The Florida Legislature has been known to meddle when it comes to curriculum and other programs at public schools. But lawmakers got it exactly right last year when they adopted a law requiring that grade-school students must have 2 ½ hours of exercise each week.

Some Floridians may look askance at that, believing that physical-education classes are part of grade schools' core curriculum. Not anymore.

School administrators are hard-pressed to find enough hours in the average school day to cover all the mandatory obligations of public education, especially since the advent of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Something had to give, and often what was sacrificed was a formal physical-education class. After all, grade schools can point to daily recess periods as an opportunity for students to get some exercise. Some school districts took this thinking too far, though, suggesting that when students walked from class to lunch in the cafeteria that counted as exercise.

This year lawmakers tightened the rules so that schools can't fudge anymore. Now, grade schoolers need exercise periods that last at least 30 minutes and that add up to the required 2 ½ hours per week.

With the alarming rate of obesity among children in the United States, plus the trend toward sedentary youth activities, most of which involve staring at a screen of some sort, school exercise is more important than ever. Even so, some educators say they will need to be creative in finding the time to give students sustained periods of exercise.

They should look to Miami-Dade County Public Schools for answers. The district has required phys-ed classes for many years and uses smart methods to keep students' bodies -- as well as minds -- fit.

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