AT SCHOOL, KIDS GET LESSONS IN LIVING LONGER; ACCLAIMED PROGRAM INSTILLS HEALTHY HABITS
Herald News (Passaic County, NJ)December 9, 2004
BYLINE: By CHARLES AUSTIN
Shane Bliss, 8, jogged around the playground at Warren Point Elementary School, trying to get his full distance in as the sky began to spit raindrops and snowflakes.
About 150 other children circled the schoolyard Monday with Shane, a third-grader. Some ran with youthful abandon, arms swinging and coats flying; others walked and talked with friends. But all kept on the move.
That's because it was "Moving Monday" at the school, part of a comprehensive child fitness program that has won Warren Point an award from the New Jersey PTA. Tuesday would be "Thirsty Tuesday" for the students, encouraged to bring water bottles to drink at their desks, rather than gulping soft drinks at lunch time.
The program also includes active sports on Thursday, an emphasis on healthy foods on Fridays and "Wheeling Wednesdays," when students walk or bike to school instead of riding in the family car.
"The problem is that kids aren't moving enough any more," said Patty Nolan, the physical education teacher who devised the program. Nolan, who has been at the school for 17 years, has become the fitness guru for the 480 children at the school. She's created a fitness theme for every day of the week and incorporated the program into other aspects of the curriculum.
According to the federal Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, the number of overweight children in the United States has more than doubled in the past 20 years. Statistics show that an estimated 9 million overweight children are more likely to become obese as adults and develop related health problems. Experts say that virtually all influences on a child's life - ability to exercise, nutrition and parental care - have to be marshaled in order to combat obesity.
The program at Warren Point tries to do that, said Denise Carletto, a kindergarten teacher who walks the laps with her children on Mondays. "They really need to exercise," she said, "and to think about what they eat." As part of the program, Carletto cooks things like zucchini muffins with the children on Fridays, when the emphasis is on healthy eating.
"Apples are now my favorite food," said Lisa Raghubans, a fourth-grader who also likes the competitive sports played on "Tournament Thursdays." And Christopher Bauer, another fourth-grader, has learned that the venison his father brings home after hunting is a healthier meat than store-bought steak. For Shane, the running third-grader, he's gained an appreciation for foods many kids try to avoid.
"I like all kinds of vegetables," he said.
Paula Blach, a fourth-grade teacher, said the program - now in its second year - has had an impact on what children bring for snacks during recess. And when there are birthday or holiday celebrations, Blach said, "we have them bring yogurt, fruit or white popcorn" rather than sugary cupcakes. That means, she said, that parents are also learning about the importance of healthy eating.
Blach also uses the fitness record books the children keep to teach math skills. If they log 10 laps around the playground, and know that five laps is one mile, then a 9-year-old can learn to calculate how many miles he runs in a week.
Bulletin boards around the school have posters showing how exercise affects muscles, a food pyramid and sacks of nutritious lunches.
Last year, the program jogged off the playground and into the streets of Fair Lawn, said Maggie Alphonso, a PTA vice president who helped organize the project. Last spring, students and teachers took a fitness run through the borough.