Have a Healthy, Happy Summer!

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Students at MES and WES have had their last health class for the year. We wrapped up the year by discussing and practicing some ways to stay healthy and safe over the summer break.



First grade does partner yoga! Photo credit- Eileen Turner

Yoga and Mindfulness

We practiced yoga and mindfulness, as great ways to beat the heat and cool and calm our bodies and minds after active days in the sun!

Some of my favorite resources for yoga at home are Cosmic Kids Yoga for younger kids, and Yoga with Adrienne for older kids and adults. For mindfulness, I love the FLOW channel on GoNoodle and Kinderling Kids Bedtime Explorers and Daytime Explorers.

Accident Prevention 

We discussed accident and injury prevention- wearing helmets while biking or rollerblading, never swimming without an adult (some classes watched the American Red Cross water safety videos), wearing sunscreen or sun protective clothing and looking both ways before crossing the street.

Nutrition

Summer is a great time to try a new food, and many students in the kindergarten class at MES decided that octopus was a new food they would like to try, so apologies to any parents who have been asked to purchase and prepare octopus. They were inspired by some images in the book STEAM-Powered Food Adventures for Curious Kids by by Arielle Dani Lebovitz (Author) and Mary Navarro (Illustrator).

Arielle Dani Lebovitz is a Registered Dietician Nutritionist and has many great resources for helping kids eat a balanced diet on her Instagram page Kid Food Explorers. A few other excellent (Instagram) sources of information for kid nutrition that collectively transformed how I handle mealtimes with young ones at my own dinner table- I highly recommend giving them a follow! (They all also have websites if social media isn't your thing):
Dr. Taylor Arnold (PhD, RDN)

Screentime

Speaking of screens- one more resource to share for the summer- advice on managing screen time. Mx. Ash Brandin, EdS offers lots of advice to help families navigate this area with topics such as "How to Keep Your Kids Safer on Youtube" and "What to do When Ending Screen Time is a Battle." She helps families find a balance between the benefits that many kids and families see in screen time- peer interactions, relaxation, igniting a passion- and the drawbacks of over consumption. I've found her posts very informative and perspective changing on what a healthy relationship with tech can look like.

Movement

Part of that healthy relationship with tech is making sure that screen time doesn't take away from physical activity, and I know students are looking forward to lots of swimming, scootering, biking and hiking this summer. I can't wait to hear of their adventures when we return in September.

In PE class we recently spent some time under (and around) the giant parachute. Please enjoy these photos by Joanna vonRecklinghausen.


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