Our Nutrition Educators at Concord Elementary show off their fancy walking outfits and Healthy Heart poster!

Last week, two schools went the extra mile (or 10!) to ensure their hearts stay happy and healthy! In honor of Valentine’s Day, our School-Based Nutrition Educators held Healthy Heart Valentine’s Week Challenges at Concord and Emerson Elementary Schools, two of the site schools where Apple Corps Members are placed. Each school had a unique health promotion developed by our Members that educated and encouraged students and staff to stay active throughout the day.

Ms. Kelly cheering on track runners during gym!

At Concord Elementary, Nutrition Educators Kelly and Amelia partnered with Concord’s gym teacher for a week-long running promotion. During gym class every day, students received a mini-lesson on heart health before racing outside to log laps on the school’s track. Students’ miles count three times: for themselves, for their class, and for their school! Here’s how:

1) Individuals earn a colorful foot bead for every mile they complete.
2) Classes compete against each other for the most class miles. The class with the most miles wins a Valentine’s Day smoothie party
3) The entire school works together to see how far they can travel. As of the end of the day on Wednesday, the school had run 491 miles, which is enough to make it over the Oregonian border and into California! What’s our goal destination?? One of them is Concord, California! Concord, CA lies 790 miles south of Seattle and the Cougar runners are hoping to arrive there — or beyond — by Friday afternoon

As a school, Concord Elementary walked 861 miles! That’s all the way to Monterey, California! Well done, Concord Cougars!

Meanwhile, over at Emerson Elementary, Apple Corps Members Lisa and Randa not only challenged students to get moving, but also the teachers and staff! Among students, classrooms competed to see who could take the most steps throughout the week using clip-on pedometers provided by the Washington Dairy Council. The winning class earned a delicious and healthy parfait party on Valentine’s Day.

Students and teachers celebrated Valentine’s Day with healthy fruit and yogurt parfait parties!

Along with students, teachers and staff also competed with each other for a chance to win a healthy gift basket packed with yummy snacks and fun gift cards. The Healthy Heart Walking Competition was such a hit within the school, several staff and classrooms plan to continue to use the pedometers and integrate them into future math lessons!

Emerson students wrote Valentine’s Day cards to their healthy hearts, pledging to take good care of them through physical activity and nutritious food!