Impact:
Elementary Schools
2019-2020
100 Sites, 61,490 children, 4,107 teachers
Good health starts early in life. And elementary school is a formative time when all kids should have the chance to be active and try healthy foods – not only to fuel their development and focus, but their confidence and interest in choosing healthy habits throughout their lives.
HealthMPowers offers a comprehensive, multi-year approach to building a culture of health that brings fresh nutrition and physical activity experiences – and empowering messages – to elementary school students and their families.
Results from our 2019-2020 Health Empowered elementary schools reveal:
Transforming Environments
- School health teams implemented a total of 116 new policies and processes to improve nutrition and physical activity
Empowering Healthy Habits
- 53% consumed 2+ fruits per day, compared with 40% of students nationally
- 25% met vegetable consumption recommendations of 3+ per day, compared with 7% nationally
- 49% participated in moderate to vigorous physical activity at least 5 times per week
- 47% consumed water 4 or more times during the day
Family Engagement
Reaching families is a critical part of empowering healthy habits for children. Last year, families from 181 Early Care and Elementary sites were engaged through family presentations on healthy eating and nutrition that reached 11,542 participants, and “Weekly Wellness” text messaging reaching 2,943 new participants. These resources enable family members to model healthy physical activities and nutrition for their children, encouraging active instruction about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.
After participating in the Elementary family text messaging program:
- 75% plan to eat more vegetables and 71% plan to eat more fruits.
- 70% plan to be more physically active.