Run Forrest, run

[Gob]

A primary school where children are made to run a mile every day has proved so successful in tackling obesity it could soon be introduced nationwide.



Teachers at St Ninians school in Stirling have sent pupils out for the daily run for the last four years and claim it has improved their behaviour as well as their fitness.

Given the popularity of the scheme, a campaign has now been launched to persuade all primary schools across the UK to copy the model.

Five hundred other primaries across Britain have already adopted the scheme as part of their drive to cut childhood obesity.

Daily miles are now run in schools in London, Gateshead, Wales and other parts of Scotland, with 30 schools in Stirling alone taking part.



Children from Hallfield Primary in London were today pictured with ex-Olympian Iwan Thomas, Made in Chelsea's Nicola Hughes and Chloe Lewis from TOWIE taking part in a mile run.

They were also joined by proud headteacher of St Ninians, Elaine Wyllie, who started the scheme at her Stirling primary.

She said: 'The thought of children across the country running every day because of something we've done is phenomenal.

'It's a commonsense approach to children's fitness, which is free and easy. The most important thing is that the children really enjoy it, otherwise you couldn't sustain it. They come back in bright-eyed and rosy-cheeked, how children used to look. It's joyous to see.'

She added: 'We want all schools to give their children the opportunity to run a mile each day.

'It only takes fifteen minutes and has been shown to improve their health, fitness and concentration in class.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z43CiV6eMf

[RayThom]

This doesn't bode well.

I see this school being accused of child abuse and obese parents filing law suits.

Exercise kills!

[Gob]

on the same day...

Obese children too ashamed to exercise with peers should be taught in their own segregated PE classes, a council leader says.



Schools should introduce classes such as 'football for the obese' helping overweight children to become fitter so they can eventually rejoin their classmates.

Councillor Richard Kemp, deputy wellbeing chairman for the Local Government Association, said it is 'common sense' that larger children feel uncomfortable exercising with their thinner peers.

He said he had spoken to a child who would not do PE because he was 'ashamed of his own body'.

Today, he also backed Chancellor George Osborne's plans to introduce a tax on sugary drinks and called for any revenue raised to be ploughed into funding primary school sports.

'One of the problems is that all our experience shows that children who are already obese stay away from school sports and fitness activities because they are ashamed of their bodies,' he said.

'I believe we need to target the money to prevention but also then taking the obese kids out and doing things for them, swimming lessons for the obese and football for the obese to get them to a level where they are not ashamed of themselves so they can join in with normal activity.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/artic ... z43DU3SoxM

[MajGenl.Meade]

There's a lot to be said for shame

[Long Run]

Add to this the recent experiments which show having several recess breaks improves elementary school student academic focus and performance (as if we had to relearn that, but sadly we did).

[Burning Petard]

The reduction in school time for recess, art, music is a direct result of recognition that public schools in the USofA are doing a lousy job. So let's get back to the basics, and accountability, and data based methods, and result based rewards.

Which process brings to the forefront the real truth about public schools in America: General agreement they are not working. This leads to 'teach to the test' which confirms the schools are not working. Hypothesis: teach to the test does not work because the tests do not measure what is actually wanted. Conclusion: there is no general agreement on what public schools are supposed to do, beyond teach behavior to sit quietly and not cause trouble to authority

snailgate

[Big RR]

There's a lot to be said for shame

I don't know, my guess is that, rather than promoting fitness, usually winds up with a lot of obese, angry adults.

than again , forcing kids into a "Football for the Obese" class is a kind of shaming all on its own, isn't it? I doubt it will catch on.

[rubato]

There's a lot to be said for shame

It can be a powerful force and long lasting but the effects are difficult to control.


Pain and the fear of can cause people to decompensate in complex ways.


as to the OP: good job.


yrs,
rubato

[wesw]

[n jr and sr high, we had to start gym class with a run around the 1/4 mile track on outdoor days....

...at our own pace. if you could run you ran, if you had to walk some or all of the distance you did that...., either way you got some exercise...