of 15). Significant differences in best practices between urban and rural FCCH providers were also found.Conclusion: Go NAP SACC appears to be an effective intervention in Nebraska as, after participation in the initiative, providers were improving child care physical activity best practices. Additional research is needed to objectively determine if these changes resulted in objective improvements in children’s physical activity levels. Further, efforts are needed to develop and/or identify geographic-specific resources for continued improvement.