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Mary Colver, the school nurse at Little Fort Elementary School in Waukegan, IL, (55.7% Latino) wanted to get kids moving. She recognized obesity as a problem (33.6% of children in Illinois are obese), but also wanted to increase student’s performance in the classroom.
With a grant from Action for Healthy Kids, Mary started 6 physical activity initiatives at her school:
- Morning music program
- Brain breaks
- Before-school exercise club
- Family health night
- Physical Activity Leaders program
- Created a ½ mile walking path
Students have responded very enthusiastically to the Morning Music Program. Every morning after the pledge of allegiance, a song is played in all the classrooms and students are required to get up and get moving. They can do jumping jacks, dance or anything that is active.
Click here to read more about Mary Colver’s physical activity initiatives.
Click here to read a Salud Hero story about a principal that introduced brain breaks to his middle school.
By The Numbers
84
percent
of Latino parents support public funding for afterschool programs