Institute of Medicine: Kids need daily hour of physical activity, PE should be a core subject.

Last week, an article was published in the Washington Post declaring the importance of Physical Education in the school day. The Institute of Medicine released a report recommending that PE becomes a core subject in schools.

“Physical activity should be placed alongside those programs to make it a priority for us as a society,” Harold W. Kohl III, a professor of epidemiology at the University of Texas School of Public Health.

Very interesting read. Enjoy!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/institute-of-medicine-kids-need-daily-hour-of-physical-activity-and-pe-should-be-core-subject/2013/05/23/be893676-c3b3-11e2-9642-a56177f1cdf7_story.html

PS: I haven't forgotten about the conference post!

Maury Running Club Gets Moving at Eastern!

The team has taken to the track! The kids did a great job at the first practice at Eastern HS. We worked on speed and even ran the bleachers. Great job, MRC!

AAHPERD Convention 2013

Over the past week, I was fortunate to attend the 2013 American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance in Charlotte, NC. Over the next few days (ASAP), I am going to try to convey just how amazing this experience was via the blog.

Some quick food for thought:

Jump Rope For Heart Wrap Up

Jump Rope For Heart was a great success! Students had the opportunity to learn about their hearts and practice heart healthy exercises.

Check out the JRFH page to see pictures from our week long event!

Jump Rope For Heart 2013!

Jump Rope for Heart Week is here! 

In many schools, JR4H is celebrated as one big main event. Here at Maury, our school schedule is absolutely packed. We thought it would be more beneficial to the students to hold JR4H themed classes during Health and PE time.

During Health and PE class, students will learn about the anatomy of the heart, heart health, jumping rope and why jumping rope can be important for heart health.

If you and your student would like to participate in the fundraising portion of JR4H, please see Ms. Hunt for extra fundraising forms. Fundraising forms were sent home last week to every student grades K-5. Fundraising can also be done online through here.

Why fund-raise for Jump Rope for Heart?
Click here to see what your fund raising efforts can do!

Where does the money go?

Please consider donating to Jump Rope for Heart!

Dance!

Before we went into hibernation, the K-5 classes started a super fun dance unit. We are not totally done yet, but I wanted to brag about how fabulous the 4th and 5th graders did with their choreography assignment. The 4th and 5th grade students were asked to create a 32 count line dance in small groups. Great job, friends!

Happy 2013!

I happen to be a big fan of not making new years resolutions. This probably would come as a surprise because I would love everyone to be a little more active and eat a whole lot healthier. However, I find 99% of the time, new resolutions fail miserably or people use them as an excuse to put off their lifestyle changes for another year.

If you happen to be someone who is interested in making some changes in the new year (I can't be mad at that), consider checking out some of the American Heart Association's resources on heart health. They have created an inclusive assessment tool that checks your current heart health and guides you in creating a plan to make healthy changes. Consider making one change at a time. When you have big changes in diet and activity level your body is going to be sore, tired, and you will probably have some serious GI issues. Does that mean it's not worth it? Of course not! Make changes slowly and give your body time to adjust.

The American Psychological Association has identified a few simple ways to make changes to your lifestyle that will last. Check out their article here.

Good luck to all that are conquering new challenges! Don't forget to get your kids involved!

Here's to health in the new year!