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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHuron Expositor, 2005-12-28, Page 14Page 14 December 28, 2005 • The Huron Expositor Do you have a sports tip? Call our newsroom at 527-0240 St. Anne's students punching their way to healthier lives through intramual program Jennifer Hubbard allEMEEND Students are taking over the gym at St. Anne's as they get a taste of the wide variety of sports that can improve overall health. Floor hockey, yoga, kick -boxing, aerobics and dance are just some of the activities taking place at the Clinton school during the lunch hour as part of the Youth Healthy Living intramural pro- gram, organized and run by senior students. "The program is basically for schools to encour- age students to be physically active, requiring them to build business plans, supervise activities and take ownership of a program," said Kim Ross -Jones, of Take Heart Huron, which is fund- ing the program through the Huron County Health Unit. Students in Laura Blackmore's Grade- 12 Recreation and Fitness Leadership class, received a $1,000 grant for the project, which they hope will continue through to next semester. "We could have used the money to buy sports equipment, but we didn't really need it, so we decided to set up an intramural program during lunch," Grade 12 student Philip Van Raay explained. Students instead used the grant to purchase prizes from local businesses to entice their peers to join in the lunch time activities. Instructors were also hired for try -me' Fridays featuring unique activities like self defense and dance. Jennifer Hubbard photo Floor hockey is just one of the many programs offered as part of the Youth Healthy Living intramur- al program at St. Anne's secondary school. Jennifer Hubbard photo Kick -boxing is just one of many activities that's offered as part of the Youth Healthy Living intramural prog- gram at St. Anne's secondary school. "The 'try-mes' are great because they are exposing youth who may not typically get involved in organized sports to something differ- ent in terms of physical activity with a real focus on fun," said Bonnie Baynham, of the health unit. Students take turns supervising the daily 30 minute lunch hour activities. Each day participants add their name to a bal- lot for the prize draws. Activities vary depending on the results of a survey completed by students before the program started, Van Raay added. "The class was basically responsible for doing a needs assessment of the population, creating a business plan and running the program," Blackmore explained. "I think this program has been very successful, simply because it is student -run. Students can promote it better through word of mouth, because it means more coming from a friend." Ross -Jones said the development of student health councils is also a great product of the overall program. Central Huron Secondary School is also partic- ipating in a variation of the Youth Healthy Living initiative. Teacher Jim Cooke said he has used the $1,000 grant to spruce up and promote usage of the schools already existing fitness centre. ,•! !!Itit i f;t tt t lc r. ti Ott tttti1 a 1:lltllffl 11il tit ftlt11111 Three new spinning bikes were purchased for the centre for $500, which has a 30 -person capac- ity. The remaining money was used to purchase fitness -related prizes for draws, to encourage stu- dents to spend more time in the centre. Programs have been set up for students at lunch and before and after school under Cooke's supervision. "Response has been great and the room has been quite full during lunch," he said. "We're really hoping to carry it on to the new year and get a few more staff members out to use the facility, while at the same time increasing the hours it is open. "It's a win-win situation." Cooke said he would eventually like to see the CHSS fitness centre develop so that it can be used by community members as well as students and staff. Goderich District Collegiate Institute and South Huron District High School in Exeter have also developed their own programs. "The benefits of this program are far reaching. There are always concerns about the healthy weights of teens, plus we know that when stu- dents engage in physical activity they are less likely to engage in other risky behaviour," Ross - Jones said.