July 28, 2010
Today was the last “Workout Wednesday” at Smith, and I think we ended on a high note!  Thank you so much to Kate, Brenda, her 2 children, Megan and Brian, and to Amanda for their awesome teaching and relating to the students.  Their energy was amazing!  We had 2 bigger groups today, and we managed to keep them busy with parachute games the entire time.  The kids walked, ran, made waves, skipped, sang, slithered and much more – the whole while laughing and smiling.  It was so much fun to see the children's faces (and adults too) as I looked across to the other end of the parachute. 

I also asked each group what we talked about last week.  To my surprise they were able to recall more than I would have expected.  They talked about energy, calories and exercise and many of the students were able to tell me that it took longer to burn off a hot cheeto  and a Hershey’s kiss than a baby carrot or a piece of mango because they contained fat (and sugar in the case of the Hershey’s kiss).  Sometimes there is more learning happening than we realize!  On a different note, when I asked the kids to name an ocean for one of the parachute activities, they gave me answers such as lake, Myrtle Beach and seashells.  Finally, one boy in the 1st group said the Atlantic  and a girl in the 2nd group said the Pacific.  But, both of these students are the children of the director of this summer program.  I wonder how many of these kids have been to the ocean...

Regardless, this experience truly helped me to get a better foot in the door at YE Smith, and I believe will allow me to put into place several programs that relate to wellness in the upcoming school year.  It has helped me to think outside the box, and my creative juices are flowing.