When it comes to eating healthy and exercising, Lakeville Elementary’s looking to kick it up a few notches in the fight to help overweight and undernourished students.
The school recently received a $2,219 grant to aid in the achievement of those goals, courtesy of the Detroit Lions, United Dairy Industry of Michigan, Michigan Department of Education and Team Nutrition.
‘I think we’ve had it in the back of our head for a while that we need to make some adjustments at Lakeville,? said Principal Kristy Gibson-Marshall.
Lakeville was one of 47 elementary and middle schools around the state to receive this grant.
To help accomplish its goals, the school formed its own Nutrition Team consisting of Gibson-Marshall, Patty Silorey, Nutrition Services Director Karen Bissett, PE/Health teachers Mike Sudrovech and Shawn Regan, and fifth-graders Brendan Shea, Hannah Phelps, Adam Bell and Grace Freiberg.
According to Gibson-Marshall, the school is going to focus its efforts in four areas.
Ensuring students have a healthy start to their day by increasing participation in the school’s breakfast program is one facet of the program.
‘Anyone can come in and get a breakfast. It’s available to any student,? said Bissett, who noted they’re working toward increasing breakfast participation by 50 percent, which is a goal of the state superintendent.
Increase student levels of physical activity through programs like Lakeville’s new walking club is another area of focus.
Bissett said the school wants to encourage kids to exercise more ‘instead of just sitting around, playing their Nintendo games.?
A third goal is to reduce the instances in which food is used as a means of celebration. For example, instead of recognizing the school’s students of the month by bringing in donuts, Lakeville’s looking for ways to turn the recognition into more of an event.
‘We’re trying to put more heart into our celebrations and less food,? Gibson-Marshall said. ‘We want to make sure we’re using food for the right reasons ? using food for good and not evil.?
The school is also looking to replace the food items in the vending machines with healthy snacks. That was something first suggested in early 2008 by former Lakeville student Paige Pavliscak.
To help get Lakeville’s Nutrition Team fired up about its new mission, the adults and students attended a Sept. 22 kickoff event at Ford Field in downtown Detroit.
While the adults did laps around the field, the kids participated in physical activities like the quarterback challenge, an obstacle course and agility drills. All the activities were run by Detroit Lions trainers.
‘They had the time of their lives,? Gibson-Marshall said.
Afterwards, Lakeville’s Nutrition Team got to watch Go Comedy, a metro Detroit improvisational group, perform skits on the importance of eating breakfast, choosing items from the food pyramid, and the need for nutrient-rich foods in a daily diet.
During lunch, the students and adults sampled a wide variety of nutritious foods such a whole-grains, low-fat milk, cheese, yogurt, fresh fruits and vegetables, black bean salad and hummus.
Detroit Lions Jeff Backus and Jason Hanson wrapped things up with tips on how to eat right and play hard for optimum performance.
‘They really enjoyed it. It was a great day for the kids at Ford Field,? Bissett said.
It should be noted the school district’s been trying to improve student nutrition through its lunch offerings for a while now.
‘We’ve really changed our menus around a lot in the last five years,? Bissett said. ‘We offer a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables each day. We offer chef salads everyday as a choice. We’re offering zero trans fat items. A lot of our items are whole grain or reduced fat.?
But don’t tell the kids that.
‘We don’t always advertise it that way because of the stigma (associated with healthy foods),? Bissett explained.
For instance, when Bissett switched to reduced fat Bosco sticks, it was top secret.
‘I changed those and I didn’t tell anyone,? she said. ‘The kids to this day have never noticed a difference.?
If there’s one thing working 24 years in food services for public schools has taught Bissett, it’s that ‘kids will eat it, if it’s out there.?