A big part of wellness, in my mind at least, is having great conversations with others, especially our children. Stevenson Elementary has planned a jam packed week of interesting and conversation starting activities! I remember when my kiddo came home from school on the first day of Wellness Week last year and said, “Hey Mom, I tried celery today!”. Now my kiddo has had celery but he never had it at school served with a tahini sauce. That opened up an opportunity to talk to my son about nutrition and what he really liked to eat etc. The point being we were talking and talking about what he liked to eat and for once he did not feel like I was lecturing him! He was excited about trying something new. Wellness Week this year is so exciting and provides us as parents a chance to talk about so many things regarding our kids health and wellness. The week covers a taste testing and veggie washing demonstration, Jump roping demonstration and Fun Run to name just a few things. Check out the activities listed each day and start a conversation with your kid about what he or she did regarding wellness that day!

by LeeAnne Matusek

Here is some exciting news I read over the summer. In USA Today The American Heart Association’s research has shown that even small amounts of aerobic exercise help lower coronary disease risk.

This was found out in a mega-study showing some physical activity provides health benefits. To quote:

“The biggest health benefits we saw were for those who went from doing nothing to those doing something small.” says Jacob Sattelmair, author of the new AHA study. “Even a little bit of activity makes a significant difference” – and a little bit means 10 to 15 minutes a day.

Did you hear that? That was me wahoooooooing that finding. That is exactly what I have been doing and what I have been encouraging others to do to reach their fitness goals.

Do just a little bit each day and you will find you have more energy and you can slowly increase that time. Just take the dog for a short walk or go for walk by your self to clear your head at the end of the day. The kids are in bed and your partner is watching their favorite sitcom or football game. Slap on your sneakers and take a brisk walk around the block. Do that every night for two weeks and you WILL feel a change in your body. I can almost guarantee it!

So many studies are coming out now, after lots of research being done, to prove
that just getting started and doing small amounts can make a difference in your
life.

The American College of Sports Medicine updated it’s exercise guidelines in June, including information on how little exercise is needed to achieve health benefits, as reported by Janice Lloyd of USA TODAY.

“The sports medicine college’s guidelines also say that as little as half- about 75 minutes a week- can be helpful, while stressing that more is needed to maintain a healthy weight and achieve maximum benefits”, says Lloyd.

“It’s very clear that a little bit of exercise makes a big difference,” says Carol Ewing Garber, author of the guidelines and assistant professor of movement at Columbia University. “The recommendation to get 150 minutes a week of

moderate-intensity exercise is still one of the goals, but the message also needs to be heard that doing less is also helpful.”

So many health clubs have shortened or completely eliminated 90-minute classes. Very interesting and wonderful I think. Who has the time, really? So I am happy to report you can go ahead and just go for a walk knowing you ARE doing something good for yourself. It is not a waste of time to “just go for a walk” or do a few sit-ups. Gone is that mentality that you need gobs of time in a gym or the latest fitness class to get fit or feel better. A little can go along way!

Our Stevenson Fun Run was a huge success! We have collected $6,977.22 (or as I like to say $7,000) in pledges and donations for our school! This is an all-time record for Stevenson! Your continued support and investment in our school has made this all possible and we sincerely thank you. I would like to give a special thank you to a really great group of volunteers who offered their time and support on the day of the event to make it enjoyable for all! Also, a big thanks to Clif Bar Co., Pavilions, Vons and our Zita at Cartoon Network for donating the post-race healthy snacks and water! And lastly, a big shout out to all of the teachers who walked the Fun Run with their classes – especially Mr. Blank who ran the entire 15 minutes! Thanks for making the day more fun and being such excellent role models for our kids!

Stevenson’s Fun Run this year was a wonderful example of a school community coming together and helping kids learn the importance of a healthy and active lifestyle while having a lot of fun and raising much needed money for our school!

Now, what you have all been waiting for… the contest winners!! The class raising the most money at a whopping $896.00 and winner of the popcorn party and extended recess is Mrs. Almeida’s kindergarten class!

