Post Tagged with: "AtlantiCare Healthy Schools Healthy Children"

ACS Receives Grants, Student Prizes from AtlantiCare to Support School Wellness Activities

Elementary students have new jump ropes, playground and soccer balls, hula hoops, toss and catch paddles and balls, and other play equipment thanks to a recent grant received from the AtlantiCare Healthy Schools, Healthy Children program. The program also recently rewarded elementary students who participated in a 4-week Walking Challenge.

The AtlantiCare grant provided $750 in funding to purchase new equipment for organized play during recess for students in kindergarten to the 5th grade. The new equipment will also be used by students in the Cougar Camp summer program. ACS was one of 63 public and non-public schools in southern New Jersey — from elementary to high school — that received grant funding this year from AtlantiCare.

Mrs. Hockenberry’s 2B class received fidget bracelets for walking 290 minutes in April in AtlantiCare’s 4-week Walking Challenge.

AtlantiCare congratulated the students in 10 elementary classes who, at various times during the school year, participated in a 4-week Walking Challenge and collectively racked up a total of 2,671 minutes of walking. This week, each student in the participating classes received a prize for their efforts, including water pouches, fidget bracelets, and stickers.

“We are very grateful to the AtlantiCare Healthy Schools, Healthy Children program for helping support our efforts to promote the health and wellness of our students,” said Chief School Administrator Karen Oblen.  “Spending time outdoors during recess and walking together as a class are two great ways for our younger students to get healthy exercise and studies show that it helps our students’ energy and creativity in the classroom.”

The 4-week Walking Challenge was among a number of health and wellness activities that ACS students participated in throughout the school year. ACS also recently applied for and was approved to receive an additional year-end grant of $300 from AtlantiCare that will support health and wellness initiatives in the next school year.

 

 

Students Sample Healthy Fruit & Spinach Smoothies for Green Mustache Day

Nearly 300 students from the 1st to 6th grades showed off their green mustaches on Wednesday, March 2 after sampling healthy smoothies during lunch made with fruit and spinach. It was all part of “Green Mustache Day,” a fun annual activity that ACS sponsors as part of its membership in the AtlantiCare Healthy Schools, Healthy Children program.

Photos were taken of groups of students after they sampled the smoothies and made green mustaches on their upper lips with the drink. Students who sampled the smoothies also received a green paper mustache as a fun reward. A number of faculty and staff also sampled the smoothies and posed for photos.

A staff panel selected three group photos to submit to an AtlantiCare contest. One of the photos could be selected to receive a $50 VISA card, which will go to the classroom of the students in the photo. The photos in the running are from Mrs. Meza’s 2nd grade class, Mrs. McCarthy’s 3rd grade class, and Ms. Lorick’s 5th grade class.

Thank you to the students in the middle school and high school cooking classes, under the direction of faculty member Ruby Lewis, who made four gallons of the smoothies for our students to sample, cutting up the fruit and adding them with other ingredients into a blender.

For families who would like to try making this healthy smoothie at home, here’s the recipe that makes 32 ounces:

2 ripe frozen bananas
1 apple, chopped
2 cups fresh chopped spinach (can also use kale)
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup cold water