Monday, March 23, 2020




March 2020
Curiosity


We are now in the home stretch of the 2020-2021 school year but the game has changed in so many ways. This is a time to look into these uncertain times and find creative solutions. As difficult as these times are, there are also some positive side effects by being asked to stay home and slow life down. More time in pajamas, less time driving.  More stress about the quantity of toilet paper in the house, less pressure for state testing.  More time to be with loved ones, less busyness.  We can only hope that through these changes that our DCSD Healthy Schools family and their families are healthy, adjusting to this new normal, and finding some peace with it all.

Important Dates


Please check your email on March 24th for the "2020 Wellness Spring Celebration - RSVP". We are not sure whether our April 29th end-of-year celebration will take place in-person or virtually. However, we ARE sure that we are ordering some sweet sweatshirts for all of our leaders! You must complete the RSVP in order to receive a sweatshirt!

April 15th Please send us any health efforts you are trying with your students online! We have a tone bar and Hoberman ball to give away! Email all efforts to Laurie LaComb at lllacomb@dcsdk12.org

September 15th- Healthy Schools Workshop at the Highlands Ranch Mansion (crossing fingers all will be back to normal by then!)

Supports for Online Learning

Image result for movement and online learning

HEALTHY SCHOOLS DEPARTMENT
We are here to support you in any way we can. If you are looking for a lesson on any of the WSCC components, such as physical activity, nutrition, mindfulness, Health Ed ideas, please reach out to Laurie at lllacomb@dcsdk12.org. Our team will work hard to find ideas and get them to you pronto!

MINDFUL SCHOOLS
For the next few weeks, Mindful Schools will be offering free mindfulness classes for kids! Join us online – for mindful activities, mindful movement, read-alouds – and let’s have fun exploring mindfulness together.

Free Online: Mindfulness Class for Kids!

Classes will be held on: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays
10am PDT / 1pm EDT
Sign up for participation instructions
😎😎😎😎😎

BOKS Physical Activity Breaks

Spider Bursts
Individual, in place
10 minutes, grades K - 8

Do each activity on the spot for 30 – 60 seconds
  1. Begin in a straight arm plank position.
  2. Right leg bends and is placed outside of right arm.
  3. Left leg kicks through right arm and right leg.
  4. Lift right arm and balance for 5 seconds.
  5. Return to the original position and complete exercise on left side.
  6. Repeat 5 times


Sports Galore
Individual, in place
10 minutes, grades K - 8

Do each activity in place for 60 seconds:



  1. Act like a Baseball player swinging the bat
  2. Act like a Basketball player shooting the ball
  3. Act like a Hockey player skating as fast as possible
  4. Act like a Football player and practice fast feet
  5. Act like a Professional Skier and practice going over jumps
  6. Act like a Tennis Player and practice your serve
  7. Repeat




Tabata Jacks
Individual, in place
10 minutes, grades K - 8



  • 20 seconds of fast Jumping Jacks
  • 10 seconds of rest
  • 20 seconds of scissor Jumping Jacks (legs alternate front and back like scissors, arms swinging with legs)
  • 10 seconds of rest
  • 20 seconds of diagonal scissor jacks, where legs move forward on a 45-degree angle and back in, arms swinging with legs
  • 10 seconds of rest
  • Repeat this 10 times



*A tabata is a form of exercise that alternates intense activity with resting.



Squat Clap Challenge
Partner, requires space
5 minutes, grades 4-8

Stand facing a partner
Perform squat jumps at the same time as your partner and high five him/her each time for 30 seconds
Hold squat position while facing partner and clap hands (like quick high fives) with them as many times as possible for 30 seconds
Repeat 5 x
Switch partner and repeat steps 1-5

Square Breathing Burst
Individual, in place
3-5 minutes, grades K-8

This square breathing exercise is a fast, fun, easy way to teach children about deep breathing and introduce the deep breath. Directions:

Begin in an easy seated position on the floor or in a chair.
Breathe in to a count of 4.
Hold breath for a count of 4.
Breathe out for a count of 4.
Pause for a count of 4.
Repeat.

