DoralAcademy Elementary CharterSchool

Wellness Policies: Nutritionand Fitness

Wellness Policy Provided by Ileana M. Gomez

Setting Nutrition Education Goals

NutritionAcademic performance and quality of life issues are affected by the choice andavailability of good foods in our school. Healthy foods support student physicalgrowth, brain development, resistance to disease, emotional stability, and ability tolearn.

(a) Nutrition guidelines that require the use of products that are high in fiber, lowin added fats, sugar and sodium, and served in appropriate portion sizesconsistent with USDA standards shall be established for all foods offered bythe district's Nutrition Services Department or contracted vendors. Menu andproduct selection shall utilize student, parent, staff and community advisorygroups whenever possible.

(b) Nutrition services policies and guidelines for reimbursable meals shall not bemore restrictive than federal and state regulations require.

Health Education and Life SkillsHealthy living skills shall be taught as part of the regular instructional programand provides the opportunity for all students to understand and practiceconcepts and skills related to health prom otion and disease prevention.

(a) Each school shall provide for an interdisciplinary, sequential skill-basedhealth education program based upon state standards and benchmarks.

(b) Students shall have access to vali~ ~P,l useful health information and healthpromotion products and services. \\ \ (

(c) Students shall have tne opportUfli~o practice behaviors that enhance health" ,'-.C

and/or reduce health risks during theochool day and as part of before orafter school programs.

(d) Students shall be taught communication, goal setting and decision makingskills that enhance personal, family and community health.

Nutritional Education:

(a) School:School is involved in "Get Fit Doral" Kick-off to Wellness Program. TheSchool goal is to inform the community of Doral the importance of includinggood nutrition and physical activity on a daily basis. This program allows thecommunity to get involved in various activities, such as aerobics, walk-athon, yoga, jazz-athon and martial arts. Local companies are also broughtin to promote healthy eating choices, like low fat milk and cereal bars. TheSchool will put Posters throughout the year in order to promote good eatinghabits and healthy food options. Physical Education teachers will provideinformation on good 'nutrition, and identify health-related problemsassociated with poor diet, physical inactivity, and being overweight.

(b) Parents:Parents will be encouraged to participate in promoting and attendingsem inars on "Get Fit" wellness Program that will take part on a regular basisin Doral Academy Elementary School. The school will also support parents'effort to provide a healthy diet and daily physical activity for their children.The school will send home nutritional information, post nutrition tips onschool website or through school flyers. School should encourage parentsto pack healthy lunches and snacks. Such support will also include sharinginformation about physical activity and physical education through thewebsite.

(c) Students:Students are currently involved in decisions of improving the lunch menu,and have com pleted a questionnaire during class meetings. Students arelimited to healthy choice options that will achieve a balanced, healthy diet.The results of the questionnaire have appeared in an improved menu,beginning with more choices of vegetables and whole wheat bread.Students are engaging in classroom activities that teach them how to readand understand nutrition information on a food label in order to enable them

to make better food choices.'~: ~\\!

~/Setting Physical Activity Goals

Goal: Students in Doral Academy will increase their cardiovascular activity.

Objective: Given instruction using the Com petency Based Curriculum, students ingrades 2-5 will increase their cardiovascular endurance by 50% as evidenced byquarterly fitness assessments documented in teacher quarterly fitness logs.

. Warm-ups will include a cardiovascular component such as front kicks,jumping jacks or running laps.

. Students will be provided with a "Healthy Heart Calendar" so that they canperform the daily activities described at home.

. Students will learn to detect their resting heart rate such as fitness motivatorgam es, tag games, and aerobic stations.

. Students will participate in aerobic exercise routines such as, blocks ofmovement and sequence with music, lasting 20 minutes or more.

. Students will participate in a fitness program targeting both general fitness(muscular endurance and flexibility) and cardiovascular endurance.

Establishing Nutrition Standards for All Foods Available onSchool Campus duringthe School Day

Nutrition services policies and guidelines for reimbursable meals shall not be morerestrictive than federal and state regulations require.

School Meals: Meals served through the National School Lunch will:a) Be appealing and attractive to childrenb) Be served in clean and pleasant settingc) Meet, at a minimum, nutrition requirements established by local,and federal statutes and regulations.d) Serve only low-fat (1%) white, chocolate, or strawberry milk.

state,

Vending Machines: All beverage vending machines in all faculty/staff areas atschool and district sites shall include:

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a. water '~:

b. 100% fruit juice ~. ~/ .,

c.non-carbonated drinks with>less than,:;fSO calories per container

Setting Goals for Other School-Based Activities Designed toPromate Student Wellness

Staff WellnessThe district and each work site shall provide inform ation about wellness resourcesand services and establish a staff committee to assist in identifying and supportingthe health, safety and well being of site staff.

(a) Each school and district site shall be in compliance with drug, alcohol andtobacco free policies.

(b) Each school and district site shall provide an accessible and productive workenvironment free from physical dangers or emotional threat that is as safe aspossible and consistent with applicable occupation and health laws, policiesand rules.

(c) Employees shall be encouraged to engage in daily physical activitythe workday via a walking club that will be established.

(d) Our school will also use the Commit 2 B Fit for students and teachers as aresource to encourage better nutrition and increase physical activity.

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. Link below to access the Commit 2 8 Fit site: http://www.commit2bfit.org/

Setting Goals for Measurement and Evaluation

The designee will ensure com pliance with established nutrition and physical activitywellness policies and will report on the schools compliance to the school principal.

School food service staff, at the school, will ensure com pliance with nutritionpolicies within the school food service areas and will report on this matter to theschool principal. In accordance with the Department of Education, Food andNutrition Dept., an SMI review will be done once every five years and will report allfindings and resulting changes to the school district.

To help with the initial development of the district's wellness policies, the schoolwill conduct a baseline assessment of the school's existing nutrition and physicalactivity environments and policies, and revise the policies and develop work plans

to facilitate their implementation every th~E?e~~ars.

All hand-outs and fliers as~ociated >WIth'1ffe'~t Fit" Doral wellness will be storedat the school site in order to ensure that<'Caliactivities are documented and

compli~d with, using the current wellness policy. Also, questionnaires completedby students and faculty will continue to be revised in order to reach goals ofattaining a balanced, healthy diet. This data will be stored in the wellness folderwith all related documents of improving nutrition and fitness at Doral AcademyCharter Elementary School.