54 Providers for a Healthy School
By Mary Kathryn Poole, MPH, Program Director, Let’s Move Pittsburgh
Last month, Let’s Move Pittsburgh and Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC launched Raise Your Hand for Health, a resource guide of health and wellness resources available to schools in Allegheny County. This guide is designed to be used by school administrators, teachers, school wellness committees, parents, caregivers, students, and public health professionals. By compiling this list of 54 providers in one booklet, we hope to make it easier for school leaders to connect with providers, and bring health and wellness programs to their schools. In the long-term, these programs will help children move closer to practicing 5-2-1-0 — 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables, 2 hours or less of recreational screen time, 1 hour or more of physical activity, and 0 sugary drinks and more water — every day!
Even if you don’t work at a school, you can let your principal know about the booklet. Let’s take a look inside the Raise Your Hand for Health guide to see how it might be useful to you and your child’s school. The guide features brief profiles on providers of school-based nutrition, physical activity/recreation, positive youth development, and school wellness services. Next to each profile, you will see a series of icons that indicate the type of service, program fee, target age group, target geographic region, time of day, and evaluation component. These icons are intended to make it easier for readers to find a service that best suits their needs. We also feature success stories next to some of the providers, in order to highlight the program impact on students and the school environment.
Here is a sample of services that can make it easier for your child to practice 5-2-1-0 at school:
5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables every day:
• Establish a thriving school garden program featuring a vegetable garden and garden lessons with Grow Pittsburgh.
• Help students learn how to prepare healthy foods with Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank’s Kids Cook program.
2 hours or less of recreational screen time every day:
• Make screen time count by using GoNoodle in the classroom.
• Encourage students to step away from the screen and participate in Peaceful Playground’s We Count Pedometer Walking Program.
1 hour of more of physical activity every day:
• Start a running program with Pittsburgh Three Rivers Marathon’s Kids of STEEL program and participate in the annual marathon festivities.
• Spend time in the great outdoors with a variety of physical activity programs offered by Venture Outdoors.
0 sugary drinks and more water every day:
• Empower students, families, teachers, and communities with knowledge of nutritious beverages and foods through Adagio Health’s Power Up program.
• Invite Jump with Jill to sing and rap about water and milk at your school.
Download your free copy of Raise Your Hand for Health to help your child’s school get started on building a healthier school environment!
This article is an effort of Let’s Move Pittsburgh’s 5-2-1-0 initiative to help Pittsburgh’s youth practice 5-2-1-0 — 5 or more servings of fruits and vegetables, 2 hours or less of recreational screen time, 1 hour or more of physical activity, and 0 sugary drinks and more water — every day!
Learn more at letsmovepittsburgh.org/5210. Let’s Move Pittsburgh, a collaborative program of Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, provides Southwestern Pennsylvania’s children and their caregivers with the knowledge, tools, and support needed to make nutritious food choices and lead active lifestyles. Learn more at letsmovepittsburgh.org and follow the group on Facebook and Twitter.
