To implement the Wellness Policy, the following school district specific goals have been established:
Nutrition Education and Promotion: The school district will provide nutrition education and engage in nutrition promotion that help students develop lifelong healthy eating behaviors. The goal(s) for addressing nutrition education and nutrition promotion include the following:
- Provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health;
- Include enjoyable, developmentally-appropriate, culturally-relevant, and participatory activities, such as cooking demonstrations or lessons, promotions, taste-testing, farm visits, and school gardens;
- Promote fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, and healthy foods;
- Emphasize caloric balance between food intake and energy expenditure (promotes physical activity/exercise);
Physical Activity: The school district will provide students and staff with age and grade appropriate opportunities to engage in physical activity that meet federal and state guidelines, including the Iowa Healthy Kids Act. The goal(s) for addressing physical activity include the following:
- Promote the benefits of a physically active lifestyle and help students develop skills to engage in lifelong healthy habits;
- Engage students in moderate to vigorous activity during at least 50 percent of physical education class time;
- Encourage teachers to incorporate movement and kinesthetic learning approaches into core subject instructions when possible;
- Offer classroom health education that complements physical education by reinforcing the knowledge and self-management skills needed to maintain a physically active lifestyle.
Other School-Based Activities that Promote Student Wellness: The school district will support student, staff, and parents’ efforts to maintain a healthy lifestyle, as appropriate. The goal(s) for addressing other school district-based activities that promote student wellness include the following:
- Promote staff health and wellness;
- Permit students to bring and carry water bottles filled with water throughout the day;
- Make drinking water available where school meals are served during mealtimes;
- Strive to provide students with at least 10 minutes to eat after sitting down for breakfast and 20 minutes after sitting down for lunch;
- Discourage students from sharing foods or beverages during meal or snack times, given concerns about allergies and dietary needs;
Public Involvement: There is a process for permitting parents, students, representatives of the school district food authority, teachers of physical education, school district health professionals, the board, administrators, and the public to participate in the development, implementation, and periodic review and update of the policy through the following:
The school district has a local wellness policy committee to advise the school district on the development, implementation, and improvement of the school district wellness policy;
The superintendent or superintendent’s designee invites suggestions or comments concerning the development, implementation, and improvement of the school district wellness policy. As such, interested persons are encouraged to contact the superintendent or superintendent’s designee.
