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Health & Wellness

Recent brain research makes a clear case that students are simply not active enough. By increasing student activity, achievement will rise and negative behaviors will decrease.
Ludlow-Taylor prioritizes our mission to maximize student outcomes academically, socially, and physically. It was one of ten schools chosen to join the new DCPS School Design Lab for the 2018-2019 school year. We will focus on developing a Health and Wellness program modeled around Spark, a Harvard-researched book that explains the connection between exercise and the brain. The foundational shifts for this program will begin with the following activities: 

The Mission: At Ludlow-Taylor ES, we feel that it is our mission to maximize student outcomes academically, socially, and physically.  By examining incredible research from Dr. John Ratey in Spark, we are confident that with strategic planning around a health-positive school structure, students’ chances of having the most successful, healthy and joyful lives beyond LTES will dramatically improve. 
 
The Research: According to the Center for Disease Control, “in the United States, the percentage of children and adolescents affected by obesity has more than tripled since the 1970s, with data from 2015-2016 showing that nearly 1 in 5 school age children and young people (6 to 19 years) in the United States has obesity.”  There is an additional 30% of children on the cusp of having obesity.  Additionally, according to Brain Rules by John Medina, “children who are fit, have a higher ability to access cognitive resources to a task and do so for a longer period of time.” We can infer from this that students do not access to sufficient physical activity and nutritional instruction during the school-day, negatively impacting student physical health, while also not allowing for maximum learning opportunities. 
 
The Plan: Working with multiple partners across Washington, DC, we plan to include the following components in the first year of our school design, connected via our mission of every Ludlow-Taylor student, staff and community member finding the best version of themselves:
  • Staff Wellness: Recognizing the importance of staff wellness, ample opportunities will be provided for exercise and/or mental health support, including: group exercise classes, school wellness center, extended daily breaks, staff clubs and mental health support.
  • Spark Block/Boost: All students will begin everyday with a "Spark Block," additional movement time from 8:05-8:35. 
  • Physical Education as Fitness Curriculum: The goal of physical education classes will be to “develop healthy habits, skills, a sense of fun, along with knowledge of how the body works.”  Students will also receive Health and Physical Education twice a week, in addition to the daily Spark Block/Boost.
  • Multiple Recess Times: All students will have 40 minutes of recess divided into two blocks.
  • Nutrition/Science Class: Student will learn about healthy eating in FoodPrints. They will also have science class with the addition of a full-time science instructor for the 2019-2020 school year.
  • Health-Positive Environment: Current school infrastructure will be redesigned to enhance health-positive outcomes for students and adults, including a beautiful new multipurpose room with a dedicated physical education space.
  • Classroom Brain Boosts: Classrooms will incorporate brain and body breaks, to enhance current curriculum and instructional practice.  Teachers will be trained to include one to five-minute classroom activities, allowing the body and brain to stay active, such as: mindful minutes, quick yoga, group dance, stretching, etc.
  • Whole Child Collaborative: Our school will begin implementing a comprehensive social-emotional learning program through the Whole Child Collaborative.

Design Team

The program is being developed by a Design Tea. Members are:
  • Miriam Kenyon, DCPS Health and PE Director
  • Coach Smith, LT PE Instructor
  • Ms. Addison, LT Asst. Principal
  • Ms. Miller, LT Occupational Therapist
  • Ms. Hippolyte, LT Science/FoodPrints Instructor

Submit feedback

The model is a work in progress. Please feel free to provide feedback, to help us as we continue to plan.

Questions?

Please contact Principal Smith.