Variation: As you show this technique to the kids for the first time, draw a square in the air with your finger to model the Square Breathing Burst technique. Once you’ve modeled it for the kids, invite them to join you by drawing their own squares in the air.

For more Brain Break ideas:
Another brain break idea is to have your kids go outside and make as much noise as they can for 5 minutes. My friend back in Illinois did it with her students, they loved it!!


Alliance For a Healthier Generation
Alliance for a Healthier Generation
This organization has a plethora of resources for people in the Healthy Schools world. Recently they have organized, in efforts with Kaiser Permanente, staff wellness resources as well. Sign up here!

Mindfulness

Be present in the moment, with kindness and curiosity. We need these skills more than ever with such uncertainty weaving in and out throughout our days and into the weeks ahead. One of my favorite lessons in the mindfulness world is thinking about what you can and can't control. Here is a visual to help...


Image result for spheres of control

As the days continue to unfold as they are, please do your best to focus on what you can control. Share this with students who may be spending a lot of time in the worry zone!

Community cover photo

Please use our Google+ Community!! We will be updating it during each week with activities you can send to your students. 

A newsletter for the good in life.


Every Saturday, we'll bring you the big headlines that make you smile, plus stories of fascinating discoveries, everyday heroes, inspiring movements and great things happening right in your backyard. 
Kimmy turned me onto this, it is a fabulous reminder of the positive things happening around the world! You could use it as a role model with your students and have them create their own 'good stuff" newsletter.  Subscribe here!

School Celebrations

No-idling campaign at Sierra Middle School. Thanks, Laura!

Community Partners

Thank you to Train OC for giving Away obstacle courses for 5 of our schools! Please keep them in mind for fall 2020!
Train OC

And the winners are (drum roll please...)
Cherry Creek Elementary 
Greenwood Elementary 
Saddle Ranch Elementary 
Bear Canyon Elementary 
Trailblazer Elementary 
Would you like to bring the obstacle course to YOUR school for your spring carnival, field day, or special event?
Click here to request a call back from one of our event specialists and create your unique obstacle course experience. 


There’s a certain allure to numbers. Wearing a heart rate monitor or a fitness tracker in a classroom helps with motivation before, during and after the class. With the Polar GoFit app, teachers and students can see live heart rate, in 5 different heart rate zones!
  • Polar Heart Rate monitors along with the PolarGoFit website/app allows you to objectively assess students based on individual performance. 
  • Data from the Polar GoFit webservice can be used for live feedback during class, used to assess grades by the teacher and used by the school/district to show time spent in moderate to vigorous activity zones.
  • The free polargofit.com webservice allows teachers to plan courses and create a grading rubric to evaluate students individually. 
  • To monitor live heart rate in class, simply take a 5th gen or newer iPad, with the PolarGoFit app loaded, to your PE class to see how each student is performing.  
  • After class, data from the session syncs to the polargofit.com web service via Wi-Fi. 
  • This allows you to track progress for individual students throughout the academic year.  Grades are assigned based on your grading rubric and reports are downloadable via xls or pdf.  
  • Monitors are shared between students so you purchase only enough for your largest class size.  
Contact barbara.mccarney@polar.com for more information.

Nutrition




Have a little extra time? Try to make these cuties and send Laurie the pics!!
Have fun!


image
Tara Gonzales from Nutrition Services can teach classes on any of these topics to your students:

My Plate
Portions
Sugar consumption
Healthy Snacks
Label reading
Macro/micronutrients
Food allergies in schools

Reach out to Tara for support!! tgonzales@dcsdk12.org. She may be able to support your online efforts.


We will keep you posted on closing procedures this year as we learn more from the district. Until we see you all, enjoy this less busy time as much as possible! Listen more, sleep longer, create new healthy habits, spend quality time with those nearby, and practice gratitude every day! Let us know if we can help you in any way!

Laurie, Kimmy & Gina





1 comment:

  1. Way to go ladies!! As always, full of great information. Sadly, I couldn't see the picture of the cutie challenge.
    Thanks for the reminder to control what we can and let go of the rest!!

    ReplyDelete