Lyford CISD, a predominantly Latino (97%) school district in rural South Texas, will soon be hosting a Bike N' Roll Family Festival. The event which is scheduled to take place at Lyford Elementary on Thursday, April 24, 2014 at 5:30-7:30 pm, is part of the district's efforts to get more students and families to participate in regular physical activity. At the event, there will be games, a farmers' market, a bike rodeo, and a guided community bike ride. In addition, ten free bikes will be given away! Bikes will be loaned to Pre-K-5th grade students who don't own a bike. According to Josephine Torres a program coordinator with MHP, Lyford CISD is a partner of MHP's in the Transforming Texas initiative. Transforming Texas is a federally funded initiative that seeks to create ...
If you're working to encourage your community to walk, you might want to take a look at some of the work Walk Boston is doing!
First, view their "Walk Your Way to Health" Powerpoint presentation to learn about research that supports the many health benefits of walking. Walking can prevent obesity, heart disease, osteoporosis, and many other common ailments like diabetes and joint-pain. It can also promote healthier brain development and aid in memory retention. The development of more walkable communities also has economic and safety benefits! Then take a look at Walk Boston's walking resources to learn about more specific content such as walking in rural areas, information on laws, safe routes to school, community and data on the economic benefits of walking. Learn more by visiting ...
If your wandering what shared use agreements (SUA) are all about check out this resource produced by the The Safe Routes to School National Partnership. These resources, available in English and Spanish, detail why shared use agreements are beneficial, what challenges one might encounter in trying establish a SUA, and how SUAs may increase physical activity participation in different settings (i.e. rural, urban, suburban, faith-based). Additional shared use resources aimed at specific audiences like principals, the district superintendent, and the school board are also ...
Research shows that children who consume too many sugary drinks risk developing diseases related to unhealthy weight. Health leaders, school officials, and parents in one community in California worked to create a plan to bump sugary drinks out of early-childcare centers and help kids fall in love with water at a young age.
The Issue of Unhealthy Food and Drink
Awareness: More than 44% of children overall in Madera County, Calif., are overweight or obese. Rates are higher for certain groups. Public health groups across California are recognizing these issues and working to reduce them. CA4Health, directed by the Public Health Institute (PHI) in California, is a statewide healthy-living grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention covering rural and small California ...
Residents living in the small rural community of Earlimart, Calif., lacked outdoor spaces for the physical activity they needed to develop and maintain healthy lifestyles and weights.
The Earlimart School District’s superintendent responded to this need by trying an experiment. She had the custodial staff at one school leave the school gate open. Word got around that the school’s gate had been left open—soon the school’s field was filled with local residents.
This experiment ultimately led to a change in the school district’s rule, which allows Tulare county residents from non-affiliated groups to use the school yard at Earlimart Middle School.
The story does not end here; once residents realized the difference a place to play could make in improving the health of the ...
