The Seymour Community School District promotes healthy students by supporting wellness, good nutrition and regular physical activity as a part of the total learning environment. The district supports a healthy environment where students learn and participate in positive dietary and lifestyle practices. By facilitating learning through the support and promotion of good nutrition and physical activity, schools contribute to the basic health status of students. Improved health optimizes student performance potential.
The district provides a comprehensive learning environment for developing and practicing lifelong wellness behaviors. The entire school environment, not just the classroom, shall be aligned with healthy school district goals to positively influence a student’s understanding, beliefs and habits as they relate to good nutrition and regular physical activity.
The district will provide nutritional education and engage in nutrition promotion that:
- is offered at each building as part of a sequential, comprehensive, standards-based program designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to promote and protect their health;
- is part of not only health education classes, but also classroom instruction in subjects such as math, science, language arts, social sciences, and elective subjects;
- promotes fruits, vegetables, whole-grain products, low-fat and fat-free dairy products, healthy food preparation methods, and health-enhancing nutritional practices;
- emphasizes caloric balance between food intake and physical activity;
- links with meal programs, other foods, and nutrition-related community services; and
- includes training for teachers and other staff.
Physical Activity
A. The district will provide at least thirty (30) minutes of physical activity per day for students in kindergarten through fifth grade. The district will provide at least one-hundred twenty (120) minutes of physical activity per week for students in sixth through twelfth grade.
B. Physical Education
- The district will provide physical education that:
- is for all students in kindergarten through twelfth grade;
- is taught by a certified physical education teacher;
- includes students with disabilities; students with special health-care needs may be provided with alternative educational settings; and
- engages students in moderate to vigorous activity during physical education class time.
C. Daily Recess
- Elementary schools will provide recess for students that:
- is at least twenty (20) minutes a day;
- is preferably outdoors;
- encourages moderate to vigorous physical activity; and
- discourages extended periods (i.e., periods of two (2) or more hours) of inactivity.
- When activities, such as mandatory school-wide testing, make it necessary for students to remain indoors for long periods of time, schools should give students periodic breaks during which they are encouraged to stand and be moderately active.
D. Physical Activity and Discipline
- Employees should not use physical activity (e.g., running laps, pushups) as disciplinary action. Withholding opportunities for physical activity (e.g., recess, physical education) is discouraged.
Other Activities that Promote Student Wellness
A. For students to receive the nationally recommended amount of daily physical activity and for students to fully embrace regular physical activity as a personal behavior, students need opportunities for physical activity beyond the physical education class. Toward that end, the District will:
1. Integrate physical activity into classroom settings, by doing the following:
a. Offering classroom health education that compliments physical education by reinforcing the knowledge and self-management skills needed to maintain a physically active lifestyle and to reduce time spent on sedentary activities;
b. Discouraging sedentary activities, such as watching television, playing computer games, etc.;
c. Providing opportunities for physical activity to be incorporated into other subject lessons; and
d. Encouraging classroom teachers to provide short physical activity breaks between lessons or classes, as appropriate.
2. Market food in school in a manner consistent with nutritional education and health promotion, by doing the following:
a. Limiting food and beverage marketing to the promotion of foods and beverages that meet the nutritional standards for meals or for foods and beverages sold individually;
b. Prohibiting school-based marketing of brands promoting predominantly low-nutrition foods and beverages;
c. Promoting healthy foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat dairy products; and
d. Marketing activities that promote healthful behaviors.
3. Communicate with parents regarding providing students with a healthy diet and daily physical activity, by doing the following:
a. Sending home nutrition information and post nutrition tips on a school web site;
b. Encouraging parents to pack healthy lunches and snacks and to refrain from including beverages and foods that do not meet the established nutritional standards for individual foods and beverages;
c. Providing parents a list of foods that meet the school district’s snack standards, ideas for healthy celebrations/parties, rewards, and fundraising activities;
d. Asking parents or guardians to notify the school if their student has any food allergies or special dietary requirements;
e. Providing information about physical education and other physical activity opportunities before, during, and after the school day;
f. Supporting parents’ efforts to provide their children with opportunities to be physically active outside of school; and
g. Sharing information about physical activity and physical education through a web site and/or newsletter.
B. The district will also provide instruction concerning cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to all students, so that each student has completed instruction in CPR prior to their high school graduation. The district may offer this instruction as it deems appropriate, including offering it through its physical education program.
Other Activities that Promote Staff Wellness
A. The district values the health and well being of every staff member. Staff members are encouraged to plan and implement activities that support efforts to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Plan for Measuring Implementation of the Wellness Plan and Nutrition Guidelines
A. Wellness Policy Committee.
1. The district will establish a local wellness policy committee that may be comprised of any of the following: representatives of the board; representatives of the district; parents; students; representatives of the school food authority; and nutrition/wellness experts, including teachers of physical education and/or school health professionals.
2. The wellness policy committee and/or an individual designated by the committee will implement, monitor and evaluate/ measure the wellness policy. This committee and/or individual will report annually to the board and to the general public regarding these efforts.
B. Implementation
1. The committee and/or the designee will inform and update the public, including parents, students and the general community, about the content and implementation of the district’s wellness policy.
2. Each school and the district as a whole will periodically measure prepare reports regarding implementation of the district’s wellness policy. The report shall describe how the school and/or district are striving to implement the goals outlined in the policy.
C. Monitoring.
1. The superintendent, the principal at each school, and the committee and/or designee will ensure compliance with established district-wide nutritional and physical activity wellness policies.
2. Additionally, the following actions will occur:
a. food service staff, at the school or district level, will ensure compliance with nutritional policies within food service areas and will report on this matter to the superintendent or principal;
b. the school district will report on the most recent USDA School Meals Initiative (SMI) review findings and any resulting changes;
c. the Food Service Director and/or the superintendent will develop a summary report on school district-wide compliance with the school district’s wellness policy, based on input from schools within the school district; and
d. the report will be provided to the school board and also distributed to the district.
D. Policy Review
1. To help with the initial development of the district’s wellness policy, each school in the school district has conducted a baseline assessment of the school’s existing nutritional and physical activity environments and practices. The results of those school-by-school assessments will be compiled at the school district level to identify and prioritize needs.
2. Periodic assessments will be conducted to review implementation and compliance, to assess progress, and to determine areas in need of improvement. As part of that review, the committee and/or designee will do the following:
a. generally consider whether there exists an environment that supports healthy eating and physical activity;
b. review the nutritional and physical activity policies and practices to determine compliance with the district’s wellness policy;
c. consider the extent to which the district’s wellness policy compares to the model local wellness policy;
d. describe the progress the district has made in complying with its wellness policy and in comparing to the model local wellness policy;
e. provide to the board any recommended updates to the district’s wellness policy.
The committee and/or designee will make the assessment available to the general public. The board will revise the wellness policies and develop plans to facilitate their implementation.
First Reading Approved 11/14/2018 Second Reading Approved 12/17/2018