The individual winners of the Pirate Gear drawing are:

Sweatshirt Winners
Jordyn Pendola & Chloe Caneday

T-Shirt Winners
Lyric Pastora, Maddie Simpson & Dylan Loomis

Baseball Hat Winners
Renee Bobb, Scott Bakas & Jagg Richer

Congratulations to all!

Sincerely,
Lori Durbin

I don’t know if your kid came home excited about trying celery but mine did. He didn’t like it mind you but he went ahead and tried it. That was exciting. Peaceful Playgrounds launched during Wellness Week and it was great to see all of the new equipment and the kids playing with it and actually playing by the rules! So many kids had those little play booklets in their back pockets!!

Wednesday was Sun Safety Awareness and kids had a ball trying to figure out what they should wear and sometimes how they should wear it to be sun safe.

Thursday’s Flag Football games were met with so much enthusiasm. The kids were lining up two deep to wait for a turn. The Boys and Girls club generously loaned us their equipment and their fantastic employee Miss Luisa, Parent volunteer Monica Rangel (who we would have been sunk without!) and myself, helped these boys and girls have a great time. They left wanting to do it every day!! I am going to do my best to get this program started. If there are any interested parents, please contact me directly.

It was so cute to watch the kids “practice” walking the field for the Fun Run on Friday. I couldn’t believe the dedication and excitement in the air. It was palpable.

The day of the Fun Run was perfect. There was great weather, a boatload of enthusiastic volunteers and an amazingly organized snack/water area for the kids when they finished with their run

As I coached the kids around the jogging area, I noticed some of the kids had buddied up. Some of them paced themselves. All of them seemed to be challenged a bit physically and were really excited about meeting that challenge. Comments I heard were, “I can’t believe I can feel my heart pumping.” “I did TEN laps!” “We are walking together to keep each other company.” However you do it, you’re doing it! I was also very impressed with all of the teacher participants. Right on!!!!

So it seems like our kids had a lot of fun during Wellness Week and we hope to build on this experience to shape next year’s Wellness Week. I look forward to your emails and also please volunteer or pass the word on if you think the Flag Football program is a good one but you can’t volunteer. It’s just one hour of your time, one afternoon a week. The kids would love to have it every day but we are going to take baby steps!

Be well

LeeAnne

leeannematusek@sbcglobal.net

Based on observations by parents, our vigilant crossing guard and our neighbors, it has been requested that we PLEASE help our young pirates by being sure to use the MARKED crosswalks, refrain from J-walking in the street and NEVER double park. Other crosswalks, while possibly legal, present our kids and neighbors to hazards not as prevalent at less congested times of the day.

By setting a GREAT example for our young people, we can all look forward to an accident deprived school year and future.

In addition to other safety measures and rules of the road please:

• Use MARKED crosswalks
• Follow and wait for direction provided by our vigilant crossing guard.
• Do Not Double Park
• Ensure that all of our young pirates are kept out of the street.
• If possible, have all young pirates board your ship,..er,..I mean vehicle on the starboard (sidewalk) side.

Wishing for you all calm seas (and roads) and smooth sailing!

When I first volunteered to lead the Red Ribbon Week activities I knew I wanted to help but really had no clue how a week intended to teach children to “say no to drugs” could be incorporated into an elementary school setting.

To my surprise, I’ve discovered the lessons are much larger and the ideals much higher. The story of Kiki Camerena may not be suitable for our young school children but the principals of the week fit perfectly with the ideals of Stevenson; family involvement, a healthy lifestyle, body and mind. Elements essential for our students’ success’ caring relationships, high expectations, meaningful participation, safe places, and positive activities, translate into strong personalities, self worth and good decision making which all equals good citizens and great students.

The activities encourage mindfulness, positive decision making and healthy behaviors. Nurturing open lines of communication and establishing good habits (often and EARLY) are building blocks for the future.

My hope is that many of our Red Ribbon week activities will begin and end at home, initiating meaningful conversations and highlighting the importance of family interactions. I look forward to our Red Ribbon Week activities; the week of October 16th thru 23rd. That’s my pledge to you.

Red Ribbon Week Chair – Jennifer Moore