H E A LT H . M O V E S . M I N D S .
Join the Nationwide Launch of By Yasmeen Taji-Farouki
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very day, health and physical educators witness children and adolescents struggling with their physical and mental health. Anxiety, depression and other mental health conditions are on the rise. That’s why SHAPE America partnered with Gopher to launch the health. moves. minds.™ program. The program’s educational focus is on mental wellness and empowerment, with a strong emphasis on equity, diversity and inclusion. It provides health and physical education teachers with lessons, activities, and community-building ideas that can help students thrive physically and emotionally. Through standards-based physical education and skills-based health education lessons, students can learn that taking care of their mind and body, while also being kind, will help them live their best life. PROACTIVE APPROACH In many school settings, support around mental health is often addressed by a counselor or specialist … through one channel in the school … in a reactive manner. One of the reasons the health. moves. minds. program is so special is that it offers a proactive solution — helping schools address mental health topics through physical activity in a school-wide setting, which fosters stronger unity and support within students’ peer groups. Ann Paulls-Neal, SHAPE America Board of Directors member and physical education teacher at Wherry Elementary School in Albuquerque, NM, piloted the program last spring — and recognized the impact on her students immediately. 18
Momentum • Fall 2019
Students at Wherry Elementary take a Mindful Minute before class starts.
“After the first lesson, I could really see kids make that connection between what they were doing and the concept behind it,” says Paulls-Neal. “Mindfulness was a hard lesson for my kids to really calm their mind and calm their body, but once they got it, you could see that they felt better.” When the health. moves. minds. lessons are incorporated into the curriculum, students learn that everyone has complex, sometimes challenging emotions and there are skills and strategies to better manage those emotions. The program helps health and physical educators teach those social and emotional skills, while also fostering a love of physical activity. Teachers can easily modify each lesson to meet their students’ specific needs — or use the lesson in its entirety. FLEXIBLE FUNDRAISING The health. moves. minds. pilot schools loved having the flexibility to fundraise in whatever way would make the biggest impact on their school — while also providing an option to give back to the community.
The health. moves. minds. program provides schools with an easy-to-use online platform with two fundraising options: • O ption 1: 50% of funds raised from the school’s program benefits the school directly in the form a Gopher gift card, which never expires! Use the money to purchase health and physical education equipment or school wellness resources for your school. Schools selecting this option will also receive a special matching bonus from Gopher — an additional 10% of total funds raised! • Option 2: “Pay it forward” and make an impact in your community by selecting a local charity to split the funds raised by your school. Schools selecting this option will receive 25% of funds raised from your school’s program in the form a Gopher gift card. The remaining 25% will go to the local charity of choice in the form a check from SHAPE America on the school’s behalf.