Healthy Active Living and Learning Stephen L Cone

Healthy Active Living and Learning Stephen L. Cone, Ph. D. Professor Department of Health and Exercise Science Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ

Making It Work n The Big Picture n A Coordinated Approach The Right Team n Budget n Implementation Let’s Take A Look n Did It Work?

The Big Picture To raise awareness in the school community about the benefits of healthy eating and physical activity

Why? n Good health contributes to effective learning and achievement n Children are present in school n Children feel good about themselves n Children can maintain focus n Children can deal with stress

Why? n Good health is the result of a comprehensive outlook that includes home, community and school n The staff develops a healthy environment that includes nutrition, safety, respect and physical activity n The family home encourages good nutrition and promotes increased levels of physical activity n The community offers opportunities for active participation in developing a healthy lifestyle

A Coordinated Approach Parent and community involvement Comprehensive school Health Education Physical Education program School health services Counseling and psychological services School nutrition services Healthy school environment Health promotion for staff

The Right Team Staff Teachers Principal, Assistant Principal, Nurse, Counselors Physical Education, Classroom Students K-5 Parents/Community Parents, PTO

Budget Ideal or Reality or Can they be the Same The Solution may Not be out of reach.

Budget n. Line item resources n. Shared resources n. New resources

Implementation – Let’s Take A Look A successful program that incorporated n. Health n. Nutrition n. Physical Activity

Activities and Events n Healthy Hero – The n Monthly School “H” Newsletters n Bulletin Boards n Walking Club n Pedometers n In School Family Program n Back to School Night n Healthy Hero Players n Morning Theatre Announcements n Family Funn Family Fitness Logs Challenge and n Artist in Residence Fitness Day

Earning the “H”: Branding n Health Heroes Lunch room visits n Visit to Nurse n School Assemblies and Healthy Heroes Theater

Bulletin Boards F O O T P R I N T S

Bulletin Boards S T O P & G O

Pedometers 3 rd grade teacher and students

Morning Announcements n Be Happy and Be Healthy - Drink Water, Eat right and Exercise n Get up and get active. Join Health Hero 3 today for the Thursday Walking Club at 12: 45 in front of the school. n Breakfast boosts brainpower. Children who eat breakfast are better able to remember information, problem solve, and think than those who skip breakfast.

Morning Announcements n Wake Up and Exercise. Try stretching, jogging in place for one minute and doing ten pushups and sit ups. You will start the day feeling ready for action. n Did you make your move? Check out the bulletin board in the hallway outside the gym to see what activities you like to do.

Family Fitness Logs Eat Healthy*Be Active*Be Happy*Be Healthy Free Prize to the First 25 Families that return the form by (insert date) n Join in the fun during the break and take the activity challenge. n Can your family find a way to be active and eat healthy each day of the break? n Complete the back side of this page and write in the activity your family did and the healthy foods you ate.

Family Fitness Log Date Activity How Long Mon Walk 30 min Dad, Rachel Tues Basketball 60 min Dad, Mom, Billy Wed Family Healthy Members Food Carrots, Milk

Family Fitness Log

Newsletters – District/School

It Only Takes A Moment Take the stairs at the mall instead of the escalator. n Ask to park the car at the end of the parking and briskly walk to the store. n Jog in place during commercials while watching TV. n Throw and catch a ball and see how many you can do consecutively without dropping the ball. n Turn on an exercise video or an exercise TV show to learn new moves. n Take a walk in the neighborhood and see how many different leaves you can collect. n

It Only Takes A Moment Suspend a rope two feet off the ground and see how many times you can move over and under the rope in 30 seconds. Challenge a friend or family member. n At the next birthday party you attend, ask to play an active outside game like tag, soccer or basketball. n Get up on the dance floor and move to the music. Any kind of dancing is good for your body. n Try doing 25 – 40 sit ups each day to strengthen your back and abdominal muscles. Remember to keep your knees bent and hands can be touching your shoulders instead of behind your head. n

Family Fun/Challenge and Fitness Day Healthy Communities Healthy Youth B e Healthy A ctive S mart

How Do You Know If It Worked ? n Where did you start and what did you want to accomplish? n Collect information/data to see if you addressed your goals. n Plan for the Future

