“You have changed the way I see Physical Education, “You have inspired my husband and me to play tennis”, “You make health and wellness fun.” These are quotes from my co-workers, by no means am I the best Physical Education teacher in the world or in my department for that matter. However, I have discovered a powerful tool to promote health PhysED, HealthEd, and Wellness.
Wellness week is a school-wide celebration of Wellness, similar to a spirit week for homecoming; each day has a theme devoted to a healthy habit. I am sure many of you overachievers that are reading this blog have so much on your plate. However, wellness week could be simple for you to implement at your school.
Step 1: Search far and wide for individuals in your school and community who want to help promote the dimensions of Wellness.
Step 2: Then start looking at the statical data from the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey and finding out what habits were most relevant to the state and community you teach in.
Step 3: Using the data from step 2, create a fun theme for each day related to a healthy habit. For example, Fitness Friday- “Wear workout clothing or sports gear.” This is a great way to get both students and teachers involved because everyone loves dressing down.
Other Ideas: Ask the community, local businesses, and PTA to provide prizes (nonfood related) for your participants that take part in Wellness week competitions.
Physical Activity Challenge: Challenge each homeroom to log the most physical activity outside of school. I use a Microsoft form to calculate the numbers.
Steps Challenge: I print out large charts for teachers to log their steps for the week; we have had six teams compete to get the most steps in a week.
Public Service Announcement: Allow students to make a PSA for a topic related to your wellness week and play it on the morning announcement.
Door Decorating Competition: Teachers and students create a classroom door related to a health-related topic they want to advocate for.
But Why? Advertisement is a billion-dollar industry for a reason – it works! I figured out that if I am not advocating for Physical Education, Health, and Wellness, who will?
If you made it this far, thanks so much for your time, and I hope this helps you.
If you would like more information on Wellness Week, check out this video:
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