A healthy start, one minute at a time

School initiative aims to curb childhood obesity

The morning announcements at River Terrace Elementary School in Northeast Washington began like every other day.

Two fifth-graders led the school in the Pledge of Allegiance and went over the day's happenings. They read the day's lunch menu: teriyaki chicken with a roll, baby carrots, applesauce and milk.

"Remember to eat your carrots," Najai Blanding said over the intercom. "They make your eyes strong."

River Terrace is one of 47 public and charter schools in the District participating in the Healthy Schools Program, an initiative from the Alliance for a Healthier Generation. The alliance, a partnership between the American Heart Association and the Clinton Foundation, aims to create healthier environments in schools, homes and communities to reduce childhood obesity.

Nationally, one in every three children is overweight. Obese children and adolescents are more likely to be at risk for cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. They are also more likely become obese adults, according to the CDC.

River Terrace Principal Shannon Foster reached out to the alliance last year and slowly began implementing healthful ideas into her school with the help of the School Wellness Council. The council includes teachers, a parent, the school nurse, the school social worker and the cafeteria manager. Foster said the initiative is woven into the entire school day.

"I think it is important for students to learn at school the benefits of healthy lifestyles," Foster said. "If we are able to do it here and get their families involved, it is a win-win."

Each day at 10 a.m., an hour into students' literacy block, the school's intercom announces it is time for the "jammin' minute." On a recent Thursday morning, the school's 150 students were instructed to get up, push in their chairs and get ready for a make-believe trip to a farm.

Pamela Allen's first grade students eagerly got out of their seats and began marching in place when the voice over the loudspeaker instructed them to begin walking on the farm. The students giggled when they were told to reach down and pick up eggs from a chicken. They stretched tall and worked their arms to milk cows.

"Oh, no! The pigs got out! Everybody run in place!" they were instructed.

The children squealed, ran in place and pretended to catch the pigs.

After riding a horse and walking back across the farm, they were told to take a deep breath and get back to work.