Promoting Physical Activity to Enhance Student Health and Learning

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Promoting Physical Activity to Enhance Student Health and Learning

North Brandywine Middle School students having fun while getting fit.

Promoting Physical Activity to Enhance Student Health and Learning

How do you encourage an entire middle school to get physically active during the school day?

At the North Brandywine Middle School, at least part of the answer has been Fit Fridays—a program that for the last hour of every other Friday had all 510 students, plus teachers and staff, up out of their seats. With the emphasis on having fun while raising awareness regarding the importance of being physical fit, some students interacted with a classroom exercise video. Others flocked to teacher-led exercise stations of their choice, including soccer, aerobics, rope jumping and Pilates.

“It’s really been beneficial for the kids,” says Jaimie Blankley, one of the school’s physical education teachers. “The goal is for them to understand that they can exercise without even leaving their homes or spending money at a fitness club, simply by doing such things as jumping jacks, dynamic stretching, aerobic activities and power walking.”

Fit Friday was a unique solution developed by North Brandywine’s own health council, a group comprised of administrators, teachers, staff and parents following the compilation of a school health index and needs assessment. With the support of the Brandywine Health Foundation, Bethann Cinelli, D.Ed., a professor of health education at West Chester University, has helped all of the Coatesville Area School District’s elementary and middle schools establish health councils—which are based on a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Coordinated School Health program model.

“The Brandywine Health Foundation, the primary supporter of this initiative, understands how critical student health is to students’ academic success and learning,” says Cinelli. “They have been very strong advocates for student health and learning and have great vision regarding how to create healthy school communities.”

And the program has not only energized CASD students. Working out with his students during Fit Friday – and wanting to honor his late father, who passed away several years ago while running—inspired Jeffrey Cupano, North Brandywine’s principal and a former high school track runner, to get back in shape.

After toughing out the Festive 5K run, which benefits the Brandywine Health Foundation, he committed himself to running a half-marathon. Rising at 4:30 a.m., he ran about three miles every other morning and ran up to 10 miles on Saturdays. “I’d go out for me but also for my dad, to keep that connection,” says Cupano, who is in his mid-30s.

Losing about a dozen pounds, he made good on his goal by completing the September 2011 Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon in less than two-and-a-half hours. “Now I really feel great,” reports Cupano, who is truly a great role model for his students.