K-1 – Healthy Snacks

K-1 – Bike Riding

Grades 2 -5 1. Did you notice the healthy bulletin board in the hallway outside the gym or the healthy tips posters located throughout the school? Grade Affirmative Response 2 58 % 3 41 % 4 72 % 5 63 %

Grades 2 -5 2. Do you remember any of the morning messages read three times a week? Grade Affirmative Response 2 38 % 3 29 % 4 42 % 5 56 %

Grades 2 -5 3. Describe what you did this year to increase your physical activity. Grade Sample Response 2 played soccer, rode scooter 3 jumped rope, exercised at home 4 family fitness log, played badminton w/dad 5 watched less TV, jogged w/mom

Grades 2 -5 4. Describe a healthy change you made in what you eat and drink. Grade Sample Response 2 drank more water, ate bananas and milk 3 ate less chips, more carrots and cauliflower 4 ate baked chips, drank sugar free iced tea 5 ate more fruit and vegetables, less candy

Family Survey This year the school adopted a goal to raise awareness in our students, staff and families about the importance of an active lifestyle and healthy eating. To assess the success of our goal we need to gather information from students, staff and the families. We ask that you take three minutes to complete the following survey and drop it in the survey box located in the large gym. Thank you for your help. 1. Circle the grade level(s) of your child or children: K 1 2 3 4 5 2. Were you aware that Brunswick Acres School adopted a goal this year to raise awareness in our school community about the health benefits of increased activity and healthy eating? Circle: Yes 86% No 3. Did you notice the articles on exercise and nutrition in the monthly Brunswick Acres School Newsletters? Circle Yes 94 % No If yes, were they of interest or helpful? Circle Yes 85 % No 4. Did you notice the bulletin board in the hallway or posters placed throughout the school noting tips for healthy eating and activity? Circle Yes 76 % No 5. Did your child or children mention any comments about the activities conducted at school promoting healthy eating and increased activity? Circle Yes 82 % No Any additional comments or suggestions are welcomed. You can write them here or on the back of the survey.

Staff Survey This year the school adopted a goal to raise awareness in our students, staff and families about the importance of an active lifestyle and healthy eating. To assess the success of our goal we need to gather information from students, staff and the families. We ask that you take three minutes to complete the following survey and place it in Theresa’s mailbox by June 10 th. Thanks for your help. 1. Did you notice the articles on exercise and nutrition in the monthly Brunswick Acres School Newsletters? Circle Yes 93 % No If yes, were they of interest or helpful Circle Yes 100 % No 2. Did you notice the bulletin board in the hallway or posters placed throughout the school noting tips for healthy eating and activity? Circle Yes 100 % No 3. Did your students mention any comments about the activities conducted at school promoting healthy eating and increased activity? Circle Yes 60 % No If yes, please share some of the comments on the back of this paper 4. Did you have an opportunity to increase the activity level of your students or make a change in their snack or lunch? Circle Yes 57 % No If yes, can you describe what you did? 5. Would you be interested in continuing with this initiative next year? Circle Yes 89 % No Additional comments or suggestions are welcomed.

Thank You Dear PTO Members, We want to thank you again for your generous support toward the Healthy Active Living and Learning initiative through the purchase of the pedometers. We have received the pedometers and introduced them to the second grade classes and this week to the fourth and fifth grade classes. Ms. Cashmore’s class is using a set of the pedometers daily to motivate students to become active as part of a class goal for the year. Her students walk and record their progress as part of their daily routine along with learning in all subject areas. All the students are excited about using this wonderful piece of technology and seeing what they have accomplished. During the next few weeks, the remaining classes and staff members will be introduced to the pedometers. December will bring the kickoff of the lunchtime Walking club to encourage students to be active during the winter months. Thanks again for helping us achieve our school goal to increase awareness, physical activity and promote good eating. We are making every effort to fight the obesity epidemic that has become a health issue in our nation. We want our children to be able to make healthy choices that will lead them to be successful learners and enjoy a healthy future. Physical activity and good nutrition are the best preventative measures we can all take to lower our risk for disease. We know the pedometers will help our children

Resources n n n http: //www. kidsrunning. com/ http: //www. girlpower. gov/ http: //www. goactive. com/ http: //www. shapeup. org/ http: //www. projectfitamerica. org/ Steve and Theresa Cone (cone@rowan. edu or tscone@comcast. net)

Healthy Heroes Principal Health Hero 1 Student Awarded H’s