To celebrate October as Healthy Harvest Month the school is sponsoring many events. Below is a compilation of these events, as well as examples of CHM’s ongoing commitment to a healthy community:
- October 3: Walk to School Day at Lincoln Park, kick off of Activity Burst program, and Nutrition/Wellness Club monthly meeting (see more about these below)
- October 6: Garden Work Day. Students, families, and staff volunteered to maintain gardens and school grounds.
- October 15: Students will attend an Iron Chef cooking demonstration at the Thurgood Marshall Building using fruits and vegetables from school’s garden.
- October 17: A local farmer from Arcadia Farm from the historic Woodlawn Plantation in Virginia will visit students to discuss local farming principles and health and nutrition.
- October 18: Parents are encouraged to enjoy lunch with their kids in the school cafeteria.
- October 23: Living Classrooms will teach elementary students about effects of erosion, storm water runoff, and general pollution on our local Potomac watershed through a series of education stations.
- October 27: Annual Haunted Harvest! Crafts, games, dancing, costumes, and a haunted “hall” for CHM families and neighborhood.
Health and Wellness Club
The Health and Wellness Club is a fun and educational program run by parents and with support from the faculty. The monthly club focuses on educating children and families about the following:
· selecting, preparing, and eating nutritious meals and snacks;
· learning where food comes from and how it grows;
· cultivating food in our gardens; and
· promoting health in our bodies/minds, our families, our school, and our communities.
This month for October the children enjoyed drinking apple cider, learning about USDA MyPlate and healthy eating, and making gingered butternut squash soup.
Activity Bursts
As part a grant CHM received in 2012, CHM has established an activity burst project for primary students. The 10-minute activity burst sessions will happen at the start of recess and the children will be engaged in a series of physical activities including running in place and laps around the playground, jumping jacks, bear walking, and various stretches. Participation in these sessions will ensure every student meets the required minutes mandated by D.C. law.
Cross Country and Track and Field
Two fun extracurricular activities that elementary students are able to participate in are cross country and track and field. This is the first year for our students to participate in cross country. Fourteen girls and boys practice every day by running throughout the Capitol Hill neighborhood. Students have shown major improvement and are ready for the upcoming 3K races!
Indoor track and field will begin in November and outdoor track and field begins in the spring. Last year twelve students participated in many of the events offered and did quite well for our first year. In fact, we received medals in the girls long jump and boys 800 meters.
Girls on the Run
Girls on The Run (GOTR) at CHM is off to a running start! There are fourteen very energetic 8-11 year old girls participating in our inaugural season. They meet every Wednesday and Friday. At the conclusion of our program on December 2, the girls will run a 5K at Anacostia Park with all the other D.C. GOTR teams.
GOTR is so much more than running. The program emphasizes the importance of maintaining a positive attitude, being kind to one other and oneself, self-love and acceptance, and how to maintain health through exercise and good nutrition.
The girls have had the opportunity to run around the perimeter of the CHM campus as well as Senate Park and a lovely grassy area around Union Station. The city is their track!
Fuel Free Fridays
As part of CHM ongoing commitment to supporting an active community, the Safe Routes to School Committee launched Fuel Free Fridays (FFF) this school year. All families are encouraged to walk, bike, stroll, carpool to school EVERY Friday. School-wide participation has been terrific, as evidenced by the full bike racks and low car traffic at drop-off on Fridays.
Local bicycle shop, The Daily Rider, has committed to joining FFF once a month to service bicycles for CHM families, the Metropolitan Police Department occasionally escorts a bike train that meets at Lincoln Park, and other schools are joining in.
Bike/Walk to School Days
CHM also actively participates in national and international events like Bike to School Day and Walk to School Day. In 2012, CHM had the second highest rate of participation in Bike to School Day among all Washington D.C. schools.
For the Walk to School Day on October 3rd, 94 children walked or biked to school!
Can’t get enough of our healthy school? Look out for the posters (made by SuperParent Sara Burns) in the hallway!
