By: Bryan O’Farrell, Chester T Sewell Elementary School

Play: Walk this Way — Start a Walking Club

Topics:

• Community Involvement
• Physical Activity Participation

Fuel Up to Play 60 students at C.T. Sewell Elementary have started a morning walking and jogging program that help us get moving in the morning! Students come and run/walk laps around the field and are encouraged to get as much exercise as possible before the school day starts. Parents and peers cheer on the students as they compete to see how many laps they can complete each day. Students are rewarded when they complete mileage cards.

What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?

We were concerned about how we would get the word out for our Walking Club. We started with a small group and as other students saw the fun, the excitement was contagious!

What improvements have you seen at your school?

I have seen greater cooperation and teamwork among the students and I anticipate an improvement in our PACER and mile run scores this year!

How do you plan to make this play last during the school year and beyond?

Now that we have established a successful program, I do not see any reason we could not continue this walking/jogging program year after year.